Competition Law
UK Guide 2025 : London (Firms)
Band 5
Contact number
(020) 7400 8000About
Provided by Bristows LLP
We are experts in both national and EU competition law, with a long track record of representing clients before the competition authorities and courts in Brussels, Luxembourg and the UK.
We provide support to clients across the board, from devising bespoke compliance systems that are appropriate to each client, to advising on the competition law risks arising from commercial strategies or agreements.
Our deep sector knowledge of the life sciences and technology spaces gives us an edge, and we apply this experience and expertise to help clients prepare for the markets and legal challenges of the future.
Our clients instruct us to advise them on the competition risks arising out of issues as diverse as supply and distribution agreements, complex joint venture or other horizontal cooperation arrangements, in-licences and out licences of technology, abuse of dominance and antitrust investigations.
We also assist our clients when they face individual investigations, often commenced by unannounced inspections or dawn raids.
Our competition litigation team is truly unusual, being made up of lawyers who have both an in-depth knowledge of competition law and extensive experience of litigation. For example, a group of specialists within the Patent Litigation group works seamlessly with the Competition Law group to provide assistance in SEP/FRAND disputes. Our clients (patentees, implementers or patent pools) trust the team to really ‘get’ the issues in this field.
Chambers Review
Bristows is a popular choice with clients from the technology and pharmaceutical sectors for advice on the full range of competition law matters. The law firm has experience in merger clearance and NSIA filings, as well as in behavioural complaints, appeals against authority decisions and damages actions. Team members also have experience in subsidy control matters. The law firm is known for its ability to handle matters that overlap between intellectual property and competition law.
Work Highlights
- Bristows acted for CMA CGM on the UK merger control aspects of its EUR4.65 billion acquisition of Bolloré's logistics unit.
Strengths
Provided by Chambers
"The team is really prompt at responding and giving realistic and genuine timeframes. Expectations are extremely well managed."
"Advice is never provided in a vacuum, but always with an eye for practical and commercial considerations."
"Responses are always prompt and provide the level of detail required."
"The extensive experience of the Bristows team has been invaluable in terms of relevance to our own issues and has always been provided within the context of our commercial objectives."
"The law firm is highly knowledgeable, efficient and respectable. Bristows is able to handle complex matters with a dynamic team across legal disciplines."
"The team is really prompt at responding and giving realistic and genuine timeframes. Expectations are extremely well managed."
"Advice is never provided in a vacuum, but always with an eye for practical and commercial considerations."
"Responses are always prompt and provide the level of detail required."
"The extensive experience of the Bristows team has been invaluable in terms of relevance to our own issues and has always been provided within the context of our commercial objectives."
"The law firm is highly knowledgeable, efficient and respectable. Bristows is able to handle complex matters with a dynamic team across legal disciplines."
Notable Practitioners
Sophie Lawrance defends high-profile clients against allegations of abuse of dominance. She also has experience acting for interested third parties on appeals against authority decisions. She has a number of clients from the technology and pharmaceutical sectors.
"She is a very knowledgeable lawyer who has detailed analytical thinking. You know that she will think about any question you ask in a thorough and precise way which gives me a lot of comfort."
"She asks the right questions and challenges them at the right time. She is very pleasant to work with and, importantly, she is also someone with whom you can have an open conversation about anything."
"She is highly competent in competition matters and is detail-oriented."
"Sophie Lawrance is really sharp, picks up issues quickly and is very experienced. Her advice is pragmatic and to the point but she thinks through issues."
"She is kind, patient and puts a lot of effort into these cases which is greatly appreciated."
Stephen Smith has a broad competition law practice encompassing subsidy control issues, appeals against authority decisions and merger control filings. He also has experience in matters involving the National Security and Investment Act and in abuse of dominance complaints.
"Stephen Smith provides thoughtful and clear advice, helping to break down complex matters and presenting them in a way that is practical and clear."
"Stephen Smith leads the competition law aspect of our work and has done so for many years, both skilfully and valuably."
"He provides advice that is measured while understanding our business."
"I think he is clearly very experienced in his area of specialism. He particularly brings a good understanding of client imperatives and what they are trying to achieve."
"He is very clear in an area that is vague; he cuts through it."
Ranked Lawyers at
Bristows LLP
London (Firms)
Members
Provided by Bristows LLP
Edwin Bond
Francion Brooks
Isobel Thomas
James Batsford
Matthew Hunt
Sean-Paul Brankin
Head of Department
Head of Department
Industries
Provided by Bristows LLP
Consumer Products
IT
Media and Publishing
Pharmaceutical
Technology
Telecoms