As deputy director of DG Comp’s specialised cartel board since 2015, Navea prosecuted several cartel investigations and was responsible for the review of proposed settlements between the EC’s specialised cartel authority and the companies under investigation. Previously, from 2013 to 2014, he worked as a member of the cabinet of EC Vice-President and Competition Commissioner Joaquín Almunia. During this time, Navea was responsible for merger and antitrust investigations in the pharmaceutical, healthcare, food, manufacturing and transport industries. He was also responsible for all cartel investigations, including cartels in the financial and automotive parts sectors.
From 2008 to 2013, Navea managed cases for DG Comp, where he worked on mergers in the technology, media and telecommunications sectors, and later created a policy paper for the unit coordinating all cartel, antitrust and merger investigations. Navea began his career in 1999 in the Brussels office of Coudert Borthers, and worked as an associate for six years for Freshfields and Clifford Chance in Brussels and Madrid.
Navea obtained a Law Degree in 1996 and a diploma in EC Law in 1997, both from Deusto University in Bilbao, Spain. He is a member of the Spanish and Brussels Bar.
In 2018, he joined Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, the leading provider of legal services to global technology, life sciences and growth companies, Brussels office, where he focused his legal practice on advising clients on antitrust matters, including cartel investigations and competition-related factors relevant to mergers, acquisitions and international ownership, returning to the EC in 2022, from where he noow joins Squire Patton Boggs in Madrid.
Madrid office managing partner Teresa Zueco said: “Gorka joins the Madrid team and will work closely with the Commercial practice; providing our Spanish and international clients with the expertise and competition analysis they need, not only from a Spanish but also from an EU point of view. He is a great addition to our team and we warmly welcome him.”
“Joining Squire Patton Boggs has given me the opportunity to fulfil a long-standing ambition of combining my European practice with a practical focus on Spanish competition matters Squire Patton Boggs has a top-tier global Competition – Antitrust practice with an excellent reputation; this, together with a leading global M&A practice and an exciting repositioning project in Spain, made this international firm the best choice for me,” said Gorka Navea.
