Competition enforcer. In-house counsel. Independent consultant. Dr Rob van der Laan has worked at every side of the competition law table for 25 years - and now brings that experience to your case.
Dr. Rob van der Laan worked about fourteen years at three different national competition authorities, enforcing the respective national competition laws and shaping policies. From the opposite site of the table, Rob has supported numerous competition lawyers with economic advice on both mergers and contentious matters, and ensured compliance with competition law across multiple jurisdictions as in-house competition counsel. Rob contributed to codifying international best practice within the International Competition Network ICN. He now brings that experience to project-based engagements for law firms and companies worldwide.
General Authority for Competition, Saudi Arabia
Full-time advisory mandate · 2023–2026
For three years, Rob served as the sole foreign advisor to Saudi Arabia's national competition authority - one of the world's fastest-growing competition regimes. Work that he materially contributed to during his tenure include:
- →GAC updated its merger control thresholds with new local nexus and materiality criteria.
- →The review of the Schlumberger economic concentration provided several "firsts" for the GAC and a template for international cooperation with foreign competition authorities.
- →A new internal structure for ICN working groups produced a string of high-quality contributions; GAC was recently proposed and selected as one of the co-chairs of the ICN Merger Working Group.
- →GAC introduced advanced econometric analysis in a comprehensive market study, setting a new standard for market studies nationally and worldwide.
How Rob can help
Law firms
Expert economic support throughout an investigation or merger notification - or for a single submission. Rob reviews your documents as an competition authority would and tells you exactly where the weaknesses are - and how to address potential concerns.
- → Peer review of draft submission to NCAs
- → Economic analysis for merger notifications
- → Antitrust analysis
- → Dawn raid support
Companies
Whether you have in-house legal counsel or work directly with external lawyers, Rob integrates seamlessly into your team. Working inside your team will provide on-the-job training and long-term benefits.
- → Antitrust risk assessment
- → Follow-on damages
- → Ad interim placement
Competition authorities
Rob has about fourteen years of experience with the enforcement of competition law, and in particular the economic aspects thereof. This includes designing policies and drafting legislation. He is available for interim project placements and capacity-building engagements.
- → Interim placement
- → Training and workshops
- → Procedural development
Academia
Rob combines deep practitioner experience with academic rigour. He is available to design and teach in-person courses, lead research projects, and supervise student theses - without long-term commitments.
- → Lecturing: bachelor and master courses in competition law
- → Research project leadership
- → Thesis supervision
The perspective that only comes from every side of the table
Authority insider × 3
Dutch ACM, Jersey JCRA, Saudi Arabian GAC. Rob has worked inside national competition authorities for over a decade. He knows how investigators assess companies practices - because he understands the economic principles behind the competition legislation - and sometimes even wrote the rules.
Big 4 and Fortune 500
Rob led EY's competition economics proposition from London, then served seven years as in-house competition expert at Achmea, a Fortune Global 500 company. He understands both the advisory and the commercial context.
Genuine international reach
Active across the EU, UK, Channel Islands, and the GCC. OmniCLES generally does not bill for time spend on international travel - making engagements practical and cost-effective by design. He works in English, Dutch, and Portuguese.
Partner quality, competitive rate
Rob charges a fair hourly rate comparable to a partner at a medium-sized law firm - without the overhead of a large consultancy. A simple conflicts process. No proposal committees. Engagements can typically start within days, subject to availability.
Publications and articles
Below are key publications and articles not specifically related to any of the jurisdictions of Rob’s key expertise (Saudi Arabia, EU & Member States, and Channel Islands & UK).
Periodicals
- Article
Quantification of damages in competition litigation (with B. Augustin)
Competition Litigation 2016: The Strategic View, pp.17-21
- ArticleStrictness of leniency programs and asymmetric punishment effect (with E. Motchenkova)
International Review of Economics, Volume 58, Issue 4 (2011), pp.401-431
LinkedIn articles
- Publication
The purpose and equality of merger control procedures (summary of my presentation at the 2018 ICN Merger Workshop)
LinkedIn, 19 November 2018
A career built on every side of competition economics
Rob founded OmniCLES in 2014 to offer independent competition economics expertise to law firms, assist companies with risks assessments and compliance matters, and competition authorities with flexible capacity. In 2023, he accepted a full-time advisory mandate at the General Authority for Competition in Riyadh - concluding that engagement in August 2026 and returning to independent project work.
For three years Rob served as the sole foreign advisor to the GAC - Saudi Arabia's national competition authority. He wrote opinion papers on competition policy, advised on ongoing regulatory work, and provided economic analysis at the highest executive level. He also served as the GAC's ICN coordinator, ensuring the authority's timely and quality contributions to International Competition Network requests.
Rob served as the in-house competition law expert at Achmea, a Fortune Global 500 financial services company - bridging the gap between legal advice and commercial decision-making.
Before founding OmniCLES, Rob led the competition economics proposition for the EMEIA area for EY in London. He also worked with the forensic IT teams in Amsterdam on competition law related engagements. Project work included post-dawn-raid data review for indications of potential infringements, advising on leniency applications, and providing economic analysis for merger filings.
As competition expert at the JCRA, Rob was responsible for the application of all areas of competition law in Jersey, including merger control and the prohibitions on anti-competitive arrangements and the abuse of a dominant position. Rob also represented the JCRA in ICN activities during this period.
Rob was a senior staff member at the Dutch competition authority, leading major investigations and market studies. As part of the Contruction Task force, he was in charge of twenty data-analysts, developping and coordinating the analysis for case teams involving fifteen case officers. He was seconded both to the Leniency Office and to the Ministry of Economic Affairs, advising on public procurement legislation.
Let's talk about your case
Whether you need support for a single document review or throughout an entire investigation, the best place to start is a short conversation. Send an email - no commitment, no agenda, just a chance to see if there's a fit.