Full text of Act No. 464 / 2004 Coll.
Full text of Act No. 143 / 2001 Coll., on the Protection of Competition and on the Amendment of Certain Acts (Law on the Protection of Competition), as is apparent from the amendments made by Act No. 340 / 2004 Coll.
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Declared full text
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11.08.2004
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464
PRESIDENT OF THE GOVERNMENT
Announces
the full text of Act No. 143 / 2001 Coll., on the Protection of Competition and on the amendment of certain laws (Law on the Protection of Competition), as follows from the amendments made by Act No. 340 / 2004 Coll.
THE LAW
on the protection of competition
Parliament has decided on this law of the Czech Republic:
PROTECTION OF COMPETITION
INTRODUCTORY PROVISIONS
Subject matter
(1) This Law provides for the protection of competition in the market for goods and services ("goods') against its exclusion, restriction, other distortion or threat (" disturbances').
(a) agreements between competitors (§ 3 (1)),
(b) misuse of the dominant position of competitors; or
(c) the merger of competitors.
(2) This law also provides for the procedure for the application of Articles 81 and 82 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (hereinafter referred to as "the Treaty ') by the authorities of the Czech Republic and certain matters relating to their synergies with the Commission of the European Communities (hereinafter referred to as" the Commission') and the authorities of the other Member States of the European Communities in the procedure under Council Regulation (EC) on the implementation of the competition rules laid down in Articles 81 and 82 of the Treaty (hereinafter referred to as "the Regulation ').
(3) Competitors who, by virtue of a special law or by virtue of a decision given under a special law, provide services of general economic significance 1b) shall be subject to that law only if its application does not make it impossible to provide such services.
(4) This law shall apply mutatis mutandis to proceedings concerning competitors whose conduct could affect trade between Member States of the European Communities pursuant to Articles 81 and 82 of the Treaty.
(5) This law also applies to the conduct of competitors abroad which distorts or threatens to distort competition in the Czech Republic.
(6) This law shall not apply to the negotiations referred to in paragraph 1, the effects of which are manifested exclusively on the foreign market, unless the international agreement to which the Czech Republic is bound results otherwise.
(7) Furthermore, this law does not apply to the protection of competition against unfair competitors (2).
Definition of certain terms
(1) Competitors under this law are natural and legal persons, their associations, associations of such associations and other forms of grouping, even if such associations and groups are not legal persons if they participate in or may influence their activities, even if they are not entrepreneurs.
(2) The relevant market is the market for goods which, in terms of their characteristics, price and intended use, are identical, comparable or interchangeable in the territory in which the competitive conditions are sufficiently homogeneous and clearly distinct from neighbouring territories.
COMPETITION AGREEMENTS
(1) Agreements between competitors, decisions of their associations and concerted practices (hereinafter referred to as "agreements") which lead or may lead to distortions of competition are prohibited and invalid (4), unless such or special law provides otherwise, or the Office for the Protection of Competition (hereinafter referred to as "the Office") authorises an exemption from the prohibition by implementing legislation.
(2) In particular, agreements prohibited under paragraph 1 shall be prohibited which lead to or may lead to distortions of competition because they contain provisions on:
(a) direct or indirect determination of prices and, where appropriate, other commercial conditions;
(b) restrictions or controls on production, sales, research and development or investment;
(c) the distribution of the market or sources of purchase;
(d) that the conclusion of a contract is to be linked to the acceptance of further transactions which are not, in substance or according to commercial practices and principles of fair trade with the subject-matter of the contract;
(e) the application of different conditions to individual competitors in the same or comparable transactions which disadvantage certain competitors in competition;
(f) that the parties to the agreement will not trade or otherwise cooperate economically with or otherwise cause harm to non-competitors (group boycott).
(3) If the reason for the prohibition concerns only part of the Agreement, only that part shall be prohibited and invalid. However, where the nature of the agreement, its content, its purpose or the circumstances in which it took place shows that it cannot be separated from the other content, the whole of the agreement shall be prohibited and invalid.
