This event will be conducted in English and according to Hong Kong Local Time (GMT +8).

Legal Plus will be organising its first Annual Asia: Competition Law and Digital Crime Virtual Summit scheduled on Thursday 28 April 2022, from 13:55 − 17:25  (Hong Kong local time – GMT+8). 

At this Virtual Summit join us in listening to world renowned experts, ask experts questions via the live chat room during the presentation and keep up to date with essential knowledge. The speakers will cover new updates on Competition Law  and DIgital Crime, and how it is affecting under the digital era.  

Program
The organiser reserves the right to change the program without prior notice.

• Opening Address and Competition Law Update in Hong Kong by Forum Chairman
  Adrian Emch, Partner, Hogan Lovells
• Keynote Session: Abuse of Dominance in the Digital Era: What can we learn from the European Court judgment
  in Google Shopping?
  Christopher Vajda QC, Former Judge of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland at the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”)
• Complaints and Third-Party Strategies in European Merger Reviews
  Johan Van Acker, Partner, Van Bael & Bellis
• Competition Law is Becoming More Muscular in Digital Markets – Implications for Corporate Counsel
  Derek Ritzmann, Expert, Economics Partners
• Digital Crime — Advising In House Counsels on the Current Issues
  Scott A. Warren, Secretary, Executive Board, The Society for The Policing of Cyberspace; Partner, Squire Patton Boggs
  
• Cartels in Asia — Understanding and Avoiding Huge Fines and Infringements in the New Age
  Joel Rheuben, Senior Associate, Herbert Smith Freehills
  
• Repercussions of the Proposed EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation in Asia
  Conor Quigley QC, Serle Court Chambers, London
  
• Managing Competition Law Investigations
  Elvira Aliende Rodriguez, Partner, Shearman & Sterling
• Grand Panel & Q/A — Enforcement & Compliance Issues — Challenges in 2022 and Regional Updates
  Moderator: Catrina Lam, Barrister, Des Voeux Chambers
  Panellists:
  – Christopher Vajda QC, Former Judge of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland at the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”)
  – Knut Fournier, Chairperson, Hong Kong Competition Association
  – Sanghoon Shin, Senior Foreign Attorney, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC
  – Dr Frank Montag, Partner, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer

To find out more about the event, please download our flyer Download

Register is now open!  Complimentary registration is offered to in-house counsel from non law/consulting firms and Early Bird rate is available to law/consulting firm until 31 March 2022. 

If you are keen to be a speaker / sponsor for the event you may contact Jason at jason.sinclair@legalplus-asia.com for details.  For registrations details, contact Bettina at legalpluseventsasia@legalplus-asia.com.  

Gold Sponsor

Silver Sponsor

Supporting Organisations

Presenters

Adrian Emch, Forum Chairman

Partner, Hogan Lovells

Adrian Emch started focusing on antitrust law while at university. After graduation, he first worked at the Directorate-General for Competition (DG COMP) at the European Commission, and then spent several years in private practice in Brussels working on EU competition law matters. In July 2008, a month before the country’s Anti-Monopoly Law came into force, Adrian made his second move to China. Since that time he has been stationed in Beijing, working on Chinese (and more recently Hong Kong) antitrust matters.

Biography

Christopher Vajda QC, Keynote Speaker

Former Judge of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland at the Court of Justice of the European Union

Christopher Vajda QC was the judge of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland at the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) from 2012 to 2020. He practiced at Monckton Chambers prior to being elevated to the bench. Christopher was party to judgments in a broad spectrum of fields, including competition and state aid, public international law, data protection and privacy, and tax. He is a visiting professor at King’s College, London, a lecturer on private international law at Luxembourg University and a member of the LCIA. He has written and spoken extensively, particularly in the area of competition and state aid (he was a contributor to Bellamy & Child, European Union Law of Competition for over 20 years), and on investment protection treaties. Recent talks include a talk to the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal on the concept of restriction of competition: a time for a rethink? (October 2021), and the keynote speech at the Global Competition Review Annual Conference on Competition Litigation (November 2020).

Biography

Catrina Lam, Panel Moderator

Barrister, Des Voeux Chambers

Catrina Lam has been “widely identified as Hong Kong’s front runner for competition matters”. She has advised and appeared in many of the first landmark cases on competition law and regularly advises on competition matters, as well as investigations of suspected contraventions of competition rules. She is ranked as a Tier 1 leading junior in the Competition section of The Legal 500. She is currently the Chairman of the Hong Kong Bar Association’s Committee on Competition Law. She is also the Founder and Vice-Chairman of the Hong Kong Chapter of the International League of Competition Law (LIDC), and was recently elected as one of the Vice Presidents to the LIDC Bureau for 2022/2023. She has been appointed onto the Competition Commission’s Panel of External Counsel since January 2016 and was a Non-Governmental Adviser to the International Competition Network from 2018 to 2021.

