Dr. Thomas S. Wilson

Kirkland & Ellis International II LLP

Overview

His client service and general level of service and level of sophistication are very strong. His commercial awareness and vision is very strong. Thomas is a well-recognised lawyer with plenty of experience in competition matters. Thomas has strong knowledge of how different jurisdictions operate and can give precise advice that provides practical and easy solutions to complex concerns.” - Chambers Europe, 2024

Thomas Wilson is one of the founding partners of Kirkland’s Brussels office and heads the Brussels competition team.

Thomas advises on the full spectrum of competition law, including EU, German and international merger control, cartels, State aid and antitrust compliance as well as FDI and FSR matters. He has played a lead role in a large number of high-profile and industry-transforming mergers, including in 5 EU Phase II investigations. Thomas also regularly represents clients before the German Federal Cartel Office. He is also a part-time lecturer at King’s College London for the Post-Graduate Diploma in EU Competition Law.

Thomas counsels large corporates (e.g. Eli Lilly, Waters, AbbVie, Celanese) as well as some of the world’s leading private equity firms such as KKR, GTCR, H&F, Nordic Capital and GBL. One of Thomas’ focus areas is pharma/life sciences. According to recent client feedback, “Thomas takes a focused business/market approach, provides clear client advice and project manages flawlessly on complex, global regulatory processes”.

Thomas regularly speaks at competition law conferences, frequently publishes on practically relevant topics and has been consistently recognized for his work by legal directories. He has been recognised as a “Thought Leader” in GCR’s Who’s Who Legal 2020–2023 editions, as a “Recommended Lawyer” in 2024 Legal 500 EMEA and featured in ‘GCR 100’ (2021). According to GCR’s Who’s Who Legal 2022 edition, Thomas is commended by clients for his “inside-out knowledge of competition law” and “in-depth experience of EU merger control rules”.

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Thought Leadership

Publications

Top EU Court Finds That the EU Commission Cannot Review Below-Threshold Transactions”, Kirkland Alert, September 9, 2024

2024 EU Antitrust and FDI Update”, Kirkland Alert, January 17, 2024

Europe’s Highest Court Provides Clarity on Key Concepts in EU Merger Control”, Kirkland Alert, July 18, 2023

“The EU Foreign Subsidies Regime: Final Implementing Regulation", Kirkland Alert, July 2023

EU Foreign Subsidies Regime: Draft Implementing Regulation”, Kirkland Alert, February 2023

2023 EU Antitrust & FDI Update”, Kirkland Alert, February 2023

“EU Clears the Way for New Foreign Subsidies Regime Impacting Dealmaking in Europe", Kirkland Alert, July 2022

2022 EU Antitrust & FDI Update”, Kirkland Alert, January 2022

EUMR: Article 22 Position Paper”, ECLF Working Group, October 2021

Germany Significantly Expands Its Foreign Investment Control Regime”, Kirkland Alert, May 2021

Contributor to the response of the JWP of the UK Bars and Law Societies to the BEIS Consultation on the new UK subsidy control regime, April 2021

"Small Shift in EU Merger Policy: High Impact on Nascent Competitor Deals", Kirkland Alert, April 2021

2021 EU Antitrust Update”, Kirkland Alert, January 2021

EU Proposes Rules for Big Tech 'Gatekeepers'”, Kirkland Alert, December 2020

The ECJ’s ICAP Judgment Sends a Clear Message That Procedural Rights Matter”, European Competition and Regulatory Law Review CoRe, November 2020 (co-authored with A. Chandran)

New EU Foreign Direct Investment Regulations Take Effect”, Kirkland Alert, October 2020

A 1st Look At New EU Screening Of Foreign Direct Investment”, Law360, October 2020 (co-authored with M. Casey and M. Thompson

Minority shareholdings: an overview of EU and national case law”, Concurrences e-Competitions Special Issue: Minority shareholdings, October 2020 (co-authored with J. Parkinson)

Response to the European Commission’s White Paper on levelling the playing field as regards foreign subsidies”, European Competition Lawyers Forum, September 2020

Merger remedies - Is it time to go more behavioural?”, Competition Law Insight, June 2020

Learnings from the Commission’s Initial State Aid Response to the COVID-19 Outbreak”, European State Aid Law Quarterly, Volume 19 (2020), Issue 2 (co-authored with P. Riedel and S. Cranley)

The EU Commission releases a white paper consulting on leveling the playing field as regards foreign subsidies”, Concurrences, June 2020 (co-authored with P. Riedel and K. Koskivirta)

Court Strikes Blow to European Commission in Mobile Telecoms Merger”, Kirkland Alert, June 2020

COVID-19 and EU State aid recapitalisation”, Kluwer Competition Law Blog, May 2020 (co-authored with P. Gnatzy)

European COVID-19 Government and Central Bank Measures Supporting Business”, Kirkland Alert, April 2020

Update on the EU’s State aid response to COVID-19”, Concurrences e-Competitions Special, April 2020 (co-authored with P. Riedel and S. Cranley)

