Recent EU Court And ECHR Case Law On Dawn Raids

Dawn raids remain a cornerstone of the European Commission (EC)'s and national regulators' investigatory practices, particularly in relation to cartels. Companies faced with a raid have to make rapid decisions concerning their internal investigations, external response and possible leniency applications.

At the same time, the law and practice governing the conduct of raids continues to become more complex. There have been several recent EU court and European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) cases in the area, which demonstrate the issues which can arise and which in-house and external counsel need to be cognizant of.

European Court of Justice; "no fishing"

On 18 June 2015, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) provided a reminder to the EC that it cannot engage in "fishing expeditions" during a dawn raid.