Estonia/EU, 2006
Score = 27
Governed by: Articles 81 and 82 of the Treaty on European Union [hereafter EU Treaty], and European Commission Regulations 1/2003 [hereafter "CR 1/2003"] and 139/2004 [hereafter “CR 139/2004], as well as national legislation.[1]
| Category | Subcategory | Score | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scope | Extraterritoriality | 1 | Scope extends to foreign corporations.[2] §1(2) of the Estonian Competition Act says that the act applies to activity outside of Estonia that restricts competition in Estonia. |
| Remedies | Fines | 1 | Section 62(3) of the Estonian Competition Act allows the national Competition Board to impose fines for un-remedied competition violations. |
| Prison Sentences | 1 | §79 of Estonia’s amended 2004 Competition Act allows prison sentences for criminal violations. | |
| Divestitures | 1 | Article 7 of CR 1/2003 allows for structural remedies. | |
| Private Enforcement | 3rd Party Initiation | 1 | Section 63 of the Estonian Competition Act (2004 amendment) lists the procedure for filing an application with the national Competition Board. |
| Remedies Available to 3rd Parties | 1 | Section 78 of the Estonian Competition Act says that compensation for damages caused by competition violations could be dealt with through civil procedure. | |
| 3rd Party Rights in Proceedings | 1 | Section 67 of the 2001 Estonian Competition Act gave interested 3rd parties rights in proceedings; however, these were repealed in a 2002 amendment (RT I 2002, 82, 480). | |
| Merger Notification | Voluntary | 0 | |
| Mandatory | 3 | Section 25 of the Estonian Competition Act requires notification of concentrations. | |
| Pre-merger | 2 | Section 25 of the Estonian Competition Act requires that the notification come within one week of one of the enumerated decisive acts. | |
| Post-merger | 0 | ||
| Merger Assessment | Dominance | 1 | Section 22(2) says that the national Competition Board may prohibits a merger if it would strengthen a dominant position. |
| Restriction of Competition | 1 | Section 22(1) of the Estonian Competition Act lists several factors for consideration of a merger application including many related to restriction of competition (for example, barriers to entry and the resultant market position of the concentration). | |
| Public Interest (Pro D) | 0 | ||
| Public Interest (Pro Authority) | 0 | ||
| Other | 0 | ||
| Efficiency | 0 | ||
| Dominance | Limits Access | 1 | Article 82(b) of the EU Treaty prohibits abuse of a dominant position. |
| Abusive Acts | 1 | Article 82 of the EU Treaty prohibits abuse of a dominant position. | |
| Price Setting | 1 | Article 82(a) of the EU Treaty prohibits price setting.
| |
| Discriminatory Pricing | 1 | Articles 81(1)(d) and 82(c) of the EU Treaty, prohibit discrimatory conditions. | |
| Resale Price Maintenance | 1 | Article 81 of the EU Treaty prohibits minimum resale price restrictions.[3] | |
| Obstacles to Entry | 1 | Article 82 of the EU Treaty prohibits anti-competitive pricing schemes.[4] | |
| Efficiency Defense | 0 | ||
| Restrictive Trade Practices | Price Fixing | 1 | Articles 81(1)(a) of the EU Treaty prohibits price fixing. |
| Tying | 1 | Articles 81(1)(e) and 82(d) of the EU Treaty prohibit tying. | |
| Market Division | 1 | Article 81 of the EU Treaty prohibits customer allocation clauses.[5] | |
| Output Restraint | 1 | Article 81(1)(b) of the EU Treaty prohibits limiting production.
| |
| Market Sharing | 1 | Article 81(1)(c) of the EU Treaty prohibits market sharing. | |
| Eliminating Competitors | 1 | Article 81(1) of the EU Treaty prohibits agreements that have the purpose or effect of eliminating competition. | |
| Collusive Tendering/Bid-Rigging | 1 | Article 81 of the EU Treaty prohibits bid-rigging. | |
| Supply Refusal | 1 | Article 81(1)(b) of the EU Treaty prohibits supply refusal. | |
| Efficiency Defense | 1 | Article 81(3) of the EU Treaty allows an efficiency defense. |