Restrictive practices of competition (agreements, concerted practices and decisions of associations of undertakings/abuse of dominant position/abuse of economic dependence)
Sanctioning proceedings concerning restrictive practices
Request for information by the competition authority
Opening inquiry procedure
(Official competition Authority/complaint)
Inquiries, searches and seizures made by the competition authority authorised by the Public prosecutor or Judge of education
Transaction procedure in the investigation
Application to the competition authority where the applicant expresses its intention to initiate talks with a view to the possible submission of a transaction proposal
Submission of a transaction proposal
Rejection of the proposal for a transaction by the competition Authority – decision not liable to appeal
Acceptance of the transaction proposal by the competition authority – drafting a transaction draft
Confirmation by the survey that the transaction draft reflects the content of its proposals
Convolation of the transaction draft in a definitive judgment with the confirmation and payment of the fine imposed
Request to reduce the fine filing by imposing conditions in the investigation
Submission of commitments by the competition authority aimed at eliminating the effects on competition from restrictive practices
Publication on the CA's website and in two newspapers of higher national circulation of the proposed commitments so that interested third parties can pronounce within 20 days
Possibility of reopening the procedure within 2 years by the CA in case of non-compliance with the commitments assumed, false, inaccurate or incomplete information, or substantial alteration of the factual situation in which the decision to founded
Decision of the investigation
Decision of the competition authority to initiate instruction by notifying the notice of illegality to the target
Decision of the CA to archive the process
Decision of the AC to terminate the procedure, by a condensed decision, in a transaction procedure
Decision of the CA to file the process by imposing conditions
Interposition of appeal to the Court of Competition, regulation and supervision of the express decision to process archiving by the CA process instruction
Notification of the Ilicitude note to the target
Written pronation of the target for a period of not less than 20 days on the issues of the case, evidence and requesting complementary examinations of evidence and oral hearing
Proposal for a transaction lodged by the target, with confession and recognition of liability in the infringement in question
Rejection of the proposal for a transaction by the competition Authority – decision not liable to appeal
Acceptance of the transaction proposal by the competition authority – drafting a transaction draft
Confirmation by the survey that the transaction draft reflects the content of its proposals
Convolation of the transaction draft in a definitive judgment with the confirmation and payment of the fine imposed
Request to reduce the fine
Transaction procedure in the statement
Submission of a transaction proposal to the AC in response to the notification of the note of illegality, with the confession of the facts and the recognition of its liability in the infringement in question Rejection of the proposal for a transaction by the competition Authority – of Fission not likely to appeal
Acceptance of the transaction proposal by the competition authority – drafting a transaction draft
Confirmation by the survey that the transaction draft reflects the content of its proposals
Convolation of the transaction draft in a definitive judgment with the confirmation and payment of the fine imposed
Request to reduce the fine
Archiving by imposing conditions in the survey
Submission of commitments by the competition authority aimed at eliminating the effects on competition from restrictive practices
Publication on the CA's website and in two newspapers of higher national circulation of the proposed commitments so that interested third parties can pronounce within 20 days.
Possibility of reopening the procedure within 2 years by the CA in the event of non-compliance with the commitments assumed, false, inaccurate or incomplete information, or substantial alteration of the factual situation in which the decision to be founded.
