‘Competition and Law’ International Forum
On 5 April 2012, the II ‘Competition and Law’ International Forum took place in Moscow. The event was organised by the journal ‘Competition and Law’ and law school ‘Statut’ with the support of the Russian Federation Chamber of Commerce and law firm Pepeliaev Group.
The event featured a lively discussion of recent trends in the development of antimonopoly law. The most heated discussions surrounded the analysis of the provisions of the third antimonopoly package of laws, the problems of forming a common competition policy for the Common Economic Space of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, and antimonopoly regulation issues in particular sectors including the pharmaceutical industry and trade. Among the speakers at the forum were lawyers from Pepeliaev Group; representatives of the Russian Ministry of Economic Development, the Russian Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS), and the higher courts; and lecturers from leading Russian higher education institutions, as well as Vienna university.
“The reason why foreign investment is flowing out of Russia lies in, among other things, the shortcomings of Russian legislation,” noted Pepeliaev Group partner Vladimir Sokov. His statement was countered by Andrey Tsyganov, the Deputy Head of FAS, who noted that, “The adjustments made within the framework of the third antimonopoly package are aimed at eliminating investors’ problems”. Mr Tsyganov also noted that the antimonopoly authority’s main task is to ensure that market participants are treated equally. He explained that if antimonopoly service did not wish to ensure a healthy competitive atmosphere, it would not have begun the process of abolishing criminal liability for concerted actions and would not have introduced the new institutions of a caution and a warning.
Elena Sokolovskaya, Head of Antimonopoly Regulation at Pepeliaev Group, discussed practical issues of applying the third antimonopoly package. In particular, Ms Sokolovskaya posed the question of whether the antimonopoly authority would take into account the new binding identifying feature of concerted actions, the fact that one of the parties involved must publicly assert that the actions have been taken. According to her, it is doubtful whether anyone involved in concerted actions will want to announce the fact in advance. Elena put this question to the representatives of the antimonopoly authority.
A roundtable that took place within the context of the forum, and drew particular attention from the participants in the event, featured a discussion of problems in the area of trade and the market for pharmaceutical products and medical devices.
Igor Tsvetkov, Professor of the Commercial Law Department at Lomonosov Moscow State University, gave his assessment of the effect of the Law on trade on the Russian economy. In his opinion, the experience of applying the law over two years shows that its provisions are ineffective. This principally takes the form of the law’s provisions actually destroying contractual pricing mechanisms and of excessive administrative interference by the antimonopoly authorities in the trading activity of economic entities. Timofey Nizhegorodtsev, Head of the FAS’s Social Sector and Trade Division, however, does not consider that the antimonopoly authority applies undue pressure. He leans towards the opposite point of view, which sees this industry above all among today’s various markets as seeming to be constantly changing for the better.
In concluding the final session at the Forum, Pepeliaev Group lawyer Elena Lvova identified a range of serious problems which crop up today and will continue to arise in the future on the pharmaceutical market. In her view, the claims frequently made against the pharmaceutical industry by the antimonopoly authorities makes it impossible for this market to enjoy dynamic growth. The path is barred by too many restrictions and obstacles.