Michael J. Esser

Michael’s experience includes, among others, advising:

Merger Control

• DuMont on antitrust aspects of the:
  • Sale of Mitteldeutsche Zeitung media group
  • Sale of Hamburger Morgenpost
• REWE on the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office merger review process of Edeka/Kaiser’s Tengelmann; and in the proceeding of the ministerial approval (before the German Ministry for Economics) and the subsequent litigation before the Court of Appeals*

Antitrust Investigations and Litigation

• Lufthansa in its defense before the Düsseldorf Court of Appeals and the Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof, BGH) against a prohibition on decision of the German FCO
• A global technology company in an investigation by the FCO regarding the client’s paramount significance for competition across markets
• Vodafone (formerly: Unitymedia) in damages proceedings against Deutsche Telekom relating to abusive practices in the use of cable ducts
• An international payment provider in its defense against damage claims before German courts following the EC investigation into multilateral interchange fees
• NEC in the European Commission’s investigation into DRAM semiconductors, the first settlement of a horizontal cartel case with the Commission*
• A technology company on possible cartel investigations in a number of product markets
• An infrastructure company in an investigation by the Federal Cartel Office and the public prosecutor’s office regarding alleged anti-competitive agreements in bidding procedures for the public award of construction projects
• A satellite operator in a proceeding concerning the allocation of satellite frequencies for on-flight internet services

*Matter handled prior to joining Latham