Gecić Law proudly upholds its legacy of excellence with exceptional rankings in the esteemed Legal 500 EMEA 2024 guide, showcasing the firm’s unwavering dedication to providing outstanding service and the unmatched expertise of its teams and individuals. For an impressive eighth year in a row, Gecić Law’s distinguished Competition practice maintains its Tier 1 status, showcasing remarkable achievements across EU law, state aid, and international trade, solidifying its reputation as a frontrunner in the legal arena. Once again, our Founder and Managing Partner, Bogdan Gecić, joins the distinguished few in the elite EMEA Hall of Fame, reaffirming his position as a preeminent figure in competition […]
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On February 8, 2024, the European Commission (“EC”) unveiled an updated Market Definition Notice (“the Notice”). The revision plays a crucial role in the EC’s approach to assessing mergers and antitrust cases by delineating the competitive boundaries and assessing the market power of companies. The Notice extends beyond EU Member States, mandating compliance from Western Balkan countries (“WBs“) aligned with the EU competition law acquis. Namely, all WBs, through the Stabilization and Association Agreements, have committed to enforce the criteria derived from the implementation of competition rules applicable in the EU, in particular from famous Articles 101, 102, 106 and […]
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New rules Fédération internationale de football association (“FIFA”), with its prerogatives in creating the legal framework for the game of football, enacted new changes in their FIFA Football Agent Regulations (“FFAR”). To create a more transparent, efficient, and just system, the new regulations aim to reinforce contractual stability, protect the integrity of the transfer system, and achieve greater financial transparency. However, some of the introduced provisions may potentially violate competition laws, leading to a reluctance among many countries to incorporate the FFAR into their national regulations. With many court proceedings in various national courts from England to Brazil and before […]
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An (Un)expected Oligopoly At the end of October, the Belgian Competition Authority (L’Autorité belge de la Concurrence) (“ABC”) released an opinion on the state of competition in Belgium’s retail banking market (the “Opinion”). The Opinion revealed that the retail banking market in Belgium is an oligopoly. Four banks dominate the market: BNP Paribas Fortis, KBC, Belfius, and ING. As an oligopoly, the retail banking market exhibits specific characteristics. These include similar services on offer and frequent interactions between banks, facilitating coordination among the most prominent market participants and reducing competition. The most obvious example of services with identical commercial terms […]
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In recent times, the European football landscape has witnessed a significant transformation. The changes have been catalyzed by an unexpected influence – financial subsidies pouring in from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). These subsidies have not only captured the attention of football enthusiasts but have also raised concerns within the European Union (EU) regarding their impact on the continent’s football market. This article will explore these concerns’ intricacies, focusing on how the EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) intersects with the football world. The Complaints It all started with the complaints from football national leagues in Europe. One of […]
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The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched an investigation in September 2021 and has now issued a statement of objections outlining its preliminary findings. This investigation was triggered by admissions from both Leicester City FC and JD Sports, acknowledging their engagement in anti-competitive behavior. Their actions were found to limit competition in the sales of Leicester City-branded clothing, including replica kits, within the UK. The fine is related to the sale of Leicester City football kits and other branded clothing supplied by Leicester City to JD Sports over two and a half football seasons. According to the Competition and Markets […]
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Starting from July 1, 2023, the newly adopted Horizontal Block Exemption Regulations on Research and Development Agreements (“R&D“) and Specialisation agreements (together “HBERs“) shall take effect in the EU. The essence of HBERs, and the accompanying Horizontal Guidelines (“Guidelines“), is to facilitate the self-assessment of the most common types of horizontal cooperation agreements. They are also well-known as a safe harbor to undertakings, for as long as the latter comply with the rules set in the HBERs, leading to block exemption of such agreements from the competition rules. The novelties in said pieces of legislation offer a more flexible approach […]
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With technological advancements changing both how antitrust laws are enforced and how undertakings violate competition laws, the fourth industrial revolution and the rapid growth of AI continue to affect this area of law, as many others. It is impossible to ignore the potential for AI to conquer markets and its ability to spot and fix basic market balance violations. Despite the benefits of technology for customers, it also threatens their interests by distorting market dynamics and impacting competition. Threat Using AI presents a potential risk as it allows for price collusion through price monitoring and algorithmic matching software. While […]
