On Tuesday, April 25, 2023, the Hellenic Competition Commission decided to prioritize and assign to a Commissioner-Rapporteur, pursuant to Article 15 of Law 3959/2011 (the “Competition Act”), the in-depth investigation of certain practices consisting in the obstruction of an investigation during the dawn raid conducted by the Directorate-General for Competition in the sectors of supply and retail trade of supermarket products, in particular in the markets for cereals, milk, coffee, jam, beverages and cheese, regarding possible anticompetitive practices in the context of horizontal/vertical agreements.
Legal framework and next steps
The assignment of the case to a Commissioner-Rapporteur does not concern the investigation into any violation of the provisions of Articles 1 and 2 of Law 3959/2011 and/or Articles 101 and 102 TFEU, but only to a possible violation of the provision of Article 39 (5) of Law 3959/2011 on hindering - obstructing the investigation, based on the incidents that took place during the on-site inspection (dawn raid) at the premises of the association of undertakings concerned.
The assignment of a case to a Rapporteur indicates that the HCC’s investigation is at an advanced stage, and it triggers the time limits of Article 15 par. 4 and 5 of Law 3959/2011 for the adoption of a decision. However, it does not prejudge the content of the Statement of Objections or the HCC’s Decision. The statutory time limit is indicative, as the duration of the antitrust investigation depends, inter alia, on its complexity, the size of the case file as well as the number and degree of cooperation of the undertakings involved.