(4) The prohibition in paragraph 1 shall not apply to agreements which:
(a) contribute to the improvement of the production or distribution of goods or to the promotion of technical or economic development and provide consumers with a fair share of the benefits resulting therefrom;
(b) not impose on competitors restrictions which are not necessary to achieve the objectives referred to in (a);
(c) do not allow competitors to exclude competition in a substantial part of the market for goods the supply or purchase of which is the subject of an agreement.
repealed
Horizontal and vertical agreements
(1) Agreements between competitors operating at the same level of the goods market are horizontal agreements.
(2) Agreements between competitors operating at different levels of the goods market are vertical agreements.
(3) Mixed agreements between competitors that operate simultaneously at the same horizontal level and at different vertical levels of the goods market shall also be considered as horizontal agreements; in doubt, it is considered to be a horizontal agreement.
(1) The prohibition of agreements under Article 3 (1) does not apply to:
(a) a horizontal agreement where the joint share of the parties to the agreement in the relevant market does not exceed 10%;
(b) a vertical agreement where the joint share of the parties to the agreement in the relevant market does not exceed 15%.
(2) The exemption from the prohibition of agreements referred to in paragraph 1 shall not apply to the following agreements, even if they fulfil the conditions laid down in paragraph 1:
(a) horizontal agreements on direct or indirect pricing or distribution of market or purchasing resources;
(b) vertical agreements on direct or indirect pricing to the buyer for resale of goods or on the granting to the buyer for such resale of full protection on a defined market;
(c) individual agreements which form part of a set of agreements concerning the same, comparable or interchangeable goods, provided that:
1. the joint share in the relevant market of participants in agreements forming a set for which at least the same competitor participates exceeds the percentage limits set out in paragraph 1; or
2. a set of vertical or mixed agreements is limited to access to the relevant market to competitors who are not part of such agreements constituting the package and competition on that market is significantly distorted by the cumulative effect of parallel networks of similar vertical or mixed agreements concluded for the distribution of the same, comparable or interchangeable goods.
(1) If the Office finds, in proceedings relating to cases referred to in paragraphs 3 to 6, that a prohibited agreement has been concluded, it shall state that fact in the decision and, by this decision, prohibit the implementation of the agreement for the future.
(2) In the proceedings referred to in paragraph 1, the Office may require the parties to comply with the measures they have jointly proposed if they are sufficient to protect competition and if they are removed from the situation. If the Office does not find such measures sufficient, it shall inform the competitors in writing and continue the proceedings; otherwise impose such measures and suspend the proceedings.
(3) The measures referred to in paragraph 2 may be proposed in writing by the parties to the proceedings to the Office no later than 15 days after the date on which the Office served them with reservations to the Agreement; the subsequent submission or amendment of the proposed measures shall be taken into account by the Authority only in cases of particular consideration. The parties to proceedings shall be bound by their proposal against the Office and between each other and, where appropriate, against third parties, and shall not, from the submission of the application to the decision of the Office referred to in paragraph 2, comply with the Agreement as originally adopted.
(4) The Authority may not take a decision pursuant to paragraph 2 if the prohibited agreement has already been implemented and has or may have had the effect of significantly distorting competition.
(5) After the termination of the procedure referred to in paragraph 2, the Office may reopen the procedure referred to in paragraph 1 if:
(a) the conditions applicable to the decision referred to in paragraph 2 have changed substantially;
(b) competitors act in contravention of the measures imposed; or
(c) the decision was made on the basis of false or incomplete documents, data and information.
cancelled
DOMINANT STABILITY AND REDUCTION
(1) The dominant position on the market is that of a competitor or together more competitors (joint dominance), which allows their market power to behave to a large extent independently of other competitors or consumers.
