The Amendment Of The Czech Competition Act In A Nutshell IV: When Breaking The Rules Really Doesn't Pay...

In the fourth and final episode of the "Amendment of the Czech Competition Act in a Nutshell" series, we focus on what the proceedings before the competition authority often end up being, i.e. sanctions and their form. In the previous episodes, we have dealt with novelties based more on the initiative of the Office for the Protection of Competition (OPC). The novelties presented in this article are mainly based on the requirements of the ECN+ Directive. They can be summarised under the requirement of "effective, proportionate and dissuasive fines". Anticompetitive conduct should simply not pay.

The sanctions addressed in the amendment to the Czech Competition Act (CCA) can be divided into two groups: (i) sanctions for anticompetitive conduct (intra-group liability, liability for fines imposed on associations of undertakings, sanctions for bid rigging) and (ii) sanctions for procedural offences and order offences.