On September 22, 2020, Llinks Law Offices jointly with LCOUNCIL successfully held a seminar titled "Antitrust Guidelines for Motor Vehicle Sector Interpretation from Practitioners' Perspective" in Shanghai. Dr. David Pan and Mr. Nigel Zhu, a partner and a senior associate of Llinks Law Offices respectively, shared their compliance experiences and insights on the detailed regulations provided in the newly-issued Antitrust Guidelines for Motor Vehicle (hereinafter referred to as the "Guidelines") related to relevant market identification, significant market power, horizontal and vertical agreements, and abuse of dominant positions.

Dr. David Pan, based on domestic and EU cases, analyzes common forms of horizontal and vertical agreements and abuse of dominant positions in the automotive sector, such as a domestic administrative penalty case, where a well-known automaker imposed a "fixed price" on distributors under the name of "recommended retail price", and an EU cartel decision, where an established auto parts manufacturer induced loyalty of dealers by implementing complex rebates and discount programs. Moreover, Dr. David Pan interprets ambiguity in the Guidelines by comparison with EU guidelines and provides supplementary information on active sales and passive sales in e-commerce scenarios. In addition, Dr. David Pan shares his observation of antitrust enforcement practices and trends.

Focusing on the concept of "significant market power", Mr. Nigel Zhu introduces the legislative considerations for the establishment of the Safe Harbor rule, the similarities and differences in the identification standards of significant market power under China and EU laws, as well as the Guidelines' regulations on the application of the Safe Harbor rule to the automotive sector. Additionally, using the latest administrative penalty decision as an example, Mr. Nigel Zhu explains the "control" test and turnover calculation method to the attendees, and discusses with them issues that concern them the most.

At the end of the seminar, Dr. David Pan and Mr. Nigel Zhu interacted with the attendees about compliance issues that companies in the automotive sector are likely to encounter.

Over 40 in-house counsels from companies in the automotive supply chain attended this seminar.