Benoît Le Bret
Europe Guide 2024
Band 6 : Competition: EU
About
Provided by Benoît Le Bret
Practice Areas
Benoît Le Bret became partner at the Gide Brussels office in 2008, after spending nine years at senior level for the European Commission and seven years working for the French finance Ministry (Paris and Brussels).
He has recognised experience in competition law, particularly in the field of State aid (financial services, transport, environment, energy, agriculture, large investment, IPCEIs) and antitrust.
Benoît specialises in various European regulations (structural funds, gambling, aerospace, energy and environment, telecoms, online services) and is able to draw on a particularly high level of expertise gained in financial services and transport. He has in-depth knowledge and understanding of internal market rules and of community actors and procedures (legislative co-decision, complaints and infringements, EU budget), and has a wealth of experience in negotiating with the EU Commission as well as EU agencies and authorities such as ESMA and to litigate before CJEU.
He currently represents and advises clients in the private equity industry for all EU-relevant regulatory matters, as well as large firms such as KKR and SNCF respectively for portfolio companies-related matters across the EU and for EU railway reforms and possible State aid. He handles State aid cases in various Member States (France, Germany, the Netherlands, Luxemburg, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Romania and Greece) and sectors (automotive, healthcare, electricity, etc.) including all new instruments (Chips Act, Temporary frameworks, IPCEIs...).
Benoît regularly drafts complaints to the EU Commission to redress or protect the interests of his clients in a broad range of sectors, including the press, tax, environment, public tenders, gambling, energy and mining. His is known for opening closed market or assisting disrupting innovation during their ramp up.
Career
Benoît Le Bret became partner at the Gide Brussels office in 2008, after spending nine years at senior level for the European Commission and seven years working for the French finance Ministry (Paris and Brussels).
Chambers Review
Europe
Benoît Le Bret has experience in EU and national merger filings and also assists with the filing of complaints to the EC in response to anti-competitive conduct by competitors. He is particularly active for transportation and telecommunications clients.
Strengths
Provided by Chambers
"Benoît Le Bret is excellent. He is super commercial and strategic, sees the bigger picture and is a guy you want alongside you when you are on the battlefield."
"He provides very interesting solutions."
"He is uniquely combining very strong legal knowledge with very strong connections to the decision-making machinery. He understands what is doable or not, how hard to go in and how to move strategically."
"He also speaks a language that our teams understand. He translated the European gobbledegook into something we can implement into our work."
"Benoît Le Bret has very good knowledge of European affairs and EU legislation."
"Benoît Le Bret is excellent. He is super commercial and strategic, sees the bigger picture and is a guy you want alongside you when you are on the battlefield."
"He provides very interesting solutions."
"He is uniquely combining very strong legal knowledge with very strong connections to the decision-making machinery. He understands what is doable or not, how hard to go in and how to move strategically."
"He also speaks a language that our teams understand. He translated the European gobbledegook into something we can implement into our work."
"Benoît Le Bret has very good knowledge of European affairs and EU legislation."
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