Preface

• Pages: 13-14

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PREFACE

Cooperation among competition enforcers is a fact of life for counsel

advising international businesses. A merger may need clearance in

multiple jurisdictions, or a cartel may be under investigation globally.

Involvement of multiple agencies necessitates more than just hiring local

counsel. Lead counsel will be called upon to make decisions about

strategy and coordination crucial to successful navigation among the

demands of multiple agencies. Counsel will need to take into account

differences among jurisdictions on attorney-client privilege and

document and data security, how cooperation with one agency may limit

the ability to take a different approach in dealing with another agency,

the level and frequency of communication among enforcers, and a range

of other factors.

This handbook provides counsel with a practical guide for making

such decisions. Chapter I provides an overview of formal and informal

arrangements through which agencies may coordinate investigations and

enforcement. Chapter II provides a detailed look at cooperation processes

and policies of three major enforcement regimes–those of the United

States Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission, those of

the Japan Fair Trade Commission, and those of the Canadian

Competition Bureau. Chapter III looks closely at attorney-client privilege

and work product doctrine issues whose evaluation is essential to

information sharing, along with data security and privacy protection

issues implicated in cross-border data transmission. Chapter IV provides

an overview of legal, practical, and strategic factors central to

coordination of merger clearances with multiple enforcers. Chapter V

looks at representation of clients in connection with international cartel

investigations and enforcement and outlines the myriad variations among

leniency policies, from one jurisdiction to another.

The handbook is the product of tireless and sustained efforts by an

international team of competition experts. Chapter I and Appendices A

and E were drafted by Justine Johnston, Toronto. The discussion in

Chapter II on United States policy and practice was drafted by Melanie

Krebs-Pilotti and Anne Newton McFadden. The views expressed in

Chapter II are not purported to reflect those of the United States

Department of Justice. The discussion in Chapter II of the Japan Fair

Trade Commission was drafted by Yusuke Takamiya, Tokyo. The

discussion of Canadian law in Chapter II was drafted by William Wu,

Toronto.