(2) Market power referred to in paragraph 1 The Authority shall assess, on the basis of the value expression of the quantities of supplies or purchases on the market of the goods concerned (market share) achieved by a competitor or by a competitor with common dominance in a period which is examined under this law and by other indicators, in particular the economic and financial strength of competitors, legal or other barriers to entry for other competitors, the degree of vertical integration of competitors, the structure of the market and the size of the market shares of the closest competitors.
(3) If the indicators referred to in paragraph 2 do not prove otherwise, the dominant position shall not be deemed to have been taken by a competitor or competitors with a common dominant position who have reached a market share of less than 40% in the period under examination.
(1) Abuse of a dominant position on the detriment of other competitors or consumers is prohibited. The abuse of a dominant position is in particular:
(a) direct or indirect enforcement of unfair terms in contracts with other market participants, in particular enforcement of transactions which, at the time of conclusion of the contract, are manifestly disproportionate to the consideration granted;
(b) tying consent to the conclusion of a contract on condition that the other Party also withdraws other transactions which are not related to the subject-matter of the contract in substance or according to commercial practice;
(c) the application of different conditions in identical or comparable transactions to individual market participants which are disadvantaged in competition;
(d) stopping or restricting production, sales or research and development at the expense of consumers;
(e) the long-term offer and sale of goods at excessively low prices which have or may have the effect of distorting competition;
(f) a refusal to grant other competitors access to their own transmission networks or to similar distribution and other infrastructure facilities owned or used by a dominant competitor on other legal grounds where, for legal or other reasons, other competitors cannot, without the co-use of such facilities, operate on the same market as dominant competitors who do not demonstrate that such co-use is not possible for operational or other reasons or cannot be reasonably demanded of them; The same shall apply mutatis mutandis to refusal of access to other competitors for an appropriate remuneration for the use of intellectual property or access to networks owned or used by a dominant competitor on a different legal basis where such use is necessary for participation in competition in the same market as the dominant competitors or in another market.
(2) Where the Office finds that a dominant position has been misused in the proceedings referred to in paragraph 1, it shall state that fact in the decision and shall prohibit such conduct for the future by this decision.
(3) In the proceedings referred to in paragraph 2, the Office may require the parties to comply with the measures which they have jointly proposed if they are sufficient to protect competition and if they are removed from the situation. If the Office does not find such measures sufficient, it shall inform the competitors in writing and continue the proceedings; otherwise impose such measures and suspend the proceedings.
(4) The measures referred to in paragraph 3 may be proposed in writing by the parties to proceedings to the Office no later than 15 days from the date on which the Office served them with reservations concerning their conduct; the subsequent submission or amendment of the proposed measures shall be taken into account by the Authority only in cases of particular consideration. The parties to proceedings shall be bound by their proposal to the Office and to each other and, where appropriate, to third parties, and shall not, from the submission of the application to the Office's decision pursuant to paragraph 3, proceed in the manner which is the subject of the Office's reservations.
(5) The Authority may not take a decision pursuant to paragraph 3 if the abuse of a dominant position has resulted in significant distortions of competition.
(6) After the termination of the procedure referred to in paragraph 3, the Office may reopen the procedure and issue the decision referred to in paragraph 2 if:
(a) the conditions applicable to the decision referred to in paragraph 3 have changed substantially;
(b) competitors act in contravention of the measures imposed; or
(c) the decision was made on the basis of false or incomplete documents, data and information.
COMPETITION
Definition of terms
(1) A merger of competitors takes place 6) two or more on the market of previously independent competitors.
(2) The acquisition of a company (7) of another competitor or a substantial part of it by contract shall be regarded as a merger of competitors under this law.
(3) A concentration of competitors under this law shall also be considered to be the case if one or more persons who are not entrepreneurs but already control at least one undertaking, or if one or more entrepreneurs have the possibility to directly or indirectly control another undertaking, in particular:
(a) the acquisition of participating securities, commercial or member interests; or
(b) by contract or other means enabling them to determine or influence the competitive behaviour of a controlled competitor.
