News

The High Court of Western Denmark has requested a preliminary ruling from the Court of Justice of the European Union in nightclub cartel case

The High Court of Western Denmark has referred six questions to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) regarding the interpretation of the competition rules arising in a case concerning ECIT Account’s liability for a long‑running cartel among nightclubs. The questions concern (i) territorial market allocation as part of a joint purchasing arrangement and (ii) liability for facilitating a cartel.

The case on appeal concerns a judgement of the Danish Maritime and Commercial High Court, which imposed a fine of DKK 20 million on ECIT Account for its participation in formalizing and maintaining a cartel among nightclubs, for a duration of 15 years.

It is rare for Danish courts to make preliminary references in competition cases, and the CJEU’s answers may have implications for the application of the competition rules beyond the specific case.

ECIT Account acted as an adviser to the nightclubs and also participated in the nightclubs’ joint purchasing arrangement. Through the joint purchasing arrangement, the nightclubs had unlawfully agreed not to open branches in each other’s towns or within a radius of 20 kilometers of one another.

The Danish Maritime and Commercial High Court’s judgment is from January 2025. Subsequent to the judgement from the Danish Maritime and Commercial High Court, the Danish Competition Appeals Board issued a decision in another, now concluded, case that also involved territorial market allocation in connection with a cooperation arrangement between competitors. That decision has created uncertainty as to how territorial market allocation should be assessed under competition law when the market‑sharing agreement is concluded between undertakings that also have a lawful cooperation.

The Danish Competition and Consumer Authority has therefore suggested that the High Court of Western Denmark requests a preliminary ruling from the CJEU regarding joint purchasing arrangements and territorial market allocation. At the same time, ECIT Account has suggested that questions concerning the conditions for liability for facilitating a carte are referred to the CJEU.

The court case concerning ECIT Account forms part of a broader set of proceedings about a nightclub cartel, which the Danish Competition Council intervened against in 2021. Previously, a total of 22 nightclubs and their joint purchasing company admitted to having infringed the Competition Act and accepted fines.

In 2023, the Danish Competition Council found that ECIT Account had contributed to the market‑sharing agreement and that a fine should be sought in the proceedings before the courts.

Further information

Contact the Head of Communications at the Danish Competition and Consumer Authority, Hanne Arentoft, at +45 41 71 50 98

Preliminary request to the CJEU

  • A preliminary reference concerns  one or more questions that a national court refers to the Court of Justice of the European Union in order to clarify the interpretation of EU legal acts before the national court decides a case.
  • The purpose of a preliminary reference is to ensure that EU rules are interpreted and applied uniformly across all Member States.
  • The national proceedings are stayed while the CJEU considers the questions.
  • The CJEU will only decide on matters of interpretation of EU-law. The national court then decides on the specific case on the basis of the preliminary ruling. 
  • The CJEU’s answer is binding on the Danish court and must also be followed by other national courts hearing similar cases. The ruling may therefore have implications beyond the specific case. 
  • No deadline is set for when the CJEU must render a preliminary ruling. In 2025, the average duration was just under 17 months. This figure covers all areas of law.

Links