Next Generation Partners

Firms To Watch: Antitrust and competition

Chen & Lin Attorneys-at-Law has a growing antitrust and competition practice advising on merger filings before the Taiwan Fair Trade Commission. The firm specialises in work for clients in chemicals, manufacturing and other heavy industry sectors.

Antitrust and competition in Taiwan

Baker McKenzie

Baker McKenzie is a fully integrated international firm advising some of Taiwan’s largest firms in the pharmaceuticals, finance, chemicals, technology, and automotive sectors. Particularly focused on the antitrust aspects of M&A work, the team routinely acts as lead international counsel in complex international multi-party cases. The department is led by Sonya Hsu, former chair of the Competition Law Committee of the Taipei Bar Association. Hsu advises multinational clients on merger control issues and leniency applications. Fang-Yi Jen brings considerable international experience thanks to secondments in the firm’s London and Tokyo offices. Julia King is also noted at the associate level.

Practice head(s):

Sonya Hsu; Fang-Yi Jen

Other key lawyers:

Julia King

Testimonials

‘Baker’s anti-trust team is very professional well coordinated across different jurisdictions, providing a valuable service to customers who are dealing with multinational M&A transactions.’

‘Fang-Yi Jen is outstanding in coordinating the anti-trust issues across various jurisdictions.’

Key clients

Fubon Financial Holding Co., Ltd

GlobalWafers CO., Ltd

Taiwan Alvogen Ltd.

LCY Chemical Corp.

Marubeni Corporation

BizLink Holding Inc.

Cigna Corporation

Poema Global Holding Corp.

Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Inc. (Universal Scientific Industrial Co., Ltd. Nan Kang Plant)

Auchan Retail International

DBS Singapore Headquarters

Work highlights

  • Represented Fubon Financial Holding Co., Ltd in the TFTC premerger notification of its majority acquisition of Jih Sun Financial Holding Company.
  • Represented GlobalWafers Co., Ltd. in the TFTC premerger notification of its majority acquisition of Siltronic AG, making GlobalWafers the second-largest wafer manufacturer in the world.
  • Conducted multijurisdictional merger control assessment for the client’s sale of four factories in mainland China.

Formosan Brothers Attorneys at Law

Led by Chiu-Hua Chen , the antitrust and competition practice at Formosan Brothers Attorneys at Law is experienced in providing advice to domestic and overseas clients across a variety of sectors. The team is particularly focused on Federal Trade Commission (FTC) negotiations and trade secrets matters. International clients benefit from Yow-Lun Su’s dual qualification in Taiwan and the United States, while Yvonne Lin  brings multi-sector advocacy experience. Jeffrey Hung is noted for his representation of Taiwanese and foreign-listed companies in administrative remedy procedures against the FTC.

Practice head(s):

Chiu-Hua Chen

Other key lawyers:

Yow-Lun Su ; Yvonne Lin  ; Jeffrey Hung

Lee and Li, Attorneys-at-Law

Lee and Li, Attorneys-at-Law’s antitrust and competition practice caters to a broad base of high-profile, high-value domestic and international clients across a variety of sectors. With expertise in the antitrust implications of complex international mergers, the firm is a key player in the space. The department is led by Stephen Wu , who brings notable experience in antitrust filings, cartel investigations and unfair competition cases. Yvonne Hsieh  bolsters the department’s mergers and acquisitions credentials, while Wei-Han Wu  impresses with her work at the intersection of antitrust, digital economy, privacy protection and IP laws.

Practice head(s):

Stephen Wu

Other key lawyers:

Yvonne Hsieh, Wei-Han Wu

Testimonials

‘Very experienced competition team, with a good sense of how Taiwanese authorities will approach a matter.’

‘Yvonne Hshieh is extremely responsive and practical.’

Key clients

Daimler/Mercedes-Benz Taiwan Ltd.

Philips/Philips Taiwan

Line Taiwan

Far Eastone Telecommunications

Hitachi

Japan Tobacco

TDK

Pfizer

Formosa Plastic Corporation

Work highlights

  • Advised SK Hynix on its acquisition of NAND flash memory and SSDs businesses from Intel.
  • Advised Entegris on acquisition of CMC Materials.
  • Advised Chubb on acquisition of Cigna Corporation’s premium revenue accident and health (A&H) and life insurance businesses in certain Asia countries.

Lin & Partners Attorneys-At-Law

With a focus on complex international mergers and international competition investigations, Lin & Partners Attorneys-At-Law  advise their clients on pre-merger notification and substantive defence of transactions, government investigations, and civil antitrust litigation. The department is led by George Lin, and also benefits from Alex Liu  ’s previous experience as a senior official within the FTC.

Practice head(s):

George Lin

Other key lawyers:

Alex Liu

Tsar & Tsai Law Firm

With both domestic and international focus, Tsar & Tsai Law Firm handles an array of technical mandates, including merger filings, cartel investigations, and vertical restraints, with noted experience in the growing semiconductor industry. Matt Liu leads the department with his deep competition expertise, representing clients seeking merger clearance and leniency in high-profile cartel investigations. Vincent Wang  is noted for his experience as a trial lawyer before the FTC and Supreme Court, while Yichu Chen brings cross-border experience in Japanese-Taiwanese mergers.

Practice head(s):

Matt Liu

Other key lawyers:

Vincent Wang  ; Yichu Chen

Testimonials

‘Matt Liu, the head of the team, has rich knowledge and expecience.’

Key clients

IHS Markit Ltd.

Daimler Truck Holding AG

Advantage Partners

Carrefour SA

Nippon Steel Corporation

Nippon Steel Stainless Steel Corporation

Sumitomo Corporation

Nippon Steel Trading Corporation

NS-Stainless Corporation

NVIDIA Corporation

Kobe Steel, Ltd.

Nippon Steel Metal Products Co., Ltd.

TTY Biopharm Company Limited

Kimberly-Clark Taiwan

Unilever Taiwan Ltd.

Microsoft Corporation

Volkswagen AG

Renasas Electronics Corporation

Work highlights

  • Served as Taiwan legal counsel for NVIDIA Corporation in its acquisition of ARM Holdings plc.
  • Secured antitrust clearance for Renesas’ acquisition of Dialog for a consideration of USD 4.9 billion.
  • Served as Taiwan legal counsel and successfully advised Volkswagen AG on its acquisition of Navistar International Corp. with an aggregate consideration of USD 3.7 billion.