About Joost Houdijk
Joost Houdijk is a lawyer at AKD and part of the EU and Competition Law team. He advises and litigates on cartel arrangements and abuse of dominant positions. In addition, he regularly assists enterprises with merger notifications to the European Commission and the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (‘ACM’). Joost also represents enterprises and public authorities in litigation before Dutch courts and the European Court of Justice.
In addition to competition law, Joost specialises in Foreign Direct Investment (‘FDI’) regulation. His practice also encompasses EU free movement law, EU transportation law and consumer protection law.
Clients value Joost for his razor-sharp analysis of complex legal issues, and for his ability to think along with organisations about the specific questions of law they encounter. They appreciate the fact that he strives to reach the best possible outcome in each case with maximum effort and creativity.
Clients describe him as ‘a particularly strong counsel. He is very responsive, client-focused and sees the bigger picture’, ‘an excellent lawyer with great understanding of competition law’, and one says: ‘We appreciate his very fast and concrete reactions and his knowledge of our market’ (Chambers & Partners Europe Guide).
As one client says: ‘Joost Houdijk is a knowledgeable professional that gives advice that is best suited to our business. He is always very punctual and friendly. He always manages to make time to assist us in urgent matters’ (The Legal 500). Another is quoted as saying: ‘He is a lawyer with extensive knowledge on competition law. In addition, he also has a great understanding of the business interests at stake’ (Chambers & Partners Europe Guide).
Recent cases
Joost supervised successful ACM merger notifications, including the acquisition of NDC Mediagroep by Mediahuis in the media industry, and the merger of Viveste and Mitros in the construction industry. He also assisted a number of healthcare enterprises that were being investigated by the ACM for cartel practices. The investigation was completed without any of the organisations involved being indicted. Joost additionally represented a company in the agribusiness sector that was involved in a comprehensive cartel investigation by the ACM. He also assisted Denkavit with its successful acquisition of Nutrifeed from FrieslandCampina.
Education, activities and memberships
Joost regularly lectures at universities and private educational institutes, such as the Radboud University of Nijmegen. He has a large number of publications to his name, published in dozens of national and international journals. Joost has also co-authored books and reports. In 2009, Joost received his PhD for an extensive thesis on public interests in competition law.
In addition, Joost has been a long-standing editor of the multilingual Benelux journal Le Droit des Affairs/Het Ondernemingsrecht (‘DAOR’), which addresses all aspects of economic and business law. His memberships include the International Bar Association (‘IBA’), the International Association of Young Lawyers (‘AIJA’), the Dutch Competition Law Association, and the Dutch Association for Civil Procedural Law.