Operations
JUN/ 10
Latournerie Wolfrom et Associés assisted NextStage in the fundraise performed by KXEN
Latournerie Wolfrom et Associés (represented by Pierre Lafarge, Partner and Jennifer Sourisse, Associate) advised and assisted the investment funds managed by NextStage for a fundraise of USD $8 million performed by KXEN, the leading provider of data mining automation solutions.
Out of these USD $8 million, USD $4.5 million were raised through NextStage. The round included participation from existing investors (XAnge Capital, Sofinnova Ventures, Saints Capital and Motorola Ventures).
MAR/ 10
Latournerie Wolfrom & Associé counselled THOMAS COOK regarding its summary procedure against AFAT-SELECTOUR
Latournerie Wolfrom & Associés (with Marie-Hélène Tonnellier, Nathalie Karpik and Charlotte Barraco-David) counselled THOMAS COOK regarding its summary procedure on the specified time initiated at the end of January 2010 by the two companies composing the network of AFAT-SELECTOUR before the Commercial Court of Paris.
They asked for the continuation of a distribution contract which had been terminated, according to them abusively, by THOMAS COOK, in order to enable the agencies part of its freshly united network to continue to sell the Jet Tours products offered by THOMAS COOK.
In its decision dated February 1st 2010, the Court rejected their request.
The 1.200 selling points of the new network AFAT-SELECTOUR can therefore not continue to sell Jet Tour products since February 1st 2010, except those which signed a distribution agreement directly with THOMAS COOK.
FEB/ 10
Latournerie Wolfrom & Associés, counsel of Voyages-sncf.com before the Court of appeal of Paris
Latournerie Wolfrom & Associés (Marie-Hélène Tonnellier, Pauline de Lanzac and Jeannie Mongouachon) counselled Voyages-sncf.com and L'Agence Voyages-sncf.com before the Court of appeal of Paris after Karavel and Expedia appealed the decision of the Conseil de la Concurrence dated February 5th, 2009 regarding the practices applied on the online travel sale sector.
Despite the fact SNCF and Expedia had been found guilty of having organized a cartel, Karavel and Lastminute considered that the commitments undertaken by the SNCF under the procedure of absence of dispute of grievances ("procédure de non contestation des griefs") were not sufficient to put an end to the anticompetitive practices and asked the Court of appeal of Paris to impose to the SNCF and its subsidiaries some additional commitments.
In its decision dated February 23rd, 2010, the Court of appeal judged the requests of Karavel and Lastminute inadmissible and rejected all the appeals.
JAN/ 10
The Regional Council of Alsace has signed the first PPP regarding an energy performance agreement
The Regional Council of Alsace signed, last December 22nd, an energy performance agreement with a project company constituted by GDF SUEZ Energie Services, the Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations (CDC) and the FIDEPPP.
This is the first energy performance contract signed as a public-private partnership agreement concerning 14 high schools.
Latournerie Wolfrom & Associés counseled the group GDF SUEZ Energie Services - CDC - FIDEPP with Jean Latournerie, Partner, and Noemie Bussy for the Public Law Department, and Pierre Lafarge, Partner, assisted by Anne-Cécile Deville for the Corporate and Financial Law.
La Lettre des Juristes d'Affaires n°958 du 18 janvier 2010
JAN/ 10
4th 3G mobile license: the ARCEP selects Free Mobile
The French Telecommunications and Posts Regulator (ARCEP), in a decision dated December 17th, 2009, has selected Free, a 100% subsidiary of the group Iliad, in the procedure which began on August 1st, 2009 for the attribution of the authorization, in metropolitan France, of a third generation mobile phone system.
During the previous invitations to tender, three of the four 3G licences had been awarded (SFR and Orange France in 2001, and Bouygues Télécom in 2002).
