A dawn raid (an unannounced inspection) by the competition authorities can hit without warning and, when it does, the stakes are high, with the potential for substantial fines and other severe consequences for the company and the individuals involved.
Having a clear, confident dawn raid response plan is essential - our dawn raid team can provide immediate assistance to protect your business.
When a dawn raid hits, timing is critical. With trained teams in London, Oxford, Cambridge, Norwich, Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds, we can provide rapid onsite support across the UK.
Our experience
Our specialist and experienced competition law team offers end-to-end support, including:
- Dawn raid readiness – policy reviews and updates, practical training for all staff levels, realistic mock raids.
- On-the-day support – rapid response, trained dawn raid teams based across the UK, legal guidance during inspections.
- Investigation strategy – internal audits and risk assessments, dealing with regulator requests, leniency applications and early settlements, representation at hearings.
Examples of our work:
- Defended several dawn raids in the healthcare sector, including for a leading OTC pharmaceutical manufacturer and for an innovative manufacturer
- Advising a major detergents manufacturer on the European Commission’s cartel investigation into consumer detergents, including attending the dawn raid at UK headquarters and coordinating responses to the dawn raids at other European locations
- Conducting bespoke mock dawn raids for clients in diverse sectors including financial services, consumer goods and healthcare
