Aktualita
Conference on Current Trends in Slovak and European Competition Law took place in the Aula of Comenius University in Bratislava
Content
The Antimonopoly Office of the Slovak Republic in cooperation with the Faculty of Law of Comenius University in Bratislava organized the international conference on current topics in the field of competition law in Slovakia and other countries of the European Union. The conference titled Current Trends in Slovak and European Competition Law took place on 11 October 2018 in the premises of the Aula of Comenius University in Bratislava.
The Chairman of the Antimonopoly Office of the SR Tibor Menyhart and the Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Law of Comenius University in Bratislava Ondrej Blažo officially opened the conference and welcomed all the guests.
The first panel discussion was focused on the news in competition law and state aid. The Vice-Chairman of the Office for the Protection of Competition in the Czech Republic Hynek Brom focused in his presentation mainly on the aspects of the enforcement of competition law in the Czech Republic. He mentioned the illegality of interventions aimed at obtaining and using documents and also the ways by which their Office raises the awareness of competition law, too. The Vice-Chairman of the Antimonopoly Office of the SR Boris Gregor presented a number of up-to-date information on the Office's activities in the fields of competition protection in the SR, including issued methodological guidelines and selected decisions of the Office and courts. The Director of the Division of State Aid of the Antimonopoly Office of the SR Soňa Drobová in her presentation on the state aid news highlighted the activities through which the Office promotes the awareness of this area and will continue raising the awareness in the next period, as well as several European Commission´s decisions of 2018 in favour of the SR regarding the compliance of the measures with the EU state aid rules.
The second panel discussion related to the economic evidence in decisions on the matters of competition protection and their assessment by court in the judicial review. The Director of the Legislative, Legal and Foreign Relations Division of the Antimonopoly Office of the SR Michaela Nosa introduced the topic of the panel discussion and drew attention to the specifics of competition law and the role of courts in assessing economic evidence in cases of anticompetitive conducts. The Judge of the General Court of the Court of Justice of the European Union Miro Prek pointed out the assessment of economic aspects of cases dealt by the General Court or by the Court of Justice of the EU. At the same time, through particular cases he approached the General Court's view as well as the practical aspects of the approach towards the assessment of economic evidence. The Chairman of the Senate of the Supreme Court of the SR Ivan Rumana considered the need to move away from "traditional" legal thinking in some cases in the field of competition, which he demonstrated by the judgement in the case of cartel agreement between three Slovak banks. The Policy Officer at the Directorate-General for Competition of the European Commission Hans-Petter H. Hanson payed attention to differences in the aims and the substance of economic analyses in the context of the "public enforcement" of competition law and the "private enforcement" of damages caused by the breach of the rules of fair competition, in the field of which there were studies to assist the courts in quantifying damages or transferring the increases in prices that were published by the European Commission, the Directorate-General for Competition.
In the last panel discussion, the panellists concentrated on the procedures of the Antimonopoly Office of the SR for setting fines in the cases of abuse of dominant position and agreements restricting competition as well as the issued revision of the methodological guideline on the procedures. The representatives of the Antimonopoly Office of the SR - the Vice-Chairman Boris Gregor, the Head of the Department of Second-Instance Proceedings Daniela Lukáčová, the delegate of the Division of Abuse of Dominant Position and Vertical Agreements Andrea Antoliková, as well as the legal advisor and the attorney Andrea Oršulová from the advocacy office Nedelka Kubáč Oršulová advokáti, s.r.o., the Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Law of Comenius University in Bratislava Ondrej Blažo, the Director of the Division of Cartels of the Office for the Protection of Competition in the Czech Republic Igor Pospíšil, the delegate of the Faculty of National Economy of the University of Economics in Bratislava Martin Lábaj took part in it. In detail they explained the revision of the methodological guideline, which was recently issued not only by the Antimonopoly Office of the SR but also by the Office for the Protection of Competition. At the same time, the panellists discussed the method of setting fines for anti-competitive conducts, requirements for setting them, their proportionality with respect to the infringement of the Act, and they answered several questions of the conference attendees, too.
The international conference was an excellent opportunity for almost two hundred guests to exchange opinions and experience with the representatives of other countries, institutions and professions sharing the same interest in making competition and competition law work the best.
