The Court for Protection of Competition and Consumers has upheld a finding that paint and lacquer manufacturer Polifarb Cieszyn-Wrocław operated an illegal cartel with seven DIY retailers, including Praktiker, Nomi and Leroy Merlin.
The original decision by the President of the Office for Competition and Consumer Protection (OCCP) found that Polifarb had entered into unlawful distribution agreements with the seven DIY retailers which limited competition in the market. Under the agreements, the DIY retailers received discounts in return for applying minimum resale prices for Polifarb products.
The Court upheld most of the fines imposed by the OCCP, which ranged from PLN 32,086,000 to PLN 50,000. The maximum fine for participating in prohibited anti-competitive agreements, whether formalised or not, is 10% of the previous year's turnover.
This article was written for Law-Now, CMS Cameron McKenna's free online information service. To register for Law-Now, please go to www.law-now.com/law-now/mondaq
Law-Now information is for general purposes and guidance only. The information and opinions expressed in all Law-Now articles are not necessarily comprehensive and do not purport to give professional or legal advice. All Law-Now information relates to circumstances prevailing at the date of its original publication and may not have been updated to reflect subsequent developments.
The original publication date for this article was 04/06/2008.
