Dawn raids are one of the most powerful enforcement tools used by the European Commission and national competition authorities to investigate suspected breaches of EU competition law. Since dawn raids can lead to very large fines and trigger litigation, preparedness for a potential inspection is key for a business to minimize the disruptive effect of a raid. For life sciences businesses, these unannounced inspections can be particularly stressful, given the sector's reliance on sensitive data, IP, and complex supply chains.

Dynamics of a dawn raid

A dawn raid typically occurs early in the morning at a business premises and/or private homes (where business records may be kept) without prior notice. Inspectors arrive with formal authorization and are accompanied by IT specialists and, in some cases, law enforcement. Their mandate includes searching offices, taking copies of documents and electronic records, and conducting interviews. Increasingly, authorities focus on digital evidence, including emails, cloud-stored data, and messaging apps. Inspections can last for days, if not weeks. Failure to cooperate or obstruction can lead to severe fines.

Dawn raids are stressful to deal with. The following golden rules may be helpful:

Do's during a raid

• Stay calm: allow inspectors access to premises and documents as authorized.
• Activate your response team: notify legal counsel immediately, both internal and external. Ensure trained personnel shadow inspectors and keep detailed notes of all actions taken.
• Protect legal privilege: clearly identify and segregate legally privileged documents. EU law recognizes legal privilege for external EU counsel, but not for in-house lawyers.
• Keep it factual: respond factually and accurately to questions and ideally in the presence of legal counsel. If you don't know the answer, say so.

Don'ts during a raid

• Do not obstruct or tamper with evidence: do not delete, destroy, hide, or alter any files. Authorities are vigilant and such actions can (and often do) lead to fines.
• Don't panic over digital searches: inspectors may access servers, laptops, and mobile devices used for business reasons. Cooperate, but ensure searches remain within the scope of authorization.
• Avoid internal or external communications: unless authorized to do so by legal counsel, do not discuss the raid beyond the response team or with third parties.

The life sciences sector faces heightened scrutiny for practices such as market allocation, price-fixing, and disparagement of competitors. Recent raids in vaccines and animal health markets underscore the need for robust compliance programs. Practical steps include having compliance materials available for staff, conducting training and mock dawn raids, preparing receptionist checklists, and setting out clear roles for the response team to ensure preparedness and business continuity.