Bayer Wins Battle With European Commission

The EU’s highest court handed the German drug manufacturer Bayer a legal victory on Tuesday. The Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice ruled that the drug company would not have to pay the $3.8 million (€3 million) in fines imposed on it by the European Commission in 1996. The Commission accused Bayer of breaking anti-cartel laws when it sought to restrict distribution of its Adalat heart drug. Bayer and other pharmaceutical companies have been battling so-called “parallel trade”, when distributors buy name-brand drugs in southern Europe, where government-set prices are low, and resell them in the north at a higher price. The Commission felt efforts by Bayer to restrict the supply of the drug to southern countries in an effort to stop the practice violated laws governing the free movement of goods. But the court ruled that the commission had failed to prove collusion. A statement by Bayer welcomed the decision.