Clifford Chance Advises Pfizer On Conditional Clearance In China Of Its Merger With Wyeth

Only the fourth conditional clearance - and the second on which the firm has advised - since the new competition regime was introduced in 2008

New York, NY /PRNewswire/ - Law firm Clifford Chance, as international counsel, has advised Pfizer on the conditional clearance of its merger with Wyeth under China's Anti-Monopoly Law. The clearance was issued by the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) on 29 September 2009.

Competition approval from the Chinese authorities was one of the key conditions of the Pfizer/Wyeth merger agreement.

The EU has already approved the deal; decisions are awaited from the Australian, Canadian and US competition authorities.

"The clearance is an important milestone for Pfizer's merger with Wyeth, and also tells us a lot about the continued development of China's competition procedures," said Clifford Chance's Beijing-based counsel Ninette Dodoo.

"This is the first time that the Ministry of Commerce has issued such clear conditions for the sale of competing businesses under a clearance.

"Our advice to companies seeking competition clearance is simple - establish dialogue with MOFCOM early in the process, respect its internal procedures and be responsive to its competition concerns."

The Clifford Chance team, which worked closely with Pfizer's PRC firm on the Chinese notification, included Ninette Dodoo, who relocated to Beijing from the firm's Brussels office earlier this year, partner Emma Davies in Shanghai and associates Jiajia Gao and Yang Liu in Beijing. Partner Tony Reeves in Brussels is co-ordinating the global merger notifications of Pfizer's acquisition of Wyeth outside the US, and partner Bill Blumenthal in Washington, D.C., also worked on the matter.

About Clifford Chance
Clifford Chance is one of the world's leading law firms, helping clients achieve their goals by combining the highest global standards with local expertise. The Firm has unrivalled scale and depth of legal resources across the four key markets of the Americas, Asia, Europe and the Middle East, and focuses on the core areas of commercial activity: capital markets; corporate and M&A; finance and banking; real estate; tax; pensions and employment; litigation and dispute resolution. Clifford Chance has 29 offices in 20 countries with some 3,600 legal advisers. The Firm also operates a 'best friends' arrangement with AZB & Partners in India and with Lakatos, Koves & Partners in Hungary, and a co-operation agreement with Al-Jadaan & Partners Law Firm in Saudi Arabia.

SOURCE Clifford Chance