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Gecić Law adds another successful year to its story of excellence after achieving impressive rankings in the 2023 edition of the prestigious Legal 500 EMEA Guide, reflecting the firm’s world-class service and the expertise of its teams and individuals. For an impressive seventh year in a row, Gecić Law’s market-leading Competition practice has earned a Tier 1 status, with significant achievements in matters with far-reaching implications not only on the clients’ businesses but on the economies of the entire region, incorporating diverse aspects, including EU law, state aid and international trade. For a second year, the firm’s Founder and Managing […]
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In December, the European Commission (“Commission”) issued a Statement of Objections (“SO”) to Facebook’s parent company Meta Platforms Inc. The Commission said that based on its preliminary view, Facebook had violated EU antitrust rules by distorting competition for online display advertising on social media linked to Facebook Marketplace. Marketplace, which Meta launched back in 2016, is a virtual place for Facebook users to discover, buy and sell just about anything, from vehicles, clothes, books, smartphones, and even property, within their local social community. The Commission’s preliminary theory of harm presented in the SO concludes that Meta abused its dominating positions […]
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In her keynote speech at the 2023 World Economic Forum in Davos, Ursula von der Leyen, EU Commission President, outlined yesterday the main pillars of the EU’s Green Deal Industrial Plan to boost Europe’s leadership in green technology on its road to carbon neutrality. “We know we have a small window to invest in clean tech and innovation to gain leadership before the fossil fuel economy becomes obsolete,” said von der Leyen. As the plan’s regulatory pillar, she announced a new Net-zero Industry Act to support the “greatest industrial transformation of our times” and keep up with strongly incentivized programs […]
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As anticipated for some time in the previous months, while having been agreed upon between the EU institutions, the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (Regulation) finally saw the light of day on January 12, 2023. Its application will commence on July 12, 2023. The Regulation offers new tools for the European Commission (Commission) to investigate financial contributions from non-EU countries to companies operating in the EU to prevent distortions in the internal market. This specific State aid regime provides for an extended application of EU rules and the Commission’s competencies beyond the EU borders. One of the notable features is that the […]
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The European Commission (Commission) continues to work on implementing the Digital Markets Act (DMA). On December 9, 2022, the Commission published a draft regulation on implementing the DMA and annexes. Public consultations are currently underway until January 6, 2023. The Commission would like to consider the input of different publics and take on board their suggestions, comments, and proposals when finalizing this draft regulation. Feedback received will be published on the Commission’s website and must adhere to the rules for input and suggestions. To participate in the public consultation process, interested parties must register. The regulation aims to ensure fair, efficient, and complete […]
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Our Founding Partner Bogdan Gecić shared his significant knowledge and experience with law students at the esteemed University of Florence (ita. Università Degli Studi di Firenze) as a guest lecturer to a class led by Prof. Ettore M. Lombardi. Students had the opportunity to participate actively in an online two-part mini-course titled “Elements of Competition Law: An International Perspective.” Bogdan provided practical insights into the most exciting aspects of competition law in the context of EU law and how they relate to international trade. Bogdan commented: ”I always enjoy speaking to students, and it was a great pleasure to hold […]
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We were recently entered the finals in four categories for The Lawyer European Awards 2022 and became one of the most nominated law firms in the whole of Europe! As last year’s winner, Gecić Law was nominated for Law firm of the Year: South East Europe, a 150 million strong market, and entered the finals with three of its practice area teams for impressive achievements in competition, corporate and litigation, standing shoulder to shoulder with the crème de la crème of the entire continent. Gecić Law received the most nominations among this year’s contenders across all of Europe – an […]
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Europe is now fit for the digital age as the long-awaited Digital Markets Act (DMA) was published in the Official Journal on October 12. Adopted by the European Parliament in September, the DMA will enter into force on November 1 and start to apply in May next year. The act provides a framework to prevent the most prominent digital companies, the so-called “gatekeepers,” from abusing their market power, ensuring greater competition in digital markets, and sparking more innovation in the industry. The DMA will primarily target the world’s most powerful corporations in the IT industry, commonly referred to as the “Big Five” […]
