NEWS FLASH | CCI's Revamped Leniency Regime Goes Live

The new leniency regime, under the Competition Act 2002 (“Act”) (as amended) was brought into force with effect from 20^th February 2024. These changes were implemented through the simultaneous enforcement of certain provisions of the Competition Amendment Act, 2023 (“Amendment Act”) by the Central Government and the notification of the Competition Commission of India Lesser Penalty Regulations, 2024 (“Regulations”) by the Competition Commission of India (“CCI”), which replaced the earlier 2009 regulations in this regard. The CCI has also issued ‘FAQs on Lesser Penalty Regime' (“FAQs”) to provide additional clarity on this new leniency regime. One of the most significant changes to the erstwhile leniency regime is the introduction of the leniency plus mechanism, which provides that if a cartel participant seeks leniency for its involvement in a known cartel (first cartel) and also provides information regarding another undisclosed cartel (second cartel) to the CCI