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Siobhan Kahmann

Partner

Portrait ofSiobhan Kahmann

Siobhan Kahmann

Partner

Contact
CMS EU Law Office
Avenue des Nerviens 85
1040 Brussels
Belgium
CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP
Cannon Place
78 Cannon Street
London
EC4N 6AF
United Kingdom
CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP
Saltire Court
20 Castle Terrace
Edinburgh
EH1 2EN
United Kingdom
Languages English, French

Siobhan has practised EU and UK competition law for over ten years in Brussels and the UK, in addition to counselling clients on state-aid/subsidy, regulatory - including telco reg, policy and trade matters. She is an Advocaat with the Brussels Bar, and a Solicitor in Scotland, England and Wales. Her competition experience has included: complex cartel infringement assessments, defence, and leniency applications; detailed vertical, horizontal, tech transfer and motor vehicle agreement analysis and support; substantial advice on different market inquiries; strategic and in-depth counsel for clients in abuse of dominance claims; and significant experience in matters on UK, European and international merger control. She also routinely advises on all aspects of state-aid and subsidy laws.

She has extensive experience advising on competition law in the tech industry, including IoT, big data and artificial intelligence, in addition to automotive and other transport, and on evolving sustainability and FMCG issues. Siobhan has recently spent over a year working as a senior in-house competition counsel at a global oil and gas company, where her focus included advising on new energies initiatives and electric car charging infrastructure, in addition to supporting a leading FMCG brand as its only in-house global senior competition counsel. She also specialises in different aspects of tech regulation, including telco reg, net neutrality, and autotech with broad experience in electric and autonomous vehicles. Siobhan is the Law Society of Scotland’s elected International Council Member and is an active member of its Competition Committee, Tech Committee and Trade Working Group.

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Relevant experience

  • Cartel defence: advising clients across different industries on cartel defence strategies and procedures in the EU and at national level including leniency applications, and all stages of investigations. 
  • E-commerce: engaging in comprehensive e-commerce review, training and strategy for clients in a number of different sectors and jurisdictions.
  • Agreements: providing detailed and practical legal advice and training to a diverse range of MNCs on vertical, horizontal and other complex arrangements.
  • Abuse of dominance: counselling clients on formulating abuse of dominance complaints including strategy and policy towards regulators and responses to investigations, in addition to defence approaches and official responses.
  • Compliance programmes: compiling extensive and tailored compliance programmes and training for various clients across numerous sectors and jurisdictions, including designing e-learning modules.
  • Merger control: strategically advising on and securing the clearance of a number of mergers, including but not limited to the automotive industry, at both national and European level.
  • State-aid/subsidy: providing strategic support and analysis on all types of state-aid and subsidy review and awards, and defending decisions on no award of aid.

Other Regulatory

  • Telco Reg: providing wide-ranging telco reg advice from both a UK and EU perspective, including electronic communications services rules and regulations, and relevant restrictions, obligations and opportunities applicable across the various frameworks and evolving service categories/aspects
  • Net Neutrality: advising on pan-European net-neutrality issues, with a focus on zero-rating.
  • EV: counselling clients in the evolving electric/autonomous vehicle and energy industry on a range of competition and regulatory issues, state-aid/subsidy and policy support.
  • Regulatory: providing legal support and analysis across a wide-range of EU regulatory and competition issues including sustainability, energy, emissions, CRS, free movement and environmental frameworks.
  • Trade: preparing trade submissions for a variety of different EU and WTO procedures.
  • Policy: supporting and enabling clients’ successful engagement on policy issues with the EU institutions.
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Memberships & Roles

  • Advocaat, Brussels Bar (Dutch)
  • Solicitor and Notary Public, Law Society of Scotland
  • Solicitor, Law Society of England and Wales
  • Writer of the Signet to her Majesty the Queen (WS)
  • Elected Council Member (International), Law Society of Scotland
  • Committee Member, Competition, Tech Law, and International Trade Committees, with the Law Society of Scotland
  • Observer Member in the EU Law Committee, Member of the Competition Section, Law Society of England and Wales
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Publications

Siobhan is a regular contributor and presenter on a range of legal developments including competition law, e-commerce, big data, net neutrality, technology law, and electric and autonomous vehicles. She has also written and presented extensively on Brexit, including on competition law, and lawyers’ practising rights.

