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AMSTERDAM—A court here ruled Monday in favor of GrandVision NV (Euronext: GVNV) and denied EssilorLuxottica (Euronext: EL) the right to obtain more information from the big optical retailer about how it managed its business during the peak of the coronavirus crisis in the spring. EssilorLuxottica had sought the court’s help in obtaining this information in a filing it submitted to the court in mid-July. At the time, EssilorLuxottica said GrandVision had not complied with repeated requests to provide the information, as VMAIL reported.

The two companies agreed to a deal in July 2019 in which EssilorLuxottica would acquire GrandVision from its parent company—HAL Holding NV—in a deal valued at about €7.1billion, as VMAIL reported. 

In a statement on Monday afternoon, GrandVision said the District Court here has in “summary proceedings dismissed all claims made by EssilorLuxottica to receive additional documentation mainly in relation to GrandVision NV’s actions to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on its business.”

In a statement issued Tuesday morning (Aug. 25), EssilorLuxottica said it is studying the judgment and assessing its options, including the possibility of filing an appeal against the judgment. “The company remains concerned about GrandVision’s behavior in continuing to deny access to important information related to their handling of the COVID-19 outbreak.”

The EssilorLuxottica statement added, “It should be noted that the information and data seized at the premises of GrandVision, with the express permission of the court, will remain protected from any change and available for further legal proceedings."

The GrandVision statement also noted that a separate arbitration proceeding that was initiated by GrandVision against EssilorLuxottica after the latter company filed its court request is “proceeding as planned. These proceedings are confidential and behind closed doors.”

In addition, GrandVision said it continues to support EssilorLuxottica with the shared objective to obtain regulatory approval for the closure of the transaction “within 12 to 24 months from the announcement date of July 31, 2019.”

GrandVision owns the For Eyes optical retail company in the U.S. market.

In mid-July, EssilorLuxottica began legal proceedings in the Netherlands to obtain information from GrandVision about how it performed during the coronavirus crisis. “This is to assess the way GrandVision has managed the course of its business during the COVID-19 crisis, as well as the extent to which GrandVision has breached its obligations under the support agreement,” EssilorLuxottica said in its announcement at the time.

“Despite repeated requests, GrandVision has not provided this information on a voluntary basis, leaving EssilorLuxottica with no other option but to resort to legal proceedings," EssilorLuxottica said.