Practices

Antitrust & Competition

Basic Overview

Antitrust and competition laws, as foundational principles for ensuring fair competition and sound market order, have evolved into crucial considerations in corporate strategic planning and risk management. With the deepening development of the market economy, regulatory systems have exhibited distinct features of precision, normalization, and cross-border jurisdiction. Multijurisdictional antitrust coordination in cross-border transactions has grown increasingly prevalent. Amid intensified regulatory oversight, enterprises face complex antitrust compliance challenges and potential legal risks across various business operations—from mergers and acquisitions and business model design, to distribution system setup and market strategy development. Striking a dynamic balance between business growth and compliance, while leveraging professional expertise to effectively resolve competition law disputes, is essential for enterprises’ sustainable development.

As a one-stop legal service provider boasting cross-border, cross-jurisdictional and interdisciplinary strengths, Zhonglun W&D Law Firm has specialized in antitrust and competition law practice for years. Our services cover core areas including antitrust compliance system design, antitrust litigation, handling of monopoly-related administrative investigations, and declaration and reporting for concentration of undertakings. The firm has built substantial first-hand expertise at the forefront of antitrust and anti-unfair competition law, serving a diverse range of industries covering entertainment, real estate, internet, telecommunications, high-tech, finance, pharmaceuticals, and manufacturing. This enables us to offer a full-chain service system of “prevention, response, and remedy”. Our core team combines backgrounds at regulatory authorities with hands-on experience across multiple industries. Working closely with specialists in foreign investment, international trade and dispute resolution, they possess in-depth insights into regulatory frameworks and trends, enabling the delivery of precise, efficient and comprehensive legal services for clients.

Zhonglun W&D Law Firm has earned consistent recognition from industry authorities for its professional excellence in compliance services. The firm has been recognized as “2025 ALB Antitrust & Competition Law Firm of the Year”, and named one of the “2025 Top 40 China IP & Antitrust Domestic Law Firm” at the 12th China Intellectual Property Forum and 7th China Technology Innovation Forum. Moreover, core team members boast numerous individual honors, including being ranked among the “LEGALBAND Client Choice: Top 15 Competition Lawyers”, “GRCD Lawyer of Choice: Competition/Antitrust Lawyer”, and “Constellations of Law in Competition Law: Distinguished Lawyers” by Lexpress.

Services

  • 1、Legal Services for Antitrust Compliance

    We deliver antitrust compliance due diligence by analyzing clients’ business models, core processes, internal systems and commercial agreements based on the anti-monopoly law. Our offering covers customized compliance reviews and risk assessments, followed by actionable recommendations and system design. We also deliver professional legal opinions on specific compliance issues. Moreover, we develop specialized compliance guidelines and work manuals to embed into business approval workflows. Through scenario-based training programs, we equip executives and key personnel with essential skills in risk identification and compliance operations. We also assist clients conducting fair competition reviews, building a sustainable compliance system with ex-ante prevention, in-process control and ex-post optimization, thereby promoting ongoing business compliance. 
  • 2、Legal Services for Anti-Commercial-Bribery Compliance

    We assist clients in establishing a comprehensive anti-bribery compliance system that integrates risk identification, prevention, monitoring and response mechanisms. Through targeted due diligence, we pinpoint vulnerabilities to bribery across business operations. In alignment with applicable regulatory policies, we help establish a dynamic list of commercial bribery risks, as well as a case database based on relevant regulatory provisions and judicial precedents. We also draft tailored anti-bribery compliance guidelines, streamline business approval procedures, and clarify operational standards for high-risk scenarios. This systematic approach effectively mitigates hidden commercial bribery risks, ensuring that corporate commercial activities adhere to regulatory requirements. 
  • 3、Legal Services for Antitrust Investigation

    We assist clients in voluntarily reporting and administrative punishment investigation for antitrust violations. Tailored to clients’ business models and industry specifics, we design comprehensive response strategies for antitrust dawn raid and internal compliance policies, covering key aspects such as evidence collection and communication strategy. By accurately identifying potential risks—including price-fixing and abuse of dominant market position—we help clients establish long-term compliance mechanisms to ensure the lawful and compliant operation of their businesses. 
  • 4、Legal Services for Antitrust Litigation