Biography

Elvira Aliende Rodriguez

Partner, Shearman & Sterling

Elvira Aliende Rodriguez is a partner in the Antitrust practice. She focuses on Spanish and EU competition law. Elvira advises clients across a range of sectors, including air transport, chemicals, telecommunications, energy, pharmaceuticals, steel, hotel accommodation, textiles and financial services. She has extensive experience in advising clients on Article 101 (restrictive agreements) and the equivalent provisions under Spanish law. She has also participated in State aid procedures and in Article 102 (abuse of dominance) cases before the EU competition authorities. She has in-depth knowledge of working before the European Commission and the European Courts.

Biography

Johan Van Acker

Partner, Van Bael & Bellis

Johan Van Acker is a Brussels-based partner at Van Bael & Bellis, a boutique firm specialized in competition law matters. Johan specialises in EU and national competition law, and his practice covers a wide range of sectors including aviation, consumer products, basic industries, electronics, and information technology. He is particularly experienced in merger control, and has successfully assisted clients in numerous merger cases before the European Commission and national competition authorities. For instance, Johan has been involved in several highprofile EU merger control cases, including Fincantieri/Chantiers de l’Atlantique, Energizer/Spectrum Brands, Essilor/Luxottica, Halliburton/Baker Hughes, BHP Billiton/Rio Tinto, Microsoft/Skype, Boeing/Lockheed Martin, Canon/IRIS and Novartis/Chiron. Johan also regularly advises clients on other aspects of competition law, including cartels, horizontal and vertical agreements, abuse of dominance and state aid. Johan is recognized as a leading practitioner in all major law firm directories, and was singled out by Global Competition Review in 2019 as one of the best competition lawyers worldwide under the age of 40.

Biography

Joel Rheuben

Senior Associate, Herbert Smith Freehills

Joel Rheuben is a senior associate within Herbert Smith Freehills’ competition, regulatory and trade practice in Tokyo. Joel has broad experience in various areas of EU and cross-border competition and regulatory law. Joel has worked with number of global and Japanese clients in relation to the merger control aspects of their transactions, as well as antitrust investigations by the European Commission and other regulators, in particular in the chemicals, resources, manufacturing and industrial, consumer goods and media sectors. Working with our disputes team, he is able to advise clients on competition disputes and other contentious matters. Joel has previously worked in the Brussels and Tokyo offices of Herbert Smith Freehills, and has spent close to five years in Europe working on EU competition law matters. Joel is a fluent Japanese speaker and a graduate of the University of Tokyo. Joel is licensed to advise in Japan as a Registered Foreign Lawyer (Gaikokuho Jimu Bengoshi).

Biography

Conor Quigley QC

Serle Court Chambers, London

Conor Quigley QC, practices law from Serle Court Chambers, one of London’s leading commercial barristers’ chambers. He specializes in European Union law, in particular concerning competition, commercial, trade and tax law. Conor is widely regarded as the leading expert at the English Bar in the law of EU state aid and subsidies control. He is the author of the leading textbook, European State Aid Law and Policy, now in its 3rd edition (2015) and is also co-author and general editor (with Suzanne Rab) of Hong Kong Competition Law (2016), (both books available from www.hartpub.co.uk). He regularly advises UK governmental and public authorities, major multinational groups, and other interested parties, and has acted in some of the leading EU law cases over the last 30 years before the European Court of Justice, the UK Supreme Court and Court of Appeal and High Court. Conor accepts appointment as arbitrator in international disputes, in particular concerning international trade, state aid and subsidies, competition law and environmental issues. He is listed in the Shanghai International Arbitration Centre and has been appointed an ad hoc sole arbitrator by IATA. In 1991 Conor became a member of the Law Faculty of the University of Oxford, when he was appointed a Fellow in EU Law at Lady Margaret Hall. Since 2008, he has been a Visiting Research Fellow at the Institute of European and Comparative Law. He has also held visiting posts at the College of Europe, King’s College London and the International Tax Centre, Leiden University.

Biography

Dr Frank Montag

Partner, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer

Dr Frank Montag is a senior partner in Freshfields’ antitrust group based in Brussels. He draws on over 30 years’ experience to defend his clients’ interests in EU and multi-jurisdictional competition investigations relating to mergers and anti-competitive conduct. His practice has brought him before the European Commission, Germany’s Bundeskartellamt and many other authorities in some of the most complex transactional and behavioural cases reviewed around the globe. He also litigated numerous cases before the Court of Justice and the General Court of the EU. Recent work includes advising Cargotec on its merger with Konecranes, Siemens on its merger with Alstom, BASF on the acquisition of the divestments resulting from the Bayer/Monsanto merger, Clariant in the ethylene cartel, Deutsche Bahn in the rail freight and block train cartel cases, and a third party in the Google/Android abuse investigation. Frank has been a non-governmental adviser to the delegations of the European Commission, the US Department of Justice and Germany’s Bundeskartellamt at International Competition Network (ICN) conferences since its formation in 2001. He is the former Chair and current Honorary Chair of Studienvereinigung Kartellrecht (the German speaking antitrust lawyers’ association). Frank held posts as co-head of Freshfields’ global antitrust group, managing partner of the Brussels office, chair of the Freshfields Finance and Risk Committee and member of the Freshfields Partnership Council (board).