Final decision on instruction
The AC decides to declare the existence of a restrictive practice of competition and may be accompanied by admonition or application of fines and other sanctions and measures of conduct or structural character indispensable to the cessation of the Practi CE Restriction of competition and/or, where appropriate, to consider it justified
The AC profests conviction in transaction procedure
The AC decides to order the filing of the process by imposing conditions
The AC decides to order the filing of the process without conditions
Application for identification of confidential information classified as Business secrets
Application to request the submission of proceedings to the secret of Justice until the final decision of the proceedings
Request to withdraw the secret of justice
Application to request the consultation of the process and obtain extracts, copies or certitudes of the process
Precautionary measures in case of serious and irreparable injury, or difficult to repair for competition, with or without prior hearing of the target
Business merger operations
Prior notification of mergers of undertakings to the competition authority
Merger control procedure
Application to collect the documents and information requested by the competition authority in accordance with the approved form
Promotion in two national newspapers of the essential elements of the notification, so that third parties can pronounce within the period fixed and not less than 10 days
Hearing of the authors of the notification and the interested parties
Pronunciation by the regulatory authority of the activity sector
Decision of the Competition authority: the operation covered by the Merger control procedure is not found; Do not oppose the concentration of undertakings; Initiate an in-depth investigation Official procedure
Invalidity of the legal business which counteracts the competition authority's decisions on merger operations
Opening of inquiry
Undertaking concentration of undertakings before having been the subject of a decision of non-opposition or prohibited by decision;
Failure to comply with conditions, obligations or measures imposed
Not providing information or providing false, inaccurate or incomplete information
Not cooperating with the AC or obstruction of the exercise of powers
The applicable procedural regime is, with appropriate adaptations, identical to that of the sanctioning procedure relating to restrictive practices, being subsidiary to the general regime of the illicit mere social order
Infringements and sanctions
Without prejudice to the criminal liability and administrative measures to which there is a place, they constitute administrative offenses punishable by the fine:
Agreements, concerted practices and decisions of associations of undertakings which have as their object or effect the purpose of preventing, distorting or restricting competition in a sensitive way to all or part of the national market
Abuse of a dominant position in the national market or in a substantial part of this
Abuse of economic dependence
Infringement of Articles 101 and 102 of the Treaty on the functioning of the European Union
Failure to comply with measures imposed under the filing of the investigation process by imposing conditions Non-compliance with measures imposed under the Declaration of the existence of a restrictive practice
Failure to impose precautionary measures
Undertaking merger operations before having been the subject of a non-opposition decision, or which have been prohibited by decision
Disregard of conditions, obligations or measures imposed on undertakings by the Competition Authority
Failure to provide or provide false, inaccurate or incomplete information, in response to the request of the competition authority, in the use of its sanctioning powers
Failure to provide or provide false, inaccurate or incomplete information, in response to the request of the competition authority, in the use of the supervisory sanctioning powers and in the course of conducting studies, inspections and audits
Non-cooperation with the competition authority or obstruction of its exercise powers
The unjustified lack of attendance by a complainant, witness or expert, in due process to have been regularly notified
Jurisdictional Resources
Interposition of appeal of the final decision within 30 working days issued by the competition authority to the Court of Competition regulation and supervision, with a purely return effect, except in respect of decisions applying measures of Structural nature, the effect of which is suspensive
Application in the context of the appeal that it has a suspensive effect when the execution causes considerable injury and is offered to provide substitutive collateral in the case of decisions imposing fines or other penalties provided for in law Interposition of Appeal of interlocutory decisions of the competition authority in a request to the public Prosecutor within 20 working days
Interposition of appeal of decisions of the competition authority which decrees precautionary measures in a request to the Public Prosecutor's Office within 20 working days
Request for opposition to which the court decides by simple dispatch, without hearing of judgment
Interposition of appeal of judgments and disorders of the Court of Competition, regulation and supervision for the Court of the Relationship
Administrative procedures
Appeal of the competition authority's decisions in administrative proceedings and the Ministerial decision provided for in article 34 of the Statute of the Competition Authority for the competition Court, Regulation and Supervision, to be processed as a special administrative action, with a purely returnable effect, unless assigned to it, exclusively or cumulatively with other provisional measures, the suspensory effect by the decrement of provisional measures
Interposition of appeal of judgments given by the Court of Competition, regulation and supervision, in special administrative actions, to the Court of the relationship, unless the appeal only respects matters of law, in which case it is brought Directly to the Supreme Court of Justice, with a purely devolutional effect
Interposition of appeal of the decision rendered by the Court of the relationship, limited to the matter of law, to the Supreme Court of Justice, with a purely devolutional effect