    We represent both plaintiffs and defendants in civil antitrust lawsuits, and offer litigation services for antitrust-related administrative reconsideration and administrative proceedings. Our practice covers typical disputes such as abuse of dominant market position and monopolistic agreements. By focusing on the core issues of each case and integrating compliance strategies, we leverage our extensive collaboration with regulatory authorities and courtroom expertise to safeguard clients’ legitimate rights and interests, and efficiently resolve a wide range of antitrust legal disputes. 
  • 5、Legal Services for Declaration of Concentration of Undertakings Related to Investments, M&A, and Joint Ventures

    We deliver comprehensive services for the declaration of concentration of undertakings, covering pre-assessment and legal advice on whether joint venture setups, investments or M&A deals require declaration. Our team engage early in the transaction, working with deal lawyers to design transaction structures (including closing terms) and prevent “gun-jumping” and contract breaches. We also assist clients in filing objections during the public notice period of competitors’ declaration of concentration of undertakings to challenge relevant transactions, and support clients in administrative investigations concerning alleged failures to required declaration of concentration of undertakings. 
  • 6、Legal Services for Cross-border Antitrust

    Drawing on the firm’s global legal resources, we deliver one-stop, comprehensive antitrust services to cross-border enterprises, with core offerings including: establishing cross-border antitrust compliance systems and conducting risk assessments to align with regulatory requirements across diverse jurisdictions; guiding foreign-invested enterprises through antitrust investigations by liaising with overseas regulators, gathering compliance evidence and crafting defense strategies; representing clients in cross-jurisdictional antitrust disputes, navigating legal divergences to effectively protect their commercial rights and interests; and providing end-to-end services for overseas declaration of concentration of undertakings—covering pre-transaction compliance reviews, submission preparation, and regulatory liaison and coordination—to ensure a seamless, compliant process that facilitates the advancement of clients’ cross-border initiatives. 

Service Performance

  • Providing legal services to a state-owned investment group for the acquisition of equity in a listed company, including comprehensive antitrust services such as declaration of concentration of undertakings, administrative complaint filings on its behalf, and assisting in responding to complaints from competitors to address hostile takeover of the listed company (this case is one of the few typical hostile takeover cases in the A-share market) .
  • Providing legal services to a renowned theme park in China for the declaration of concentration of undertakings regarding the establishment of a new joint venture (It’s passed the review in an extremely short period of time and later cited by the State Administration for Market Regulation as a model case) .
  • Providing legal services to a foreign-invested environmental protection enterprise for the declaration of concentration of undertakings in its acquisition of the control of a sewage treatment plant, which involved accurately explaining Chinese legal concepts, the progress of the domestic declaration, and complex issues to its foreign headquarters, thereby ensuring the smooth advancement of the project .
  • Providing legal services to a fund manager for the declaration of concentration of undertakings related to the establishment of a new joint venture .
  • Providing legal services to a state-owned enterprise group for the investment, acquisition, and declaration of concentration of undertakings in its acquisition of the control of a listed company .
  • Providing legal services to a listed company for the antitrust declaration in China of its overseas projects .
  • Providing legal services to a Fortune Global 500 environmental protection company for an administrative investigation case initiated by antitrust government agencies .
  • Providing legal services to a listed company for the antitrust investigation .
  • Providing antitrust and compliance legal services to a Japanese home furnishings group for its cross-border merger and acquisition project .
  • Providing antitrust and compliance legal services to a Japanese electrical company .
  • Providing legal services to a top listed lithium enterprise for antitrust compliance of its overseas investment projects, covering legal matters related to corporate governance, antitrust declaration, reporting mechanisms, and corporate governance disputes .
  • Providing antitrust and compliance legal services to a British pharmaceutical company .
  • Providing antitrust and compliance legal services to a pharmaceutical company .
  • Providing legal services to a South Korean electronics group for its foreign-related anti-unfair competition and antitrust compliance project, covering legal matters related to SEP (Standard Essential Patents), distribution, and advertising .
  • Providing antitrust and compliance legal services to an internet company .
  • Providing legal services to an industry brokers association for its anti-unfair competition and antitrust law compliance project .
  • Providing legal services to a listed e-commerce company for the lawsuit against a foreign large multinational corporation over abuse of dominant market position, including overall litigation strategy analysis and initiating litigation in China under the long-arm jurisdiction principle of the Anti-Monopoly Law .
  • Providing legal services to a KTV company for the lawsuit against a management association over abuse of dominant market position .
  • Providing legal services to an e-commerce company for an unfair competition lawsuit against a brand management firm over store decoration .