Sergio Baches Opi is a member of the Legal Service of the European Commission (Competition Team). Before joining the European Commission in 2017, Sergio practiced as a competition lawyer in Madrid, Barcelona and Brussels. Sergio graduated in law by Universidad de Barcelona (U😎 and holds an LL.M. in European Law from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL), an LL.M in International Business and Trade Law from Fordham University School of Law (USA), a Master in Human Resources Management from EADA Business School Barcelona and a PhD from Pompeu Fabra University (UPF) School of Law (Barcelona). He is a visiting professor of competition law in the Barcelona School of Management (UPF). He has published several articles on competition law (the most recent being “Gun Jumping in the European Union: An Analysis in Light of Ernst & Young” (with A. Boitos), Journal of European Competition Law & Practice, Volume 10, Issue 5, May 2019) and has regularly participated in conferences and seminars on competition law

Dr. Thomas G. Funke is the co-head of the international competition practice at Osborne Clarke. He led the defence in German and EU antitrust investigations of key players from the automotive, banking, energy and technology sectors. Thomas has also been recognised as an expert for merger control, vertical restraints and the motor vehicle sector. A successful antitrust litigator, he secured decisions from the European Court of Justice and the German Supreme Court (C-352/13, T-345/12, T-437/08). “One of the finest lawyers in antitrust litigation” (WWL 2022).

Patricia Vidal joined Uría Menéndez in 1996 and she is a partner of the firm since 2015. Her practice mainly refers to EU law and EU and Spanish Competition Law, with special focus in competition litigation before the Spanish and the EU courts. She has wide experience in merger control (including multijurisdictional filings) and national and international cartel cases and leniency programs, as well as international agreements (purchasing/selling strategic alliances and state aid issues. More prominently in the last years she has specialised in antitrust damage claim litigation in Spain.

Patricia is a regular lecturer on EU and Competition Law in several universities and institutions and has written several articles and books on Competition Law.

She is the Chairman of the Spanish Association for the Defence of Competition. Patricia is considered a leading competition lawyer by the main legal international directories (Chambers, Who’s who, GCR, etc.) and has won several awards (including Benchmark Litigation 2019 – Europe, category “Best lawyer” in Spain, and was nominated in 2021 for the award of “Best Lawyer” in Spain by the newspaper Expansión; women@, etc).

Michaël is a partner in the EU/Competition department in Paris. He represents clients in antitrust litigations, merger control, State Aid, counselling, and establishing effective antitrust compliance programs. He is also specialised in distribution law and restrictive trade practices.Michaël has considerable experience in competition matters involving the energy, transport and consumer products sectors and has represented clients in other industries including retail, banking, industrial equipment and private equity. Michaël lectures competition law at the University of Paris II (Panthéon-Assas).

Michaël is a member of the Paris Bar. He is also a member of the board of the French Competition Law Society (Association Française d'Etude de la Concurrence).

Dr Tim Reuter has worked in competition economics for more than 15 years and has been in private practice for more than 10 years.

Who’s Who Legal lists Tim as a Global Elite Thought Leader in the economists under 45 category. He is recognised for receiving “widespread acclaim for his stellar expert witness practice, where he excels particularly in merger control and cartel damage cases”.

Tim has been involved in multiple Phase II merger investigations at the European Commission and the Bundeskartellamt (German Federal Cartel Office). He has been an expert witness in cartel damages cases across several European Union countries. He has also advised companies during market investigations and abuse of dominance proceedings by competition authorities, including several large digital platforms.