The Legal 500

Arntzen de Besche’s ‘responsive and understanding’ four-partner team provides ‘excellent’ advice across merger control, state aid, public procurement, and EU law. Practice head Stein Ove Solberg successfully secured phase one clearance without commitments in relation to Teekay’s acquisition of Sevan Marine’s FPSOs and a controlling stake in Sevan Marine. Senior lawyer Espen Bakken has ‘good knowledge of EU regulations and competition law’, and managing partner Thomas Nordby is recommended for procurement and state aid cases.

Advokatfirmaet BA-HR DA is ‘one of the best for competition law’, and receives a significant amount of merger clearance instructions via its ‘market-leading’ M&A practice. The team is also regularly instructed to represent clients in cases of alleged behavioural abuses, and is currently defending a major corporation against an abuse of dominant position claim. The practice is also noted for its economic nous and is one of only a few firms to employ a professional economist. Helge Stemshaug and Beret Sundet are ‘very skilled and proactive’.

The comprehensive EU and competition practice at Advokatfirmaet Schjødt AS is well equipped to represent clients before the European courts. The firm recently recruited Olav Kolstad from Kvale Advokatfirma Da, and can also lean on its office in Brussels. As well as receiving a significant flow of merger control mandates, the group has also been instructed on some significant contentious matters including representing the Norwegian Media Industry Association in a state aid case and Philip Morris in litigation regarding the free movement of goods. Christian Bendiksen and Jan Magne Juuhl-Langseth are recommended.

Advokatfirmaet Thommessen AS provides ‘practical and to-the-point advice’ to blue-chip clients. ‘One of the best in the market’, team head Siri Teigum is representing Veidekke in a major leniency case. Telenor is also a client. Eivind Vesterkjær is ‘quick to absorb the business aspects of complex legal issues’, and is known for his work in merger and cartel cases.

Now headed by the ‘highly commercial’ Jonn Ola Sørensen following Mads Magnussen’s recent appointment as a judge, Wikborg Rein’s three-partner team provides ‘professional and highly skilled advice’ in merger clearance and compliance matters, as well as litigation. Sørensen recently successfully defended Norway’s largest newspaper group, A-pressen, in a phase two investigation into its acquisition of Edda Media, Norway’s third largest newspaper group, from Mecom Europe. Morten Goller is ‘outstanding at public procurement’, and ‘able to combine political aspects with the best commercial solution’.

Selmer ‘combines academic rigour with deep commercial understanding’, and continues to attract merger clearance work by dint of its strong corporate practice. State aid work also accounts for a significant portion of instructions and in this regard Evensen is advising Norwegian State Housing Bank on the implications of new rules governing its activities and support programmes. Other clients include TDC, Toshiba and Xerox. Practice head Harald Evensen is ‘highly knowledgeable’.

Wiersholm handles contentious and non-contentious EU and competition law. Fresh from his recent high-profile success for TINE, the ‘outstanding’ Stephan Jervell is currently involved in a major case regarding alleged bid rigging in the taxi industry. Jervell is also recommended for his ‘public procurement expertise’. Merger clearance is a significant source of work, and ‘competition expert’ and team head Anders Ryssdal recently advised Mecom Group on its divestment of Edda Media to A-pressen.

Advokatfirmaet Haavind AS has a strong reputation for competition law and public procurement, and is praised for its ‘very business-oriented approach’. Team head Nina Melandsø and Ian Anders Tobiassen are ‘technically very good’, and are representing Kollektivtransportproduksjon in two significant state aid matters. The firm regularly works alongside its corporate practice and in that context is providing competition law advice on Alimentation Couche-Tard’s acquisition of Statoil’s retail division.

Advokatfirmaet Hjort handles a prolific volume of competition and EU law work for clients across a range of sectors including telecoms. Monica Syrdal is particularly strong at handling matters at the nexus of IP and competition law. Heddy Ludvigsen is also recommended.

Simonsen VogtWiig represents numerous clients in the TMT sector including Hewlett-Packard, TeliaSonera Norge and TV2. Anders Thue is advising the Ministry of Justice and Public Security on procurement laws affecting its planned procurement of new rescue helicopters. Practice head Mona Søyland is highly regarded, which is reflected in her appointment to the expert committee on changes to the Norwegian Competition Act.

Advokatfirmaet Grette DA’s Anne Cathrine Røed and Amund Brede Svendsen are recommended for public procurement and competition law respectively. The team recently handled the merger notification process for several acquisitions by Bravida Norge.

At Kluge Advokatfirma DA, the ‘analytical and constructive’ Thomas Naalsund has ‘extensive knowledge of public procurement legislation’, and Torstein Arendt is ‘very highly skilled in IT procurement’. Gro Amdal heads the public procurement team.

Kvale Advokatfirma Da has a good reputation for competition law advice on issues such as abuse of dominant position. Henrik Svane is recommended.

Advokatfirma Ræder DA’s visibility in the market was enhanced by the recruitment of Fredrik Ottesen from Advokatfirmaet BA-HR DA in 2011. Clients include NCC and NorgesGruppen.

Advokatfirmaet Steenstrup Stordrange DA’s competition lawyer Terje Bjorndahl always ‘gives good value for money’.