by Martina Maier and Robert Bäuerle, with contribution from Katharina Dietz, a paralegal at McDermott Will & Emery’s Brussels office

New rules of procedure in EU State aid investigations will enter into force very soon.  The European Commission will, for the first time, have the opportunity to request information from entities other than the EU Member State concerned, such as public and private companies that are not subject of a State aid investigation themselves.  Companies will be obliged to respond to the information request and fines might be imposed for failing to respond on time or providing incorrect, misleading or incomplete information.  Other major changes include a more restrictive approach in dealing with complaints and the European Commission now being able to conduct inquiries across various EU Member States into a particular sector.

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