The CMA has considerably elevated use of its director disqualification powers in recent times to assist deter people from infringing UK competitors legislation. Administrators danger being disqualified for as much as 15 years the place they knew or must have recognized that their firm was concerned in an infringement. Kyle Le Croy and Richard Whish KC talk about this development, together with better litigation on this space.
Related people can agree a interval of disqualification with the CMA by the use of undertakings, however the CMA can be more and more pursuing disqualification orders within the Excessive Court docket the place people are unwilling to agree undertakings. Having been disqualified, some people have sought permission to proceed to behave as a director or in any other case be involved within the administration of an organization. The Excessive Court docket notably rejected such a request in February 2024 concerning a director who had beforehand agreed to be disqualified for seven years for his or her function in building bid rigging.
The administrators disqualified so far are typically from smaller corporations, however administrators of bigger corporations are at better danger with the CMA now investigating the UK points of the biggest antitrust circumstances post-Brexit, whereas the European Fee (which doesn’t have disqualification powers) tended to take action up to now.
