Sydney Competition Boutique Cuts Merger Clearance Prep 50%
A 5-lawyer Sydney competition law boutique uses Quillio for ACCC merger clearance submissions under the new mandatory regime, s45 and s46 CCA advice, cartel leniency applications, and compliance program review. Merger submission drafting time has halved, and the firm now advises mid-market acquirers on the new mandatory notification regime within 72 hours of deal sign-off.
What they were trying to solve
The new ACCC mandatory merger notification regime commencing in January 2026 (under the Treasury Laws Amendment (Mergers and Acquisitions Review) Act 2024) fundamentally changed the workflow — clearance submissions now have to be prepared to a tight standard with detailed market definition, counterfactual, and competitive effects analysis before completion. Mid-market acquirers needed fast, good-quality advice on whether a deal is notifiable and what the submission requires.
Why Quillio
Quillio is configured with ACCC Merger Guidelines, the new mandatory regime materials, Part IV CCA authorities, and the firm's precedent bank. It processes the deal documents, applies the monetary and market share notification thresholds, drafts a first-pass market definition and competitive effects section, and produces a timeline for the 30-business-day Phase 1 review.
Implementation
The firm prepared Quillio ahead of the January 2026 commencement with practice submissions across 5 mid-market matters, benchmarked against ACCC informal clearance precedents, and went live on day one of the new regime.
Measurable outcomes
From deal documents to first-draft mandatory notification submission
From deal sign-off to client-ready notifiability opinion under the new thresholds
Standard cartel conduct and misuse of market power analysis
Firm now competitive on turnaround for mid-market merger work
In-house economists now focus on market analysis; drafting scaffolded by Quillio
"The new mandatory regime changed how fast clients need clearance advice. Quillio doesn't make the hard calls — but it builds the market definition draft and the threshold analysis so our economists can focus on the economics and I can focus on the competitive effects argument."
How it works in practice
ACCC mandatory merger notification submissions under the new regime commencing January 2026, s45 cartel conduct advice, s46 misuse of market power opinions, cartel leniency applications, and Part IV compliance program review.
What they avoided
Losing mid-market merger work to larger competition teams on turnaround, or scaling back the boutique model by hiring out of practice area necessity.
Case study FAQs
Is Quillio up to date on the new merger regime?
Yes — Quillio is trained on the Treasury Laws Amendment (Mergers and Acquisitions Review) Act 2024 and the new mandatory regime that commenced 1 January 2026, including the monetary thresholds, market share thresholds, and Phase 1/Phase 2 timeframes.
Does it handle cartel work?
Yes — Quillio covers s45 and s45AD cartel conduct (including the concerted practices prohibition under s45), and supports leniency applications under the ACCC Immunity and Cooperation Policy.
What about s46 misuse of market power?
Quillio applies the current s46 effects test following the 2017 Harper reforms, analyses substantial market power, and identifies conduct that has the purpose, effect, or likely effect of substantially lessening competition.
Can it do market definition?
Yes — Quillio applies the SSNIP test and demand/supply substitution analysis consistent with the ACCC Merger Guidelines, and drafts first-pass product and geographic market definitions for economist refinement.
Is commercially sensitive deal data safe?
Yes — all deal and market data stays on Australian-hosted infrastructure under the firm's tenancy, with row-level access controls, no external model training, and audit logs. Critical for competition work where confidentiality rings are common.
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