Biography

Derek Ritzmann

Expert, Economics Partners

Dr. Derek Ritzmann is an Expert at Economics Partners, working across the Asia- Pacific region based in Hong Kong. He has specialized in the economics, policy, and law of competition and regulation for over 25 years. Dr. Ritzmann spent over a decade as a senior official at competition and regulatory agencies: he was Principal Economist of the ACCC in Australia, the first Chief Economist of the Hong Kong Competition Commission, in the Chief Economist Team at the European Commission’s DG COMP, and as special advisor to the General Authority for Competition of Saudi Arabia. Previously, he practiced with three economic expert firms (Compass Lexecon, London Economics, and KPMG), as a competition lawyer in Australia (Allens Linklaters), as a competition expert to the Asian Development Bank and OECD, and as a professor at the University of Hong Kong. Dr. Ritzmann has given testimony and expert evidence to government authorities and courts in a number of different jurisdictions, including Australia, Hong Kong, China, the European Commission, Singapore, India, Saudi Arabia, and the Philippines. Representative former clients include Apple, Vodafone, Hutchison, Qualcomm, Honda, HKBN, Shell, the Wharf Group, the San Miguel Group, ArcelorMittal, the Tata Group, the Reliance Group, and TSMC. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Oxford University, an M.Sc. in Economics from the London School of Economics, and is a qualified lawyer in the USA, the UK, and Australia. He is listed in the Who’s Who Legal Directory as a Competition Economist and as a Global Leader.

Biography

Knut Fournier

Chairperson, Hong Kong Competition Association

Knut Fournier a in-house lawyer with StubHub, the US ticketing company. Prior to moving to Hong Kong, Knut worked as a monitoring trustee for competition authorities in Europe, in the United States, in Brazil and in China. He published extensively on competition law, including a complete commentary of the Competition Ordinance (Sweet & Maxwell, 2019). He holds law degrees from the University of Paris and from King College London. He is a Lecturer at the Hong Kong Shue Yan University, where he teaches Risk & Compliance. He is currently the Chairman of the Hong Kong Competition Association.

Biography

Sanghoon Shin

Senior Foreign Attorney, Bae, Kim & Lee LLC

Sanghoon Shin, a senior foreign attorney, passed the 40th National Higher Civil Service Examination on Government Administration and began to work with the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) as a public official in February 1998. Mr. Shin worked at the KFTC (in International Cooperation Division, M&A Review Division and Institutional Improvement Planning Task Force), planning and implementing various cases/policies related to fair trade until April 2007. Since joining Bae, Kim & Lee LLC in April 2007, he has advised on various antitrust and consumer protection cases, such as merger filings, cartels, unfair trade practices, abuses of market-dominant position and unfair inter-affiliate supports. In particular, he has focused on providing antitrust-related legal services to foreign companies. Mr. Shin served as a legal advisor (on fair trade issues) to Korea Creative Content Agency. He enjoys contributing to fair trade journals including Journal of Competition, and often gives lectures on fair trade at companies, law schools and graduate law departments.

Biography

Scott A. Warren

Secretary, Executive Board, The Society for The Policing of Cyberspace; Partner, Squire Patton Boggs

Scott Warren is a licensed US attorney who began his legal career litigating and arbitrating civil cases in California before moving to Japan in 1993. He wrote the Japan Employers Handbook for CCH before spending 13 years as in-house counsel as the first foreign general counsel for Sega Enterprises, and then as senior corporate attorney for Microsoft, getting Xbox launched in Asia. In those capacities, he also handled a breadth of matters including overseeing several competition matters, other litigation disputes, IP licensing, transactional agreements, anticounterfeiting and anti-cybercrime efforts, employment matters and internal investigations. He was the Asia Regional Managing Director for Legal Technologies for a large risk consultancy and now oversees Epiq Systems, a world leader in legal technologies, providing eDiscovery and document review services in North Asia, working with corporations, and the law firms that support them, on issues where the Law and Technology collide. Many of those have involved competition matters in various industries and countries in Asia. As such, he has been working in and around digital evidence in Asia for the last 20 years.

Biography

Complimentary Registration
(for in-house / general counsel only)

Please note: Complimentary is only applicable to in-house / general counsel from non law / non consulting firm.  If your company is not applicable, payment will be required. Limited to 2 complimentary seat per company, based on first-come first-served basis