Brussels under fire for ruling

The court had already overturned Brussels' Airtours decision

The European Commission has faced harsh criticism following a court ruling to overturn its ban on French group Schneider Electric's takeover of rival Legrand.

It is the second time this year that the Commission has had a merger decision overruled by a European court.

Analysts said the court decision on Schneider was a surprise and could pave the way for a swift review of the way Europe looks at merger proposals.

But Schneider itself said it was now unsure about its plans for Legrand, having already agreed to sell the company.

U-turn

The court is strongly saying that there was a major problem in the way the commission dealt with the case

Naboth van den Broek, Stibbe

Schneider, a French electrical goods group, bought 98% of rival Legrand last October.

But the European Commission ordered Schneider to sell the stake because of competition issues.

The investigation was carried out by the EU antitrust division under the leadership of Mario Monti.

But his decision has now been overruled by the European Court of Justice, which decided the analysis of the deal by Mr Monti's team "was vitiated by errors and omissions".

The court's criticism is the second blow to the Commission in a few months.

In June, the court said the Commission's decision to stop travel group AirTours, now called MyTravel, from buying rival First Choice had been a mistake.

Naboth van den Broek, a lawyer at the Dutch law firm Stibbe said: "Now it is clear that this not a one-time problem. The court is strongly saying that there was a major problem in the way the commission dealt with the case."

Setting a precedent

Lawyers said the latest court ruling had prompted calls for Europe to create a separate competition body to authorise the Commission's merger decisions.

This is more of a moral, personal victory for chief executive Henri Lachmann

Julian Beer, Enskilda Securities

This would bring it in line with procedures in the US.

"That is one possible way to inject a truly independent body into the process," said Alec Burnside, a competition partner at lawyers Linklaters.

On Friday, the European Court is due to hear the case of packaging giant Tetra Laval, which is appealing against a ban on its acquisition of the rival French group, Sidel.

Lawyers say there is now a strong chance that this decision will also be overruled.

"This would mean the commission would have lost three consecutive merger cases. That has got to be cause for some serious reflection," said Charles Stark, a partner at Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering.

Moral victory

Schneider meanwhile said it was reviewing its options for Legrand.

The electrical group has already agreed to sell the group to investment groups Wendel Investissement and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts.

Schneider could now look at other acquisitions

Schneider would be selling its 98% stake at a loss of 2.7bn euros (£1.7bn), but to change its mind would cost it 185m euros in penalty fees.

Analysts said it was unlikely to proceed with the sale.

"This is more of a moral, personal victory for chief executive Henri Lachmann than a commercial success," said Julian Beer, an analyst at Enskilda Securities.

But Schneider is seeking financial compensation from the Commission.

A spokeswoman for Mr Monti said the court ruling would speed up a review of how antitrust cases are dealt with.

She said the review, which is now underway, had already "pointed to weaknesses in decision-making and economic analysis".