EU State aid and COVID-19”, Kluwer Competition Law Blog, March 2020 (co-authored with P. Riedel and S. Cranley)

Contributing author, chapter “EU merger control”, Handbuch des EU-Wirtschaftsrechts by Manfred Dauses

“Legal on legal privilege in the EU”, ABA Antitrust Bulletin, March 2018 (co-authored with S. Priddis)

“Legal Professional Privilege in EU merger control”, Neue Zeitschrift für Kartellrecht, June 2017

“Document requests in complex EU merger cases”, Zeitschrift für Wettbewerbsrecht, February 2017

“Getting an international ‘end-game’ deal through”, Getting The Deal Through – Merger Control 2017 (Consulting editor John Davies), (co-authored with A. v. Bonin, M. Lehner and A. Mordaunt)

“Infrastructure Financing and State Aid Post Leipzig-Halle”, European State Aid Quarterly, January 2014

“A comparative view on the new competition law in the UAE”, GAIR Mitteilungen, 2013 (co-authored with A. Ring)

“Differences in German and EU merger control law – Should a common EU rulebook for mergers follow the German or European model?”, 2011 (co-authored with F. Montag)

Seminars

Speaker at the Advanced EU Competition Law Conference: “Sustainability & Competition Policy” (November 2023)

Speaker at the Advanced EU Competition Law Conference: “Merger Control in Dynamic Markets, including Innovation Theories of Harm” (November 2022)

Moderator and panelist at the FDI Informa Connect conference: "To File or Not to File? And How Best to Prepare a Filing" (June 2022)

Panelist at the C5 FDI conference: “Managing the Interplay between CFIUS, UK and EU Member State Regimes: Critical Updates on FIRRMA, CFIUS Reviews and Mitigation Expectations” (June 2022) 

Speaker at the Advanced EU Competition Law Conference: “Spotlight on the Pharma Sector” (November 2021) 

Speaker at the C5 European Forum on Foreign Investment Security Reviews and CFIUS - “Deciphering the Review - What to Anticipate and How to Prepare for EU, Member State and US Screening” (May 2021)

Panellist at the Canadian Bar Association webinar on Big Tech and Competition Law (January 2021)

Lecture at London School of Economics Competition Law Society on “Hot Topics in EU Competition Law” (November 2020) 

Panelist at the Epiq webinar on Trends in European Competition Law: Digital Dominance - The Battle Ahead (November 2020)

Panelist at the Kluwer webinar on EU White Paper on Foreign Subsidies (October 2020)

Moderator at the ICC webinar on competitor collaboration, COVID-19, digitisation and sustainability (May 2020)

Panel moderator on merger remedies at GCR’s Antitrust Law Forum in Miami (February 2020)

Lecture at London School of Economics on “Hot Topics in EU Competition Law” (November 2019)

Speaker at the ERA Essential EU Competition Law seminar for German judges on Article 102 TFEU (September 2019)

Speaker and panel member at the Immersive Workshop of the Association of Corporate Investigators (ACi), London (September 2019)

Speaker and panelist at the C5 European Forum on Foreign Investment Security Reviews and CFIUS, London (June 2019)

Speaker and panel member at the Immersive Workshop of the Association of Corporate Investigators (ACi), London (May 2019)

Speaker at the ERA Essential EU Competition Law seminar for Bulgarian judges on Article 102 TFEU (November 2018)

Online training course for law students at George Mason University on recent developments in German antitrust law

Speaker at “Day of the Practice for in-house counsel”, Institut des Juristes d’Entreprise, Brussels, (March 2018)

Panel moderator on information exchange & cooperation in the context of innovation at the American Chamber of Commerce annual competition conference (October 2017)

Key note speaker and panelist on fundamental rights of companies at EU Parliament workshop, (October 2017)

Speaker at the GCLC Lunch Talk on “Merger Control and Due Process: UPS/TNT and beyond”, Brussels (April 2017)

Speaker at the Studienvereinigung Kartellrecht in Brussels on an EU merger control-related topic (February 2017)

Press Coverage

Quoted, “EU foreign subsidy white paper leaves more questions than answers, lawyers say”, Global Competition Review, June 2020

Quoted, “Telecoms groups expected to revive mergers after EU court ruling”, Financial Times, June 2020

Memberships & Affiliations

Company secretary of the Supervisory Board and General Assembly of the DCSA

Part-time lecturer at King’s College London (PG Diploma in EU Competition Law)

Permanent author for the Kluwer Competition Law Blog

Reviewer at the European Competition and Regulatory Law Review

Non-Governmental Advisor to the International Competition Network

Studienvereinigung Kartellrecht e.V.

European Competition Lawyers Forum, Board Member

Tönnissteiner Kreis e.V.

Chairman of the Brussels Round

Credentials

Admissions & Qualifications

  • Brussels (A List)
  • Admitted to the Hamburg Bar (Rechtsanwalt)

Languages

  • German
  • English
  • French

Education

  • University of BonnDr. jur., European Lawmagna cum laude2007
  • University of BonnSecond German State Examination2007
  • University of BonnFirst German State Examination2004