Premier Wholesale Delivery Agreement (as amended) [1995] IECA 392 (12th April, 1995)

Premier Wholesale Delivery Agreement (as amended) [1995] IECA 392 (12th April, 1995)

The original post-termination non-compete clause in the Premier Wholesale Delivery Agreement offended Section 4(1) of the Competition Act, 1991, as it restricted competition beyond what was necessary for the operation of the agreement and was not indispensable. The amended agreement, replacing the non-compete with a limited non-solicitation clause and removing the redundancy payment condition, did not offend Section 4(1).

Citation
[1995] IECA 392
Parties
Notifying Party: Premier Dairies Group (Premier); Decision Maker: Competition Authority; Counterparty: Contractors (25 independent operators, including Mr Bobby Raymond)
Jurisdiction
Ireland
Procedural Posture
Competition Authority Notification/decision / Final Decision on Notification and Issuance of Certificate
Outcome
Certificate issued; amended agreement does not offend Section 4(1) of the Competition Act, 1991.
Legal Topics
Anti Competitive Agreements, Non Compete Clauses, Distribution Agreements, Section 4 Competition Act 1991
Competition Law Anti Competitive Agreements Non Compete Clauses Distribution Agreements Section 4 Competition Act 1991

Case Brief

Summary, issues, holding and outcome

More case intelligence is available

Unlock the full research layer for this judgment.

Full judgment text Downloadable case file Legal principles 3 Authorities cited 5 Party arguments 2 Amounts and remedies 3
Sign in to unlock

Parties

Premier Dairies Group (Premier)

Notifying Party

Competition Authority

Decision Maker

Contractors (25 independent operators, including Mr Bobby Raymond)

Counterparty

Procedural Posture

Competition Authority Notification/decision / Final Decision on Notification and Issuance of Certificate

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the Premier Wholesale Delivery Agreement, as notified and as amended, offends against Section 4(1) of the Competition Act, 1991
  2. 2 Whether post-termination non-compete and non-solicitation clauses are permissible under Irish competition law

Ratio Decidendi

The original post-termination non-compete clause in the Premier Wholesale Delivery Agreement offended Section 4(1) of the Competition Act, 1991, as it restricted competition beyond what was necessary for the operation of the agreement and was not indispensable. The amended agreement, replacing the non-compete with a limited non-solicitation clause and removing the redundancy payment condition, did not offend Section 4(1).

Court Disposition

Certificate issued; amended agreement does not offend Section 4(1) of the Competition Act, 1991.

Orders

  • The Competition Authority certifies that the Premier wholesale delivery agreement, as amended by the agreement of 4 January 1995 between Premier Dairies Ltd and Mr Bobby Raymond, does not offend against Section 4(1) of the Competition Act, 1991.
  • This certificate applies to all Premier wholesale delivery agreements amended to accord with the agreement with Mr Bobby Raymond.