(4) The combination referred to in paragraph 3 shall also include the creation of joint control over a competitor (hereinafter referred to as "jointly controlled undertaking '), who shall perform all functions of a separate economic unit in the long term.
(5) The creation of joint control over a jointly controlled undertaking, the purpose of which is to coordinate the competitive behaviour of persons controlling it, who remain independent competitors on the market, shall be treated as an agreement between competitors in accordance with Title II.
(6) A bank's qualifying participation in a legal entity resulting from the repayment of the share issue rate by offsetting the bank's debt to that legal entity shall not be regarded as a concentration of competitors under paragraph 2 if that qualifying holding is held for the duration of the rescue or financial reconstruction of that legal entity for a maximum period of 1 year. It shall also not be regarded as a merger between competitors referred to in paragraph 2 if competitors whose business involves the trading of securities acquire, on a transitional basis, for a maximum period of 1 year, the shares of another competitor for the purpose of their sale, unless they exercise voting rights associated with those shares in order to identify or influence the competitive behaviour of the controlled competitor. At the request of a bank or a competitor who is a securities dealer, the Office may extend the period of 1 year accordingly.
(7) The merger of competitors under paragraph 2 shall also not be regarded as a transfer of certain powers of the statutory bodies of competitors to persons engaged in activities under special legislation, such as liquidator8) and the liquidator9).
Communication from competitors subject to the Authority's authorisation
The concentration of competitors shall be subject to the authorisation of the Office if:
(a) the total net turnover of all merging competitors achieved in the last financial year in the Czech Republic market is greater than CZK 1.5 billion and at least two of the merging competitors each achieved in the last financial year in the Czech Republic market a net turnover of more than CZK 250 million, or
b) Net turnover achieved during the last financial year on the Czech market
1. in the case of a merger pursuant to Article 12 (1), at least one of the participants in the conversion,
2. in the case of a concentration pursuant to Article 12 (2), the acquiree or a substantial part thereof,
3. in the case of a concentration pursuant to Article 12 (3), by a competitor whose undertaking is under control; or
4. in the case of a concentration pursuant to Article 12 (4), at least one of the competitors forming a jointly controlled undertaking;
is higher than 1 500 000 000 CZK and at the same time the worldwide net turnover achieved by the next connecting competitor over the last financial year is higher than 1 500 000 000 CZK.
Calculation of turnover
(1) Net turnover (10) of merging competitors means the net turnover achieved by individual competitors only in the activity which is the subject of their business. If competitors are not entrepreneurs, the net turnover is only the turnover achieved in the activity to which they were set up or normally carried out.
(2) Net turnover
(a) by all competing competitors;
(b) persons who will check on the merging competitors after the connection has taken place and persons who are controlled by the merging competitors;
(c) persons controlled by a person who will check on the merging competitor after the connection has taken place; and
(d) persons controlled jointly by two or more of the persons referred to in points (a) to (c).
(3) The share of turnover achieved by the sale of goods between the merging competitors and the persons referred to in paragraph 2 (b), (c) and (d) shall not be included in the common net turnover of the merging competitors.
(4) If only part of the competitor is merged, only the part of the turnover achieved by the merging part of the competitor is included in the net turnover.
(5) If, over a period of 2 years, there have been two or more links between the same competitors, consisting of the transfer of part of the undertaking to another competitor, such links shall be considered jointly as one.
(6) For bank11), net turnover means the sum of income, in particular interest income, securities and equity, fees and commissions and profits from financial operations. In the case of insurance undertakings (12), net turnover means the sum of premiums written according to all insurance contracts concluded.
Initiation
(1) The procedure for authorising a concentration shall be initiated on a proposal.
