Unsettled times: the General Court’s judgment in Icap v Commission

On 10 November 2017 the European Union’s General Court delivered its judgment in Icap v Commission. The judgment makes clear that the pursuit of greater procedural efficiency by the European Commission through its cartel settlement procedure cannot override parties’ fundamental rights of defence, particularly in a 'hybrid' settlement context. The judgment also confirms prevailing EU case law on determining the existence of 'by object' infringements under Article 101 of the TFEU and emphasises the need for the Commission to present sufficient evidence to establish a party’s own involvement in any given infringement.