Dirk Arts
Partner Global Co-Head Antitrust
Brussels
Dirk Arts
Partner Global Co-Head Antitrust
Brussels
Contact details
Dirk is the head of the Belgian competition law department and co-head of Allen & Overy's global antitrust group. He specialises in Belgian and EU competition law as well as general EU law.
He advises and assists clients in administrative and judicial procedures, both before national and European authorities and courts. Dirk has particular experience within the energy, media, chemical, retail and automobile sectors. He represents clients in cartel investigations conducted by both the Commission as well as the Belgian competition authority, and advises on merger control cases.
Dirk is a member of the editorial board of Competitio and a founding member of the Belgian Association of Competition Lawyers.
Dirk has worked as a research assistant at the Institute for European Law of the KULeuven before serving as a Référendaire (legal secretary) in the General Court. He teaches Judicial Protection in the EU at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel.
Dirk has been identified by Global Competition Review’s independent research with clients and peers as being among the world’s leading competition lawyers.
Expertise
Practices
Litigation, Arbitration and Investigations
Investigations, Enforcement and Business Crime
Sectors
Qualifications
Professional
Stagiair, Belgium, 1997
Admitted as advocaat, Belgium, 2001
Registered Foreign Lawyer, England and Wales, 2021
Academic
Law Degree, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL), 1988
LLM, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 1990
Experience highlights
Port of Zeebrugge on the antitrust aspects of its merger with the Port of Antwerp, resulting in the Port of Antwerp Bruges.
Scania on the European Commission heavy trucks investigation and on Scania’s defence strategy in follow-on private damages claims across the EEA and beyond, as well as on the on-going appeal of the European Commission’s decision in the trucks case to the General Court of the EU and the subsequent appeal to the ECJ.
A company, in an action for annulment lodged against a Commission decision in which the Belgian system of excess profit rulings was found to constitute an unlawful state aid regime. The procedure is still pending with the General Court.
Recticel, on the antitrust aspects of the sale of its foams business to the US company, Carpenter.
Related articles
Publications: 28 March 2023
On 22 March 2023, the Belgian Competition Authority (the BCA) announced that it had opened an ex officio investigation into an alleged abuse of dominance by Proximus, the incumbent Belgian telecom…
Publications: 14 March 2022
Publications: 09 March 2022
Publications: 18 December 2020
Expertise
Practices
Litigation, Arbitration and Investigations
Investigations, Enforcement and Business Crime
Sectors
Qualifications
Professional
Stagiair, Belgium, 1997
Admitted as advocaat, Belgium, 2001
Registered Foreign Lawyer, England and Wales, 2021
Academic
Law Degree, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL), 1988
LLM, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 1990
Published work
- Arts. D, Lenaerts. K, (1995) "Europees Procesrecht", Antwerpen/Apeldoorn, Maklu Uitgevers, p.458
- Arts. D, Lenaerts. K, (1999) "Europees Procesrecht (tweede uitgave)", Antwerpen/Apeldoorn, Maklu Uitgevers, p.61
- Arts. D, Lenaerts. K, (Robert Bray uitg.), (1999) "Procedural Law of the European Union", Londen, Sweet & Maxwell, p.53
- Met Koen Lenaerts, Europees Procesrecht (derde uitgave), Antwerpen/Apeldoorn, Maklu Uitgeverij, 2003, 618
- Arts. D, Lenaerts. K, Mawelis. I, (2006) "Procedural Law of the European Union" London, Sweet & Maxwell, p.789, (Robert Bray ed.
- Chapter “Judicial Review of Cartel Decision”, in Frank Wijckmans and Filip. Tuytschaever (eds), Horizontal Agreements and Cartels in EU Competition Law, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2015, p. 269-311.
- 'Het Francovich-arrest en zijn toepassing in de Belgische rechtsorde', TBP, 1993, 495-510.
- Belgian contribution to 'Ratification processes of the Treaty on European Union', European Law Review, 1993, 228-232
- With Koen Lenaerts, 'Le principe d'égalité en droit communautaire et dans la convention européenne de sauvegarde des droits de l'homme et des libertés fondamentales' in La personne humaine, sujet de droit, Collection de la Faculté de Droit et des Sciences Sociales de l'Université de Poitiers, 1994, 101-134
- 'Direct Actions before the Court of Justice and the Court of First Instance', published in a report on a the seminar 'Taxpayers' Protection' organised for EFS of the Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam
- With Jacques Steenbergen, chapter on competition law in 'Bestendig Handboek Distributierecht', part IX in D. Struyven (ed.) Kluwer, Mechelen, 2002, 355-398.
- With Karel Bourgeois, "Samenwerking tussen de mededingingsautoriteiten en rechtsbescherming : enkele bedenkingen", Tijdschrift voor Belgische Mededinging, 2006 nr. 1.
- "Een nieuwe wet, een nieuwe uitdaging", Tijdschrift voor Belgische Mededinging, 2006, nr 3.
- "Enkele krachtlijnen van de nieuwe Belgische mededingingswet", Tijdschrift voor Belgische Mededinging, 2007 nr. 1
- With L. Eskenazi : "Arrêt Schneider c. Commission – La responsabilité extracontractuelle de la Commission dans le cadre du contrôle des concentrations.", JTDE, 2007 nr. 14, p. 299-301.
- Book review: Ysewyn, J, "Tien jaar Belgisch Mededingingsrecht Rechtspraakoverzicht" in de reeks Bibliotheek Handelsrecht Larcier, Larcier, Gent, 2008, 600 p., Tijdschrift voor Belgische Mededinging, 2009, Nr. 1
- With C. Pommiès : "Les limites à la confidentialité des correspondances juridiques en droit de la concurrence – Implications pratiques pour les juristes d'entreprise.", Bulletin droit & Banque 43, avril 2009.
- "Schneider and the non-contractual liability of the European Community in the field of merger control", Journal of European Competition Law and Practice, 30 December 2009.
- With H. Gilliams, J. Wouters, P. De Man, P. Wytinck and A. Godfroid : "Kroniek van rechtspraak: Europees ondernemingsrecht (januari 2008-december 2010) – Deel VII - Overheidssteun", RDC/TBH, 2011/7, September 2011.
- "Iedereen gelijk voor de wet? Beschouwingen over de rechtmatigheid van het verlenen van clementie in kartelzaken.", Tijdschrift voor Belgische Mededinging, 2012, p. 3-18.
- With K. Bourgeois : "Cartels, Enforcement, Appeals & Damages Actions – Belgium", Global Legal Insights, Global Legal Group, 2013, p 29-36.
- With K. Bourgeois: “Some reflections on the effect on trade concept contained in Articles 101 and 102 TFEU”, D.Arts, W. Devroe, R. Foqué and I. Verougstraete (eds), Mundi et Europae Civis – Liber Amicorum Jacques Steenbergen, Larcier, 2014, p 331-346.
- With K. Bourgeois and Marlies De Deygere : "Cartels, Enforcement, Appeals & Damages Actions – Belgium", Global Legal Insights, Global Legal Group, 2015, p 36-45.