(2) In the cases referred to in Article 12 (1), (2) and (4), all competitors wishing to merge through a transformation are required to acquire an undertaking or a substantial part of it by contract or to gain control of a jointly controlled undertaking; in the cases referred to in Article 12 (3), it is required to submit an application for authorisation of a concentration by a competitor who is to be able to directly or indirectly control another undertaking.
(3) Application for authorisation of a concentration
(a) may also be submitted before the conclusion of a contract establishing a concentration or before obtaining control of another competitor by other means;
(b) it must contain the justifications, documents certifying the facts applicable to the concentration and the formalities laid down in the implementing legislation (Section 26 (3)).
(4) The procedure for authorisation of a concentration shall be initiated on the date on which the application for authorisation of a concentration containing all the elements referred to in paragraph 3 was received to the Office. If the draft does not contain such elements, the Office may, on the basis of an assessment of the supporting documents received, issue only a written opinion as to whether the concentration is subject to authorisation under this law and the proposal should be supplemented.
Decision authorising the concentration
(1) The Office shall immediately notify the initiation of the procedure for the authorisation of a concentration in the Trade Bulletin, setting a time limit for the submission of objections to that concentration.
(2) Following the initiation of the procedure, the Authority will assess whether the concentration is subject to its authorisation. If the Office is not subject to a concentration of authorisation, it shall issue a decision within 30 days of the initiation of the procedure. In cases where a concentration is subject to an authorisation by the Office and where it does not create or strengthen a dominant position between competitors or one of them which would result in significant distortions of competition, the Authority shall, within the same time limit, issue a decision authorising the concentration. If the Office finds that the concentration raises serious concerns about significant distortions of competition, it shall notify the parties in writing within the same time limit and inform them that it is proceeding.
(3) If the Office has not given a decision on the application for authorisation of a concentration within the time limit referred to in paragraph 2 or has not informed the parties in writing that, for the reasons set out in paragraph 2, it has continued the procedure, the Office has authorised the concentration by the expiry of that period.
(4) Where the Office notifies the parties in writing in accordance with paragraph 2 that it is continuing the procedure for the application for authorisation of a concentration, it shall take a decision within 5 months of the initiation of the procedure, in the case of a concentration to take over the offer of participating securities, within 2 months of the initiation of the procedure. If the Authority has not taken a decision on the concentration within those time limits, it shall allow the concentration to expire.
(5) The Office may invite the party to submit a letter of order stating the other facts necessary for the decision authorising the concentration or providing further evidence of such facts. The period from the date of receipt of such a request to the party to the proceedings until the date on which that obligation is fulfilled shall not be counted against the time limits laid down in paragraphs 2 and 4. Where a decision of the Office on an application for authorisation of a concentration is annulled by a court, the time limits referred to in paragraphs 2 and 4 shall run again from the date on which the decision becomes final.
(6) The concentration can only be registered after the decision of the Authority authorising the concentration has become final.
Assessment of connection
(1) When deciding on a proposal to authorise a concentration, the Authority shall assess in particular the need to maintain and develop effective competition, the structure of all links between the markets concerned, the share of the merging competitors in those markets, their economic and financial strength, the legal and other barriers to the entry of other competitors into the concentration of the markets concerned, the possibility of choosing suppliers or customers connecting competitors, the development of supply and demand in the markets concerned, the needs and interests of consumers, and research and development, the results of which benefit the consumer and do not prevent effective competition.
(2) The Authority will reject the proposal for authorisation of a concentration by decision if the concentration would result in significant distortions of competition in the relevant market.
(3) The Office may make the clearance of the concentration conditional on the fulfilment of commitments proposed by the merging competitors prior to or in the course of the procedure for authorisation of the concentration in order to maintain effective competition of the Office, but not later than 15 days after the notification to the last of the parties referred to in Article 16 (2) that the procedure is continued. The Office shall take account of subsequent proposals for commitments or amendments to their content only in cases of special consideration where they are received by the Office within 15 days of the end of the period referred to in the first sentence of this provision. If the merging competitors propose such commitments during the first 30 days of the procedure, the period referred to in Article 16 (2) shall be extended by 15 days. If the merging competitors propose these commitments after having been informed by the Authority, pursuant to Article 16 (2), that the procedure is continued, the time limit for the decision under Article 16 (4) shall be extended by 15 days.
