Guidelines On Enhancing Cross-Border Leniency Cooperation

On June 28, 2020, the International Competition Network (ICN) published guidelines on cooperation and coordination among competition agencies during multi-jurisdictional cartel investigations (Guidelines). The Guidelines are meant to harmonize the practices of competition agencies with a view to increasing the effectiveness of global cartel enforcement efforts and reducing disincentives for leniency applicants. While the ICN's members are not required to implement the Guidelines, past experience suggests that they will view them as an important source for best practices. The key recommendations from the Guidelines include:

1. Whether or not a confidentiality waiver is required for communications between different agencies, each agency should request a waiver for all jurisdictions where the applicant has submitted a leniency application in connection with the same conduct.