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The European Commission’s (Commission) antitrust enforcers are investigating Google Play Store. The antitrust enforcers are now looking into the restrictions Google has placed on the Play Store app market. According to the sources, the Commission has sent a confidential questionnaire to several companies that use the Play Store. Most of the questions are about the billing terms and fees they must pay to this tech giant to be listed in its application catalog. Any purchase made inside an application (in-app) that has been downloaded from the Play Store is subject to a 15% to 30% fee that Google charges. Publishers […]
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We recently wrote about bid rigging and the new guidelines issued by the Serbian NCA on detecting this illegal activity in public procurement procedures. Here we look into an interesting case that illustrates how bid rigging occurs and is dealt with in the United Kingdom. After it had initiated an antitrust probe in 2019, The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) came across a cartel activity of 10 demolition companies that plotted to rig bids for demolition and asbestos-removal contracts worth more than £150 million. The contracts in question were the result of tenders organized by the MET Police Training […]
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In January 2018, the European Commission (Commission) imposed on Qualcomm, a US chipsets company, a fine of close to €1 billion for abuse of dominance from February 2011 to September 2016. The Commission found the company liable for prompting Apple to conclude agreements with incentive payments and make it exclusively bound by Qualcomm’s LTE chipsets to be incorporated into their devices. This had, ultimately, led to anticompetitive effects on the relevant market. Qualcomm challenged the decision which was annulled in its entirety on June 15, 2022, by the General Court of the EU (Court) for two reasons – procedural irregularities […]
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On June 17, 2022, the Council of the Serbian Competition Authority (“Council“) adopted the proposal of the Model Program for Business Compliance with the Competition Rules (“Model Program”), in order to help the undertakings in developing their own compliance programs. In that sense, the Council points out that the Model Program represents only an example and a proposal to the undertakings, and that each compliance program should be made in accordance with the specific needs of a certain undertaking, as well as adjusted with the markets on which a particular company operates. The aim of the Model Program is to assist undertakings […]
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In this edition of our series dedicated to our esteemed colleagues who were recognized in this year’s The Legal 500 EMEA rankings, we bring you our founder and managing partner Bogdan Gecić. After being recognized by The Legal 500 as a Leading Individual in Competition for seven consecutive years, in this year’s rankings, Bogdan was especially honored by being amongst the distinguished few to be inducted into the elite global directory’s newly established EMEA Hall of Fame category, which highlights the law firm partners who are at the pinnacle of the profession having received constant praise by their clients for continued […]
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Collusive tendering or bid rigging is an illegal activity by which bidders create the illusion of competition while secretly agreeing among themselves which of them will win the tender. By choosing the best price, the purchasers, who are frequently national and local governments, are forced to pay more than they would otherwise pay in conditions of fair competition. Bid rigging is one of the most severe competition law infringements which causes damage to taxpayers given that public procurement participates to a substantial extent in the economy of each country. It typically accounts for 12% of the gross domestic product, which […]
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The Serbian Competition Authority (‘’SCA’’) revealed yesterday the long-awaited new Guidelines on bid-rigging (‘’Guidelines’’). The Guidelines provide essential instructions on how to detect rigged bids in public procurement procedures. They come 11 years after they were last updated, reflecting the latest amendments to the Public Procurement Act and the Criminal Code. This news is crucial as the new Guidelines aim to prevent and hinder bid-rigging, an illegal practice where bidders collude to decide the winner, resulting in a higher price than may have been achieved in a truly competitive bidding process. As prices are driven up in public procurement processes, […]
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On May 10, 2022, the European Commission adopted a new Vertical Block Exemption Regulation (“VBER“) and related guidelines (“Vertical Guidelines“), following a detailed review of the previous Vertical Block Exemption Regulation dating to 2010 (“old VBER“). The objective of the VBER is to exempt agreements between undertakings operating at different levels of the supply chain (“vertical agreements”): if certain market share thresholds are met, and provided the agreement does not contain certain prohibited restrictions (“hardcore restrictions”). In other words, the VBER aims to recognize which types of vertical agreements are generally efficiency-enhancing and provide benefits to consumers. One of the […]