SAVE THE DATE
INVITATION
AGENDA
INTRODUCTION OF PANELLISTS
PANELLISTS´ PRESENTATIONS
PHOTO GALLERY:
The Chairman of the Antimonopoly Office of the SR Tibor Menyhart and the Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Law of Comenius University in Bratislava Ondrej Blažo officially opened the conference and welcomed all the guests.
The first panel discussion was focused on the news in competition law and state aid. The Vice-Chairman of the Office for the Protection of Competition in the Czech Republic Hynek Brom focused in his presentation mainly on the aspects of the enforcement of competition law in the Czech Republic. He mentioned the illegality of interventions aimed at obtaining and using documents and also the ways by which their Office raises the awareness of competition law, too. The Vice-Chairman of the Antimonopoly Office of the SR Boris Gregor presented a number of up-to-date information on the Office's activities in the fields of competition protection in the SR, including issued methodological guidelines and selected decisions of the Office and courts. The Director of the Division of State Aid of the Antimonopoly Office of the SR Soňa Drobová in her presentation on the state aid news highlighted the activities through which the Office promotes the awareness of this area and will continue raising the awareness in the next period, as well as several European Commission´s decisions of 2018 in favour of the SR regarding the compliance of the measures with the EU state aid rules.
The second panel discussion related to the economic evidence in decisions on the matters of competition protection and their assessment by court in the judicial review. The Director of the Legislative, Legal and Foreign Relations Division of the Antimonopoly Office of the SR Michaela Nosa introduced the topic of the panel discussion and drew attention to the specifics of competition law and the role of courts in assessing economic evidence in cases of anticompetitive conducts. The Judge of the General Court of the Court of Justice of the European Union Miro Prek pointed out the assessment of economic aspects of cases dealt by the General Court or by the Court of Justice of the EU. At the same time, through particular cases he approached the General Court's view as well as the practical aspects of the approach towards the assessment of economic evidence. The Chairman of the Senate of the Supreme Court of the SR Ivan Rumana considered the need to move away from "traditional" legal thinking in some cases in the field of competition, which he demonstrated by the judgement in the case of cartel agreement between three Slovak banks. The Policy Officer at the Directorate-General for Competition of the European Commission Hans-Petter H. Hanson payed attention to differences in the aims and the substance of economic analyses in the context of the "public enforcement" of competition law and the "private enforcement" of damages caused by the breach of the rules of fair competition, in the field of which there were studies to assist the courts in quantifying damages or transferring the increases in prices that were published by the European Commission, the Directorate-General for Competition.
In the last panel discussion, the panellists concentrated on the procedures of the Antimonopoly Office of the SR for setting fines in the cases of abuse of dominant position and agreements restricting competition as well as the issued revision of the methodological guideline on the procedures. The representatives of the Antimonopoly Office of the SR - the Vice-Chairman Boris Gregor, the Head of the Department of Second-Instance Proceedings Daniela Lukáčová, the delegate of the Division of Abuse of Dominant Position and Vertical Agreements Andrea Antoliková, as well as the legal advisor and the attorney Andrea Oršulová from the advocacy office Nedelka Kubáč Oršulová advokáti, s.r.o., the Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Law of Comenius University in Bratislava Ondrej Blažo, the Director of the Division of Cartels of the Office for the Protection of Competition in the Czech Republic Igor Pospíšil, the delegate of the Faculty of National Economy of the University of Economics in Bratislava Martin Lábaj took part in it. In detail they explained the revision of the methodological guideline, which was recently issued not only by the Antimonopoly Office of the SR but also by the Office for the Protection of Competition. At the same time, the panellists discussed the method of setting fines for anti-competitive conducts, requirements for setting them, their proportionality with respect to the infringement of the Act, and they answered several questions of the conference attendees, too.
The international conference was an excellent opportunity for almost two hundred guests to exchange opinions and experience with the representatives of other countries, institutions and professions sharing the same interest in making competition and competition law work the best.
SAVE THE DATE
INVITATION
AGENDA
INTRODUCTION OF PANELLISTS
PANELLISTS´ PRESENTATIONS
PHOTO GALLERY: