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Broadcom loses bid to block EU antitrust document request
The EU General Court rejected Broadcom's effort to pause an antitrust demand for U.S.-privileged legal documents tied to its VMware acquisition.
Broadcom has lost its bid to suspend a European Union antitrust request for U.S.-protected legal documents, after an EU court sided with regulators in a case connected to VMware, which Broadcom acquired in 2023, according to Reuters.
In May, Broadcom asked the Luxembourg-based General Court for an interim measure after it was ordered to present documents produced outside the EU, arguing the request conflicts with U.S. attorney-client privilege that protects confidential lawyer and client communications.
Reuters reports that the dispute centers on how privilege is treated in the EU, where the court said the status covers communications between a company and its external lawyers but not communications involving in-house lawyers.
The court also indicated that allowing a company under investigation to decide which documents are relevant could undermine the European Commission's investigation powers, Reuters reported.