Jean-Baptiste Roche

Jean-Baptiste is a PhD candidate, an employee and associate in the Competition/Antitrust practice of Linklaters in Paris. His practice covers all areas of European competition law including horizontal and vertical agreements, abuse of dominant position, merger control, State aid, actions for damages, and compliance. Complementing other associates, he intervenes as a specialist for particularly complex legal issues arising in matters.

Work Highlights

Recent matters of significance where substantial involvement can be disclosed have included advising:

• Intermarché and Casino in their appeal before the European Court of Justice against dawn raids conducted by the European Commission at their premises. Obtained complete annulment of the dawn raids.*
• Nestlé in the investigation opened by the French Competition Authority in the Bisphenol A case. Nestlé was not found liable in the final decision.
• A multinational company (consumer goods) in the investigation opened by the French Competition Authority in the household appliances case.
• A multinational company in relation to private enforcement litigation before French courts (more than 300 proceedings involving administrative and judicial courts).
• A major player of the digital economy in a private enforcement litigation following its sanction by the French Competition Authority.
• A major player of the energy market in the context of sanction proceedings initiated by CORDIS (the French Energy Regulation Authority's sanction body) for multiple breaches of REMIT (market abuses rules for electricity trading). Fine nearly four times lower than the amount recommended by the investigation services.
• A public administration in the context of a dispute against the European Commission involving multiple European economic and competition law issues.
• Suez in the context of the acquisition of Veolia's UK non-hazardous waste business following the commitments given to the CMA as a result of the Veolia/Suez transaction.
• A multinational company in the context of the appeal against a decision of the French Competition Authority which sanctioned the group for abuse of a dominant position.
• Air France in its appeal before the European Court of Justice against the second sanction decision adopted by the European Commission in the air freight cartel case.
  
  

* Work achieved prior joining Linklaters 

 

Prior to joining Linklaters, Jean-Baptiste acquired experience with another international law firm based in Paris. He is also a lecturer in European and economic law both at the Ecole Normale Supérieure de Paris and at Université Paris II Panthéon-Assas. Jean-Baptiste achieves various academic activities, writing his PhD and publishing regularly in recognised legal reviews. 

Jean-Baptiste holds a degree from the Ecole Normale Supérieure de Paris, an LL.M. in European Law from the College of Europe and a Master’s degree in European and Competition Law from Université Paris II Panthéon-Assas.

Jean-Baptiste teaches European Law at the Paris II Assas university and at the Ecole Normale Supérieure de Paris. He has spoken at conferences and seminars dealing with various law topics and has also published the following articles on competition law:

• Dalloz Actualité, « Affaire CK Telecom : La Cour de justice de l’Union européenne précise le standard de preuve requis de la Commission européenne en cas d’interdiction d’une opération de concentration », Matthieu Blayney and Jean-Baptiste Roche (21 September 2023)
• Dalloz Actualité, « Affaire Towercast : La Cour de justice de l’Union européenne ravive sa jurisprudence relative à l’application de l’article 102 TFUE aux opérations de concentration », Matthieu Blayney and Jean-Baptiste Roche (11 May 2023)
• Dalloz Actualité, « Responsabilité des cartellistes : le premier jugement français dans l’affaire de l’entente des camions rappelle avec sévérité les demandeurs à leurs devoirs », Jean-Baptiste Roche (12 December 2022)
• Concurrences, « L’impensé des enjeux de la protection du secret avocat-client en matière de contrôle des concentrations français et européen », Jérémie Marthan and Jean-Baptiste Roche (1st September 2022)