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Education

  • LL.B Honours, University of Aberdeen
  • LL.M, EU Competition and Business Law, Universiteit van Amsterdam
  • DLP, University of Edinburgh 
  • QLTT English Law, College of Law
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Expertise

12/05/2022
10 key aspects of the revised EU competition law in the field of distribution...
The new Vertical Block Exemption Regulation (VBER) and the new accompanying Vertical Guidelines (VGL) were published on 10 May 2022. The new VBER will enter into force on 1 June 2022 and apply for the next twelve years. The new VBER/VGL introduce sev
Law-Now Distribution and Franchising

Feed

09/04/2024
Plastics and packaging laws in the European Union
1. What is the general legislative framework regulating packaging and plastics waste? General waste management controls in the EU that apply to packaging and plastics waste are found largely in the following...
Expert Guide Consumer Products
Comparable
19/01/2024
CBAM: Just over a week to comply
As the deadline for the first Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) report approaches on January 31st, it is crucial for undertakings engaged in importing relevant goods into the European Union to...
Law-Now Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)
19/12/2023
UK to implement a carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) by 2027
In its joint response [1] to an earlier consultation, the UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and HM Treasury has confirmed that a UK CBAM will be implemented by 2027. The CBAM will impose...
Law-Now Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)
14/12/2023
European Commission must launch a State aid investigation into the granting...
The European Commission (Commission) must launch a formal State aid investigation into the granting of Dutch lottery licences, following an appeal to the EU General Court by the European Gaming and Betting...
Law-Now Subsidy control / EU state aid
01/12/2023
EU Competition Law Briefings
The EU Competition Law Briefings have been created to provide a platform for our clients and other competition law experts to stay up to date on the developments of EU Competition Law. Every month CMS...
Event Webinar
07/11/2023
CMA goes green with guidance supporting collaboration between businesses...
With ESG firmly on the corporate agenda, recent guidance from the CMA is intended to give businesses confidence to collaborate across industries and sectors to support sustainability objectives without...
Law-Now Mergers & Acquisitions
05/07/2023
The EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism: An Overview
IntroductionThe EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (“CBAM”) entered into force on 5 June 2023. It aims to reduce carbon emissions and also discourage producers from moving their production outside...
Law-Now Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)
26/06/2023
Revised guidance on the application of EU State aid rules in the UK post-Brexit
On 9 June 2023, the European Commission (“EC”) adopted a revised Notice on the application of the EU State aid rules to the UK following the end of the Brexit transition period.  On the same day...
Law-Now Brexit
21/06/2023
Distribution in the digital age
The rules governing distribution agreements and how they operate both across the EU and within the UK have recently been updated. These new rules will take full effect from June 2023 and it is important...
Event Webinar
28/04/2023
Friday Forum Sessions
Friday Forum is an easy-to-digest, six-part webinar series during which we will be discussing how retailers, distributors, suppliers and online platforms can adapt to the new EU and UK competition rules...
Event Webinar
14/03/2023
The new EU Foreign Subsidy Regime
The EU’s Foreign Subsidy Regulation (FSR) will come into force on 12 July 2023. It sets out important new rules which enable the European Commission to review financial contributions by non-EU governments...
Event Webinar
28/02/2023
UK Subsidy Control Regime / Subsidy control
The new UK subsidy control regime took full effect on 4 January 2023. Having been a commitment of the UK as part of post Brexit trading arrangements with the EU, the new regime now covers all forms of...
Event Webinar
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