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Based on a database of 326 merger cases scrutinized by the European Commission, we evaluate the economic impact of a change in legislation in 2004 by estimating the determinants of an intervention in the periods before and after the reform, using event study methodology to assess the changes in abnormal returns generated by merging activity and study the change in the effectiveness of the remedies imposed by the Commission. Our findings point to the conclusion that while the reform has achieved an increase in legal certainty, the effectiveness of the remedies was diminished.