The Competitive Edge

When the energy regulator publicly asks existential questions about its own legislated regulatory framework, we know the world is changing.  Hear energy expert and Special Counsel Geoff Petersen talk us through the buzz on energy regulation, as the world aspires to net zero while grappling with the fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Plus, things that chill competition for ice-creams and a look at why some big mergers have been abandoned.

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• The IPCC Working Group III Report on climate change mitigation
• Eddie White's illustrations of vintage Australian single serve ice cream products
• A brief history of the BBC Micro and ARM
• Concerns about Snowy Hydro 2.0
• Electric vehicles as batteries on wheels
• Meet the Gilbert + Tobin Competition + Regulation team

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Air travel is taking off again but the world has changed for operators and passengers alike. Regulators insist that competition must be preserved, but what does that look like in a pandemic and an uncertain recovery? Sit back, relax and enjoy the flight as Partner Louise Klamka give us the 30,000-foot view. Plus competition law in Ukraine, legislative acronyms that make us LOL, and reading the tea leaves on the new ACCC Chair.

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• The Anti-Monopoly Committee of Ukraine's website is down but they're on Facebook and Twitter
• Read the AER's Transparency Review of AEMO's Draft 2022 Integrated System Plan, if you dare
• The Washington Post ranks laws by the quality of their acronyms
• Meet the Gilbert + Tobin Competition + Regulation team

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An exclusive 1:1 with incoming ACCC Chair -- and until recently G+T partner -- Gina Cass-Gottlieb.  From her family kitchen table to her formative school days to who she supports in the Premier League, we bring you a unique and up-close look at the woman who will shape our competition law landscape in the years to come. She'll be looking back on her experiences as a pioneering practitioner and the only woman in too many rooms, and forward to the cultural change we're seeing in law and business. Plus a quick roundup of other news from the season break.

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• G+T update on ACCC's compliance and enforcement priorities
• ACCC's discussion paper on updating competition and consumer law for digital platforms
• Meet the Gilbert + Tobin Competition + Regulation team

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State and Commonwealth governments have agreed to toughen protections for consumers and smaller businesses against unfair terms in standard form contracts. Many businesses use these contracts and we've all signed or clicked on them, often without a clear idea of the risks involved. Partner Charles Coorey joins us to discuss the coming changes and what they mean for you. Plus the ACCC's review of Amazon's purchase of MGM, Tool Time with Techtronic and Tooltechnic, the consumer data right in the energy and telco sectors, new ACCC Commissioner Liza Carver and more!

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Links from the episode:

• Charles Coorey's client update on the Unfair Contract Terms proposal.
• ACCC v Techtronic announcement with real concise statement of facts.
• Official website of the Consumer Data Right.
• More than you need to know about the copyright history of James Bond, with 007-level product placement from HeinOnline.
• Meet the Gilbert + Tobin Competition + Regulation team

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Artificial intelligence and technology are accelerating, public expectations are shifting, and competition law and regulation are scrambling to keep up. Our AI guru Peter Waters is here to tell us what we can do to prepare. Plus an antitrust hipster update, a sequel to Dieselgate, and decarbonisation dilemmas in the pipeline for the gas sector post COP26.

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Links from the episode:

• Prof Anina Rich of Macquarie University on the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon
• 2020 Paper on Competition Policy and Environmental Sustainability ft. Simon Holmes
• Stanford University's 2021 A.I. Index Report
• The Australian Energy Regulator's Regulating Gas Pipelines Under Uncertainty: Information Paper
• Meet the Gilbert + Tobin Competition + Regulation team

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The "hipster antitrust" movement emerged in 2017 as young lawyer Lina Khan and others argued that competition law should embrace a wider variety of harms and benefits than the price-focussed consumer welfare standard.  The pushback was firm - including from ACCC boss Rod Sims - and hipster antitrust was consigned by many to the recycling crate of history. Fast forward to 2021 - Lina Khan leads the FTC and antitrust hipsters are quickly becoming mainstream. Betty Mkatshwa joins us to discuss how we got here and where we're going. Plus: criminal cartels that make you sick, rigged roofing allegations, and what Don Bradman's batting average has in common with committal hearings for the Federal Court.

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Links from the episode:

• "I am not an antitrust hipster, says Rod Sims", our report on the ACCC Chair's comments in 2018.
• Nod and a Wink newsletter on Hipster Antitrust.
• OECD project on Gender Inclusive Competition Policy ft. Betty Mkatshwa
• Justice Wigney's interlocutory decision in CDPP v Citigroup (No. 5) -- not the first time "shemozzle" has appeared in a Federal Court judgment but apparently the first time it has appeared as a catchword.
• Magic 8-Ball online
• Meet the Gilbert + Tobin Competition + Regulation team

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The ACCC has often warned against privatisations of major government infrastructure aimed at securing the highest sale price at the expense of competition in the longer term. When the New South Wales government sold its largest cargo ports with what looked like a hedge against future competition, the regulator thought it had a clear case. So far, the court hasn't agreed. Lawyer Sarah Lynch worked closely on the case and tells us what happened and what happens next. Plus more from the ACCC on merger reform and ex ante regulation,  Microsoft’s acquisition of Nuance, default search screens and things that get lost in transcription.

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Links from the episode:

• Meet the Gilbert + Tobin Competition + Regulation team: https://www.gtlaw.com.au/expertise/competition-and-regulation

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Last week, we turned to crime… and we're not done yet! This episode brings you more in our conversation with Kate Morgan, SC who successfully defended Country Care in Australia's first criminal cartel jury trial. Last week, we talked about the charges, the evidence, and the courtroom tactics. This week, we tackle the big questions. What happened when the verdicts came in? What does it mean for the ACCC's pipeline of investigations? And the really big one - why are jury trials like playing Germany at the World Cup?

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Links from the episode:

Meet the Gilbert + Tobin Competition + Regulation team:

https://www.gtlaw.com.au/expertise/competition-and-regulation

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The first criminal cartel case to go before an Australian jury ended with a swift verdict of “not guilty” on all charges against health solutions provider Country Care. Jump behind the scenes with Senior Counsel for the accused, Kate Morgan, for a sideline scoop on the case and what it might mean for criminal prosecutions of cartel cases in the future. Plus the ACCC's adtech report, infrastructure privatisation, a crisis for carnivores and plenty more…

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Links from the episode:

• Our article on the ACCC's adtech report "ACCC v Google showdown: Ad Tech Inquiry Final Report": https://www.gtlaw.com.au/knowledge/accc-v-google-showdown-ad-tech-inquiry-final-report
• Priscilla Page "An Appreciation of Han Lue & Tokyo Drift" https://www.patreon.com/posts/54015099
• Meet the Gilbert + Tobin Competition and Regulation team - https://www.gtlaw.com.au/expertise/competition-and-regulation 

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Learn about the ACCC's proposed changes and what they might mean for you with Elizabeth Avery, who heads up our competition and regulation team. We do a deep dive into the future of the approval process, the test to be applied and the special focus on large digital platforms. Plus a new investigation into mobile payments, craft beer at the football, medieval rights in common and more …

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Links from the episode:

• Our article on the ACCC's proposal to reform Australia's merger review regime: ACCC heralds its proposal to reform the Australian merger control regime
• Canberra's Asian Cup party capped off with terrific atmosphere between Iran and Iraq supporters (The Age, 2015)
• Kazuyoshi Miura (Wikipedia)
• Meet the Gilbert + Tobin Competition + Regulation team

Support the show: https://www.gtlaw.com.au/

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