Professor Suzanne Rab


Year of Call: 2013 (Solicitor 1999)

A first-class barrister with an encyclopaedic knowledge of her subject.” (The Legal 500)

“She has a first-rate intellect and is a tenacious advocate. She has very sound judgement, combined with a commercial approach.” (The Legal 500)

“She has the expertise and commercial nous to be able to get under the legal issues and identify the client's underlying commercial or regulatory concerns, and address them through her advice.” (Chambers & Partners)

Portrait of Professor Suzanne Rab

Practice Overview

Suzanne obtained higher rights of audience whilst in private practice as a solicitor for 15 years prior to joining the bar. She has held positions at magic circle and leading international antitrust practices. Most recently she was an antitrust partner with a leading US firm in London

Suzanne has wide experience of competition law, EU law and regulatory matters combining cartel regulation, commercial practices, IP exploitation, merger control, public procurement and State aid/subsidy control.

Suzanne’s practice has a particular focus on the interface between competition law and economic regulation. She advises governments, regulators and businesses across the regulated sectors including in the communications, energy, financial services, healthcare/ pharmaceuticals, TMT and water sectors.

Suzanne has significant experience of advising on the development, implementation and application of new competition laws and regulatory regimes in line with international best practices, including in emerging markets. She is a member of the UK Regulators Network (UKRN) Expert Advisory Panel. 

In private practice as a solicitor for 15 years prior to joining the bar, she has held positions at magic circle and leading international antitrust practices. Most recently she was an antitrust partner with a leading US practice. She has also held the role of director at PricewaterhouseCoopers working within its strategy, economics and forensics teams.

Suzanne speaks French and has worked in a bilingual office while practising as a solicitor.

Suzanne is the author of “Indian Competition Law, an International Perspective” (first published by Wolters Kluwer, May 2012; with a supplement of cartel regulation published in January 2013). The book is the first-of-its-kind international comparative analysis of the Competition Act 2002 published contemporaneously with the coming into force of Indian competition law and merger control.

Suzanne is also co-author of "Media Ownership and Control: Law, Economics and Policy in an Indian and International Context" (Hart Studies in Competition Law, 2014) and "Hong Kong Competition Law" (Hart/Bloomsbury, 2016). Suzanne is a contributor to "Cross-Border Copyright Licensing, Law and Practice" (Elgar Intellectual Property Law and Practice series, 2018) and "Artificial Intelligence Law and Regulation" (Edward Elgar, 2022)

Suzanne Rab was recognised by The Lawyer as one of the “Hot 100” lawyers for 2022, most notably for her work for public bodies including in relation to net zero, competition law and subsidy control.

News & Events

  • News

    Suzanne Rab interviewed on EU Advocate General Opinion in Apple State aid Tax Challenge

    An EU Advocate General has recommended overturning a first-stage ruling on a successful challenge to the European Commission’s... Read More

    News

    Professor Suzanne Rab writes for Thought Leaders 4 Disputes Magazine Issue 10

    Professor Suzanne Rab reflects on the scale, complexity and scope of collective actions in competition cases in her article published... Read More

  • Events

    TL4 Disputes 2nd Annual Forum: Financial Institutions Litigation

    Location: Central London Read More

    Events

    ThoughtLeaders4 Disputes: Chat GPT: Its Impact on Law and The Legal Profession

    Location: Virtual Event (Zoom) Read More

  • "Technically excellent across a broad range of areas. Articulate and persuasive advocate. Always willing to go the extra mile to meet client needs." 

    Legal 500, 2023
  • "She is a force of nature: enormously energetic, proactive and gets into the detail."

    Chambers & Partners
  • “She has a first-rate intellect and is a tenacious advocate. She has very sound judgement, combined with a commercial approach.”

    The Legal 500
  • "She has the expertise and commercial nous to be able to get under the legal issues and identify the client’s underlying commercial or regulatory concerns, and address them through her advice."

    Chambers & Partners

Education & Qualifications

MA Jurisprudence (First Class), Oriel College, Oxford University

BCL, Competition Law, Conflict of Laws, Evidence, and Intellectual Property Law, Oriel College, Oxford University

Legal Practice Course, College of Law

Admitted as a solicitor in England and Wales: 1999 (training contract 1997-1999)

Call to the Bar: 2013

Admitted as a solicitor in Ireland: 2018

Appointments

Non-executive board member of the Legal Aid Agency

Non-executive board member to the Press Recognition Panel

Expert Panel of the UK Regulatory Network

Law Lecturer, Oxford University.

