Meet...
Niels Ersbøll
Presenter
Niels Christian Ersbøll is a partner in the EU Antitrust practice, chair of the European Competition practice, and head of the Brussels office. He mainly advises clients on EU competition law in relation to merger control, cartels and restrictive practices, and abuse of dominance, where he has more two decades’ experience. Niels also has significant expertise in advising clients on EU sanctions and export control matters.
He has assisted clients in obtaining merger control clearance on a number of significant transactions before the European Commission and coordinating submissions to competition authorities worldwide for clients such as Pfizer, Boston Scientific and AT&T. He has significant experience assessing filing requirements, devising strategy, dealing with review and designing and negotiating remedies.
In relation to cartels, Niels has successfully acted for companies seeking leniency (immunity as well as fine reductions) before the European Commission, he has appeared before the EU General Court on appeal of European Commission decisions, and is advising on follow-on damage claims. Recently, Niels also has represented individual directors in cartel proceedings, and acted for a whistle blower. He also has significant experience helping clients with designing and implementing compliance measures and conducting internal investigations and audits.
Outside investigations related work, Niels regularly advises clients in relation to, for example, distribution and pricing arrangements, parallel trade, and various forms of cooperation agreements and strategic alliances between competitors. He acts for clients in many industries, and has particular experience within the life sciences, media and the transport & logistics sectors.
As a reflection of his deep understanding of the industry, since the declaration of the Covid-19 pandemic, Niels has also been working extensively with the vaccine industry to advise on a multitude of aspects of vaccine and antiviral procurement by governments and international organisations including the EU, the African Union, COVAX and CARICOM.
Moreover, Niels also regularly advises clients on EU sanctions questions, notably in rapidly changing regulatory environments, especially regarding EU sanctions on Russia. He helps companies establish EU sanctions compliance plans and commercial strategies as well as obtaining authorisations from competent Member States authorities.
