Managing Counsel
Kristian Helge Straton-Andersen is Managing Counsel in the Competition and EU Law practice group. With nearly 20 years of experience, he advises Danish and international companies on all aspects of competition law, foreign direct investment screening (FDI), and foreign subsidies (FSR) – from mergers and cartel cases to dawn raids, abuse of dominance, litigation, and complex investment notifications. He combines deep legal expertise with a pragmatic, commercial approach that delivers solutions in even the most complex and high-profile cases.
Competition Law
Kristian's advice covers the full spectrum of Danish, European, and Greenlandic competition law. He assists companies with contracts, distribution structures, voluntary chain collaborations, bonus schemes, merger control, dawn raids, and litigation. His strength lies in his ability to navigate technically complex cases where both legal precision and business understanding are crucial.
He has completed more than 200 merger notifications across jurisdictions – including a significant number of complex cases, some with commitments – and has particularly deep sector expertise in the maritime sector, energy, finance, retail, and the automotive industry.
As co-author of the authoritative work The Danish Competition Act with Commentary and Marketing Law, Kristian possesses a professional authority that strengthens his position in negotiations. His authorship of the upcoming commentary on the Greenlandic Competition Act positions him as the central specialist for companies with Greenlandic market activities.
FDI
Kristian is one of Denmark's most experienced advisers on foreign direct investment screening (FDI). As a pioneer in the field, he has shaped practice since the rules were introduced and has handled over 50 FDI notifications, including 50% of all Danish Phase 2 cases.
His position as the leading specialist is cemented through his authorship of The Investment Screening Act with Commentary – the only comprehensive Danish work on FDI rules. This in-depth work with the legislation, combined with his extensive practice, ensures clients receive advice based on the most current legal understanding and regulatory practice. His upcoming commentary on the Greenlandic Investment Screening Act makes him the leading Danish specialist on FDI advice in both Denmark and Greenland.
International Perspective and Business Experience
Kristian's background as an international associate at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett in New York and specialist consultant at the Danish Competition and Consumer Authority, combined with periods as seconded legal adviser at three major corporations, gives him a unique 360-degree understanding of regulatory thinking, global market dynamics, and corporate internal decision-making processes. He has also taught as an external lecturer at the University of Copenhagen for several years, which has sharpened his ability to communicate complex legal issues clearly and precisely.
Gorrissen Federspiel 2016 -
Danish Competition and Consumer Authority 2014 - 2016
Gorrissen Federspiel 2006 - 2014
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, New York 2011
Admitted to the Danish Bar 2009
Master of Laws, University of Copenhagen 2006
English
Kristian Helge Straton-Andersen is ranked as Rising Star in Legal500
Books
Inatsisartut Act on Competition (the Greenlandic Act on Competition) with Commentary (Jurist- og Økonomforbundets Forlag) (under publication)
Danish Act on Competition with Commentary by Jacob Pinborg and Kristian Helge Straton-Andersen (Jurist- og Økonomforbundets Forlag, sixth edition) (under publication)
Markedsretten by Torsten Bjørn Larsen and Kristian Helge Straton-Andersen (Karnov Group, second edition) (under publication)
Danish Act on Foreign Direct Investments with Commentary by Kristian Helge Straton-Andersen (Jurist- og Økonomforbundets Forlag, 2022) (661 pages)
Danish Act on Competition with Commentary by Jacob Pinborg and Kristian Helge Straton-Andersen (Jurist- og Økonomforbundets Forlag, fifth edition, 2022) (1,660 pages)
Markedsretten by Torsten Bjørn Larsen and Kristian Helge Straton-Andersen (Karnov Group, first edition, 2019) (577 pages)
Danish Act on Competition with Commentary by Kirsten Levinsen and co-authored by Kristian Helge Andersen and Louise Kastfelt (Jurist- og Økonomforbundets Forlag, fourth edition, 2018) (1,513 pages)
Articles
EU competition law from November 2023 to October 2024 - Practice, judgments, and legislation (EU-konkurrenceret fra november 2023 til oktober 2024 – praksis, domme og lovgivning) in EU-law and Human Rights Law (EU-ret & Menneskeret) no 4/2024, p. 282-302 (co-author)
Danish Competition and Consumer Authority's guidelines for pricing in voluntary chains - stating the law? (Konkurrence- og Forbrugerstyrelsens vejledning om frivillige kæders priser - gældende ret?) in Ugeskrift for Retsvæsen 2023, p. 343-354
EU competition law in 2023 - Practice, judgments, and legislation (January to October) (EU-konkurrenceret i 2023 – praksis, domme og lovgivning (januar til oktober)) in EU-law and Human Rights Law (EU-ret & Menneskeret) no 4/2023, p. 213-231 (co-author)
The European Commission's new guidelines for cooperation between competitors (Kommissionens nye retningslinjer for samarbejder mellem konkurrenter) in EU-law and Human Rights Law (EU-ret & Menneskeret) no 3/2023, p. 105-124
The first rejection under the Danish Act on Foreign Direct Investments in Revision- & Regnskabsvæsen no 5/2023, p. 22-33
Vertical Agreements: Tilting Information Exchanges in Dual Distribution Scenarios (Denmark) in Journal of European Competition Law & Practice, Volume 13, Issue 7 (2022), p. 493-499 (co-author)
The first 6 years with the new merger control rules in the Danish Act on Competition in Revision- & Regnskabsvæsen no 1/2017, p. 36-52
Review of Christian Bergqvist, Jesper Kaltoft, and Sune Troels Poulsen, Merger Control in Denmark (Fusionskontrol i Danmark) in EU-law and Human Rights Law (EU-ret & Menneskeret) no 4/2012, p. 159-165 (co-author)
Chapters
Withdrawal (of the benefit of a block exemption), Global Dictionary of Competition Law, Concurrences, Art. N° 117573 (2024)
Co-author of Chapter 4 (Denmark) in European Competition Laws (Frank L. Fine, ed., Matthew Bender & Co, 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2013, and 2012)
Co-author of chapter on Denmark in Ilene Knable Gotts (ed.), Merger control, 15th edition, Lexology (2024)
Co-author of Vertical Agreements and Dominant Firms 2019 | Denmark, International Comparative Legal Guides, 2019 and 2018
Other
"Et pereat mundus, studies in justice", Copenhagen University prize paper 2004
Danish Society for European Law
Danish Association for Competition Law
Part-time lecturer in The Law of Competition Law and Unfair Competition, University of Copenhagen 2015-2024
Teaching assistant in Market Law, University of Aalborg 2018-2020