[...] a Washington state judge took the extraordinary step of temporarily blocking a grocery chain (Albertsons) from paying out a $4 billion special dividend. The judge found that the payment would impair Albertsons’ ability to compete with its rival, Kroger, if their proposed $24 billion merger didn’t proceed. In this post we explain how, if a similar situation arose outside of the US, a dividend payment could be blocked under UK law, but would be more difficult to prevent under EU or Chinese rules.