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The Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU“) delivered two judgments on 22 March 2022. By those judgments, the CJEU ruled on the scope of the protection afforded by the prohibition of ne bis in idem principle in competition law. The CJEU recalled in both cases that the application of the ne bis in idem principle is subject to a twofold condition. First, there must be a prior final decision and secondly, the prior decision and the subsequent proceedings must concern the same facts. The CJEU clarified that the limitations may be imposed on the exercise of a fundamental right, such as the prohibition against double […]
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Bogdan Gecić, the founding partner at Gecić Law, spoke today at the winter edition of the prestigious Vivaldi Forum which traditionally takes place in Drvengrad, on the picturesque Mokra Gora mountain. His thought-provoking presentation titled “Sufficient Light: The Market and Competition”, delivered as part of the “Vivaldi Talks: Fertile Grounds for Growth” segment of the conference showed a fresh and unconventional perspective on the importance of fair competition for growth and development on the market, capturing the interest and sparking discussion among the delegates attending the event and numerous other participants who followed the session online. “Competition is a natural […]
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Our own Ivana Stojanović Raišić, Counsel, shared her tremendous knowledge and experience with the students of the esteemed University of Florence (ita. Università degli Studi di Firenze) in a unique experience, as a guest lecturer in the International Business Law Course, led by Prof. Ettore M. Lombardi. Students had the opportunity to listen in and take an active part in an online two-part mini-course titled Elements of Competition Law: An International Perspective, where Ivana provided practical insights into the most interesting aspects of competition law and how they relate to business activity. Students engaged in a number of hands-on exercises […]
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Gecić Law is pleased to announce that we have become the first independent law firm in the region to expand into the sphere of Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) by launching a new practice that will focus on the needs of businesses in this increasingly prominent area. The practice will be co-headed by Partner | Head of Corporate/M&A Ognjen Colić and Head of Operations Hristina Kosec. The formal development of the ESG practice is a natural expansion of our corporate law activities and complements existing practices at Gecić Law. Our firm’s multijurisdictional, holistic, and cross-disciplinary approach will be coupled with […]
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The struggle for existing and new users between companies that develop applications is relentless as our lives have been practically moved to the Internet over the years. It seems that the opposing sides do not choose the means anymore, so this is an IP perspective on Instagram Reels vs TikTok. Back in 2010, when Instagram was launched, social media (“SM”) networks were used to post personal content and maintain contacts, and Instagram focused on creating a photo-sharing platform. As the popularity of SM networks increased, sales came into focus and advertising content became a widespread feature. An SM network collects […]
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A phenomenon known as the Internet of Things (“IoT”), which has been at the forefront of the global tech changes, recently caught the European Commission’s (“Commission”) attention. The Commission’s Preliminary Report and Q&A on this tech & business sector is a big step towards acknowledging IoT as a market of the future, while simultaneously pointing out some potential dangers of this groundbreaking technology. Internet of Things – a Brief Explanation Let’s imagine this situation: you are not only an ardent coffee drinker but also a sleepyhead. Your alarm wakes you up at 7.00 am. You have little precious time to […]
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In the process of gradually aligning its legislation with the EU acquis the Government of the Republic of Serbia adopted two bylaws on 11 March 2021 in the field of state aid, complementary to the recently adopted new State Aid Control Act. All this adds value to the start of talks on the Chapter 8 – Competition Policy of Serbia’s negotiation process and may speed up Serbia’s EU accession. Regional Aid Regulation This regulation is designed to promote economic development of the least developed regions or the development of regions with a high level of unemployment. It also allows state […]
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Some reports say that it would be impossible to live in the digital world outside of the ecosystem created by Big Tech giants. The concentration of power in a small number of platforms has allowed some tech companies, popularly known as the Four Horsemen” to exercise unparalleled economic power and social impact almost without any oversight by regulators. These companies have complete market dominance, each in their respective field of expertise: Apple in consumer electronics and mobile operating systems; Facebook in the social media, Google in online searches, video-sharing and mapping-based navigation; and, finally, Amazon in the e-commerce market. Hence, […]
