RBB was retained by Days Medical Aids (DMA) to act as economic experts in connection with its dispute with Pihsiang in the Queen’s Bench Division of the English High Court. The dispute concerned a long term exclusive European supply agreement between Pihsiang, a Taiwanese manufacture of mobility aids, and DMA, a European-based distributor. The competition issues related to Pishiang’s contention that the agreement was void because it breached Article 81.

We submitted a detailed expert report to the Court that analysed the possible pro-competitive and anti-competitive effects of the agreement, assessed market definition and market shares to appraise the applicability of the EC Vertical Agreements BER, and evaluated the economic arguments for granting the agreement an individual exemption. Derek Ridyard was subsequently cross-examined on this report in Court.

The Judgment was delivered in January 2004 (High Court, Queens Bench Division, Case No 2002 Folio 178). In accepting DMA’s argument that the agreement did not breach Article 81(1) the Judge observed that “Mr Ridyard’s report was a model of its kind and I found his evidence in particular to be both objective and compelling”. DMA was awarded £10m in damages.