Deferred execution of the concentration
(1) Before the legal power of the Authority's decision to authorise a concentration, competitors shall not determine or influence the competitive behaviour of a controlled competitor, in particular the exercise of voting rights associated with the holding of participating securities, commercial or member interests or any other control obtained. The competitor shall also not take such measures as would lead to the irrevocability of the concentration and to a permanent change in the structure of the market.
(2) Where the Authority finds that competitors have made a concentration without applying for the authorisation of the concentration, the Authority may require competitors to sell shares, transfer the merged undertaking or part of it, cancel the contract or take other measures necessary to restore effective competition on the relevant market.
(3) The Authority may decide, on a proposal from competitors, to authorise an exemption from the prohibition on the implementation of concentrations referred to in paragraph 1 if they or third parties otherwise suffer serious damage or other serious harm. An application for an exemption may be submitted by competitors at the same time as the application for authorisation of the concentration or at any time during the procedure. The application shall be written and justified.
(4) The application for an exemption referred to in paragraph 3 shall be decided by the Authority without delay, not later than 30 days after its receipt. In deciding to authorise an exemption, the Authority shall take into account, in addition to damage and other damage, the consequences of the exemption on competition in the relevant market. If the Authority has not taken a decision within that period, the exemption shall be granted.
Repeal of the clearance decision
(1) The Office may revoke the decision authorising a concentration if it finds that it has authorised the concentration on the basis of supporting documents, data and information for which the completeness, accuracy and veracity of the case are the responsibility of the parties and which have been found to be wholly or partly false or incomplete, or the authorisation has been obtained by the parties to the proceedings having misled the Office or failing to comply with the conditions, restrictions or obligations which the Office has made conditional on the authorisation.
(2) The procedure for the annulment of the decision authorising the concentration may be initiated by the Authority within 1 year of the finding of the facts referred to in paragraph 1, but not later than 5 years after the occurrence of the facts.
OFFICE
(1) The competence of the Office is governed by specific legislation14). Office other than powers under other provisions of this law
(a) monitor whether and how competitors fulfil their obligations under this law or by decisions of the Office under this law;
(b) publish proposals to permit the concentration of competitors and its final decisions.
(2) In carrying out the supervision referred to in paragraph 1 (a), the Authority may initiate an own-initiative procedure. In the exercise of supervision, the Authority shall act mutatis mutandis in accordance with § 21 (5) to (9).
(1) The Authority has the power to apply Articles 81 and 82 of the Treaty in individual cases where the conduct of competitors could affect trade between Member States within the meaning of Article 81 or Article 82 of the Treaty. To that end, it shall be entitled to:
(a) require the cessation of the infringement;
(b) order precautionary measures;
(c) making commitments;
(d) impose fines.
(2) The Authority may refuse an advantage under an exemption regulation within the meaning of Article 81 (3) of the Treaty where agreements have, in a particular case, effects incompatible with Article 81 (3) of the Treaty in the territory of the Czech Republic or to a part thereof which has all the characteristics of a separate geographic market.
(3) The Office is hereby authorised to:
(a) request the Commission to provide copies of the documents necessary for the assessment of the case;
(b) consult the Commission on any case in which Community law is applied;
(c) to provide each other with the Commission and other competition authorities of the Member States and to use as evidence any factual or legal fact, including confidential information;
(d) request the Commission to include the case in the agenda of the Advisory Committee on Restrictive Practices;
(e) submit observations to the courts on questions relating to the application of Article 81 or 82 of the Treaty and request the competent court to send any documents necessary for the assessment of the case;
(f) conduct investigations at the request of the competition authority of another Member State.
