CJEU Case C-591/16 P / Judgment

H. Lundbeck A/S and Lundbeck Ltd v European Commission
Policy area
Competition
Deciding body type
Court of Justice of the European Union
Deciding body
Court (Fourth Chamber)
Type
Decision
Decision date
25/03/2021
ECLI (European case law identifier)
ECLI:EU:C:2021:243
  • CJEU Case C-591/16 P / Judgment

    Key facts of the case: 

    Appeal – Competition – Agreements, decisions and concerted practices – Pharmaceutical products – Market for antidepressants (citalopram) – Settlement agreements relating to disputes concerning process patents concluded by a manufacturer of originator medicines who is the holder of those patents and manufacturers of generic medicines – Article 101 TFEU – Potential competition – Restriction by object – Characterisation – Calculation of the amount of the fine – Sales directly or indirectly related to the infringement.

     

    Outcome of the case:

    On those grounds, the Court (Fourth Chamber) hereby:

    1. Dismisses the appeal;
    2. Orders H. Lundbeck A/S and Lundbeck Ltd to bear their own costs and to pay the costs incurred by European Commission;
    3. Orders the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) to bear its own costs;
    4. Orders the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to bear its own costs.
  • Paragraphs referring to EU Charter

    166) In the first place, with regard to the novelty of the penalties imposed with respect to the agreements at issue, as the General Court noted, in essence, in paragraph 763 of the judgment under appeal, the principle nulla poena sine lege certa, which is enshrined in Article 49 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, cannot be interpreted as prohibiting the gradual clarification of rules of criminal liability by means of interpretations in the case-law, provided that those interpretations are reasonably foreseeable (judgment of 28 March 2017, Rosneft, C‑72/15EU:C:2017:236, paragraph 167 and the case-law cited).