Pursuant to the planned procedure, the offer made by Free Mobile was examined by the ARCEP in three phases : An admissibility phase, which enables to control that the offer complies with the required formal conditions, a qualification phase, which enables to verify that the offer complies with the eligibility criterion established for the attribution of the authorization and a selection phase, which enables to determine whether the content of the offer is sufficient in light of the criterions established for the selection process. It is in light of all these criterions that Free mobile's candidacy was selected.
The firm Latournerie Wolfrom & Associés (Térence Cabot) assisted and advised the company Free Mobile during the entire selection process organized by the ARCEP.
La Lettre des Juristes d'Affaires n°959 du 25 janvier 2010
JUN/ 09
Latournerie Wolfrom et Associés is the counsel of NextStage for the fundraise performed by Elbee
Latournerie Wolfrom et Associés (represented by Pierre Lafarge, Partner and Antonin Cubertafond, Associate) advised and assisted the investment funds managed by NextStage for a fundraise of 10M€ Developpement capital performed by Elbee, which is the editor of the websites Delamaison.fr and Decoclico.fr, leader in the aera of house equipement and decoration on the internet.
Out of these 10M€, 5 were raised through NextStage and 5 through the historical VCs (XAnge PE and OTC AM).
Communiqué de presse Delamaison
MAY/ 09
4th mobile licence : the Conseil d’Etat rejects a review action brought by Bouygues Telecom
On April 27, 2009, the Conseil d'Etat rejected a review action brought by Bouygues Telecom against a decision pronounced by the French Telecommunications and Posts Regulator (the ARCEP) which imposed to the mobile operators to make a part of their frequencies available in order to allow the entrance of a fourth operator on the market.
The Conseil d'Etat considered that " no discrimination [...] could be established " since, in time, each of the three existing operators will dispose of " exactly the same amount of frequencies ".
The lawfirm Latournerie Wolfrom & Associés (Térence Cabot) counselled Free which intervened as a defendant together with the ARCEP.
La Lettre des Juristes d'Affaires n°930, June 1st, 2009
FEB/ 09
Latournerie Wolfrom & Associés, counsel of Voyages-sncf.com before the Conseil de la concurrence
Latournerie Wolfrom & Associés assisted Voyages-sncf.com and Agence Voyages-sncf.com during the entire proceedings initiated by Lastminute and Karavel Promovacances before the Conseil de la Concurrence regarding the practices implemented by the SCNF and her subsidiaries in the sector of online travel.
At the end of the negotiation settlement procedure, the Conseil de la concurrence relieved Voyages-sncf.com and Agence Voyages-sncf.com of any responsibility and acknowledged the substantial commitments proposed by the SNCF and its subsidiaries in order to solve the current and future problems in terms of competition law.
The quality of these commitments led the Conseil de la concurrence to limit the penalty imposed on the SNCF to an amount of € 5 million.
La Lettre des Juristes d'Affaires n°916, February 23, 2009
JAN/ 09
Latournerie Wolfrom et Associés advises the Perpignan local authority in the Public-Private Partership (PPP) concerning the Archipel Theatre
Perpignan local authority, advised by Latournerie Wolfrom et Associés, signed a PPP agreement for the financing, construction and maintenance of the Archipel Theatre as well as for certain services contributing to the accomplishment by the Perpignan local authority of its public service mission.
La Lettre des Juristes d'Affaires n°910, January 12, 2009
SEP/ 08
CDC Entreprises, PROPARCO and Perspectives et Participations on a € 13 M investment aiming to strengthen Mediaserv
Latournerie Wolfrom & Associés advised CDC Entreprises (€ 7 M), PROPARCO (€ 5 M) and Perspective et Participations (€ 1 M), in taking a stake in Loret Telecom, the mother-company of Mediaserv, alternative telecom operator specialist in the French Overseas Departments (DOM). Mediaserv thus disposes of additional means to enlarge its network and to propose high speed offers, by developing the use of new technologies in DOM.
La Lettre Capital Finance n° 900, September 22, 2008