Professor of Commercial Law and Practice Chair, Brunel University.

Visiting Professor, Imperial College Business School.

Senior Research Associate of Oxford Regulatory Policy Institute (RPI)

Consulting Editorial Board member for LexisNexis Competition.

Member of editorial board of Competition Law Insight.

Memberships

The Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn
Member of the Bar Standards Board Advisory Pool of Experts (Competition Law and Data Protection)
 

Languages

English, French, Spanish

Professional Achievements

Winner of Burton Award for Legal Achievement 2012 (Library of Congress, Washington D.C.)

Regular contributor to Lexis PSL Practice Notes on a range of competition law and regulatory topics.  Author of Lexis PSL EU court monthly update.

Books

Author of chapters on Competition Law and Telecommunications in Artificial Intelligence Law and Regulation (2022, Edward Elgar Publishing)

Contributor to Cross-border Licensing of Copyright (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2018)

Co-author of Atkins Court Forms in Civil Proceedings, Competition Law (Volume 10), 2016 (new edition)

Co-author of Hong Kong Competition Law (2016, Hart/Bloomsbury)

Co-author of Media Ownership and Control: Law, Economics and Policy in an Indian and International Context (2014, Hart Studies in Competition Law)

Author of Indian Competition Law, an International Perspective (first published by Wolters Kluwer, May 2012; supplement on cartel regulation published in January 2013)

In the Press

Interviews

Suzanne Rab interviewed on EU Advocate General Opinion in Apple State aid Tax Challenge - 9 November 2023 

"Professor Suzanne Rab interviewed on the upcoming European decision on Microsoft's planned takeover of Activision" - 15 May 2023

"The Hot 100 career quiz": The Lawyer - 7 June 2022

"Facebook Privacy Concerns": BBC Business Briefing - 9 July 2019

"Sainsbury's and Asda Merge": BBC Worlds News - 20 February 2019

"Comcast beats Fox for Sky takeover": BBC World News - 24 September 2018

"'Right to be forgotten' could threaten global free speech, say NGOs": BBC News - 11 September 2018

"Google faced with multibillion-euro penalty for abuse of dominant position in mobile operating systems": BBC World News - 18 July 2018

"GKN Shareholders vote on Melrose bid": BBC News and Radio London - 29 March 2018

Comments

Professor Suzanne Rab discusses European Commission approving Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision, Law360Law.comGlobal Competition Review and The Guardian - May, 2023

Activision Blizzard Hires Lord Pannick KC in Fight for $69 Billion Microsoft Deal - Lawyer Monthly, 10 May 2023

"Royal Mail and BT awarded £20m in truck cartel ruling" The Times, February 2023 

"Gazprom Firmly in EC’s Antitrust Sights as Pressure Mounts From Skyrocketing Energy Prices, War in Ukraine" - The Capitol Forum, 11 April 2022

"Daiwa Ruling Reinforces Banks' Duty To Guard Against Fraud", Law360, 4 November 2019

"EU's 1st Fine In 16 Years Shows Predatory Pricing Challenges", Law360, 25 July 2019

"In Latest EU Fine, Signs of Google's Next Sanction" - The Law360 - 22 March 2019

"Sky share price jumps as investors welcome Comcast’s winning takeover bid" - The Independent - 24 September 2018

News & Events

  • News

    Suzanne Rab interviewed on EU Advocate General Opinion in Apple State aid Tax Challenge

    An EU Advocate General has recommended overturning a first-stage ruling on a successful challenge to the European Commission’s... Read More

    News

    Professor Suzanne Rab writes for Thought Leaders 4 Disputes Magazine Issue 10

    Professor Suzanne Rab reflects on the scale, complexity and scope of collective actions in competition cases in her article published... Read More

  • Events

    TL4 x Keidan Harrison & Fieldfisher: Risks and Opportunities in the GCC Region for Disputes, Insolvency and Asset Recovery Practitioners

    Location: Fieldfisher's offices Read More

    Events

    ThoughtLeaders4 Competition: UK Subsidy Control Act 2022 – Now live but what does it mean in practice?

    Location: Virtual Event (Zoom) Read More