GUIDELINES ON THE METHOD OF SETTING FINES FOR INFRINGEMENTS OF COMPETITION RULES: KEY ISSUES

According to best practice as recommended by all international institutions, National Competition Authorities (NCAs) should adopt specific guidelines on antitrust fines to clarify the criteria and methodology applied. In this respect, the final document of the 2008 ECA Working Group on fines stated that “predictability and transparency should be ensured, with a view to increasing the effectiveness of the fining policy pursued by competition authorities”. To date, most ECN jurisdictions apply guidelines on the setting of fines in cases of infringements of competition law (specifically, 19 NCAs).