(4) The Office shall:
(a) provide the Commission with all necessary information to enable it to carry out the acts entrusted to it by the Regulation;
(b) provide the Commission with the necessary assistance in the event of a competitor not allowing or making the investigation difficult;
(c) inform the Commission and the competition authorities of the other Member States in writing of the initiation of proceedings under Article 81 or 82 of the Treaty;
(d) at least 30 days before the decision is taken, send the Commission a summary of the case, the envisaged decision and other documents necessary for the assessment of the case; such information may also be made available to the competition authorities of the other Member States,
(e) appoint a representative to the Advisory Committee on Restrictive Practices;
(f) carry out at the request of the Commission the investigations deemed necessary.
PROCEDURE OF THE OFFICE
(1) The party to the proceedings shall be the one whose rights or obligations laid down by this law are to be determined in the proceedings.
(2) In proceedings concerning anti-competitive agreements resulting from the cumulative effect of parallel networks of similar vertical agreements concluded for the distribution of the same, comparable or interchangeable goods pursuant to Article 6 (2) (c), where one of the parties to those agreements is always the same competitor which proposes their conclusion to other competitors, the Office may limit the scope of the parties to the proceedings to that competitor only.
(3) An application to initiate proceedings against competitors who are parties to agreements that distort competition or to competitors that abuse a dominant position or to public authorities, or, where appropriate, an application made in matters outside the scope of this law, shall give rise to an investigation, the adoption of which, refusal or referral to another body, the Office shall inform the appellant in writing without decision. Where the Office initiates proceedings on its own initiative, it shall inform the complainant of the results of the investigation or of the decision to be taken only if he is not a party to the proceedings referred to in paragraph 1.
(4) The parties and the appellant, if not a party to the proceedings, are required to indicate the evidence to demonstrate the alleged facts in accordance with the immediately binding legislation of the European Communities. 14a)
(5) In proceedings conducted by the Office under this law, competitors are required to submit to the Office's investigation. For the purposes of such investigations, the Office shall be entitled to require from competitors and, unless otherwise provided for by specific legislation, the documents and information necessary for its activities and to verify their completeness, trueness and accuracy. To this end, the staff of the Office shall be entitled to access the land, to all premises, rooms and means of transport used by competitors in their business activities (hereinafter referred to as "commercial premises'), to inspect and extract from the commercial books and other commercial records and to request oral explanations on the spot. Where there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that trade books or other commercial records are located in non-commercial premises, including those of natural persons who are statutory bodies or their members or employees (hereinafter referred to as" non-commercial premises'), the investigation may, with the prior consent of the judicature (15), take place in such premises.
(6) In order to investigate in commercial or non-commercial premises, the Office shall be entitled to arrange for access to such premises or, where appropriate, to open closed cabinets or containers. Any person in whose premises commercial or non-commercial premises are located shall be required to submit to such premises an inquiry; If they fail to fulfil this obligation, the staff of the Office shall be entitled to arrange for access to commercial or non-commercial premises.
(7) Competitors shall, upon request, provide the Authority with complete, correct and true supporting documents and information within the time limit set by them and allow them to be verified in accordance with paragraph 4. This obligation shall also apply to public authorities, unless otherwise provided for in specific legislation.
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Regulation Information
| Citation | The full text of Act No. 464 / 2004 Coll., Act No. 143 / 2001 Coll., on the Protection of Competition and on the amendment of certain laws (Act on the Protection of Competition), as is apparent from the amendments made by Act No. 340 / 2004 Coll. |
|---|---|
| Regulation Type | Declared full text |
| Author | - |
| Collection | Code of Laws |
| Date of Promulgation | 11.08.2004 |
|---|---|
| Effective from | - |
| Effective until | - |
| Status | Valid |
The regulation text is for informational purposes only.
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