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The EU’s second-highest court sided with Amazon.com (“Amazon”) recently, saying it did not owe millions to Luxembourg in unpaid taxes. On May 12, 2021, the General Court (“Court”) overturned the European Commission’s (“Commission”) order to Amazon to pay EUR 250 million to Luxembourg, as reimbursement of illegal State aid. The Court held that the European Commission’s primary finding of an alleged advantage was based on an incorrect analysis. Precisely, the Court argued that none of the findings set out by the Commission in the contested decision were sufficient to demonstrate the existence of an advantage for the purposes of Article […]
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Business cartels between competing market participants are designed to limit or eliminate competition between them, with the objective of increasing prices and profit of the cartel members. In practice, this is generally achieved by fixing prices, market sharing, limiting output, allocating customers or territories, bid-rigging, or a combination of the above. Cartels are harmful to consumers and society as a whole since the participating businesses charge higher prices (and earn higher profits) than would be the case in a competitive market. Because of their negative impact on the market, competition legislation fights against cartels, imposing substantial fines on participants, which […]
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The Serbian Competition Authority (“SCA”) recently focused on unapproved mergers i.e. gun-jumping. The most recent “victim” of the SCA’s investigations into gun-jumping was Fortenova Grupa d.d. (“Fortenova”), with the only previous undertaking fined for gun-jumping being Prointer IT Solutions. Meanwhile, Ernst & Young are also being investigated under the same allegations. Is this simply a witch hunt or is there something going on here? Gun-jumping (not only during the Olympics) Before we get into the heart of the matter let`s define what gun-jumping is. In competition law, gun-jumping is a concept pertaining to an unlawful pre-merger and pre-clearance coordination of […]
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“Three Strikes, You’re Out!”, or, as in the practice of the UK’s watchdog, “third time is a charm”, but the fourth is not. Let us check out the rules of fair play when it comes to protecting competition in the UK market. In the early 2020 Associated Lead Mills Ltd (ALM) and H.J. Enthoven Ltd (trading as BLM British Lead), two of the UK’s largest suppliers of rolled lead, admitted to forming a cartel and thus breaking the law four times by colluding on prices, sharing the rolled lead market by arranging not to target certain customers, and purposely not […]
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Introductory remarks There are many reasons why football is one of the world’s most successful and popular sports, and that Europe is its home. As Rohan Roy said in his poem, football is “the most beautiful game”. Although football has changed over the years, which was inevitable, it kept receiving support from its fans. Historically, adjustments to “the most important of the least important things” have been announced and introduced gradually, so that the core principles of football would survive. It is obvious that the fans and supporters were and always will be the reason for football’s worldwide success. This […]
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In the last few months, the Serbian National Competition Authority (“NCA”) has turned its attention to sanctioning agreements between undertakings where resale prices are maintained. After taking cases against consumer electronics undertakings, the NCA recently opened an investigation against a general importer and its three car dealers of “Audi” vehicles, in the course of its sectoral analysis of the markets of sales and after-sales services of motor vehicles. Resale Price Maintenance – What is the Problem? Resale price maintenance (“RPM”) is a contractual provision where the supplier (usually the manufacturer or general importer) binds the buyer (usually the distributor or […]
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Gecić Law is currently representing Bosnia and Herzegovina in a procedure with the Energy Community, a landmark case across the Balkans related to alleged state aid in the construction of Block 7 of the Tuzla Thermal Power Plant, a project worth USD 1.1 billion, with co-counsel Marić & Co. Law Firm based in Sarajevo. Launched in 2018 by the Secretariat of the Energy Community against Bosnia and Herzegovina, the process has been marked by violation of due process, complete disregard for the rights of the defense as well as continuous bids of the prosecution to speed up the process and […]
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Our Energy practice team has repeatedly demonstrated its credibility by devising unique opportunities for greenfield and brownfield investments for our clients. We provide comprehensive solutions related to privatization, regulatory compliance and due diligence in cooperation with eminent regulatory, corporate and financial experts. Counsel to Norwegian NBT AS on Wind Farms Project in Serbia Our latest accomplishment in the energy sector is providing counsel to NBT AS, Norway, a utility-scale wind power developer (exceeding 100 KW of power), in partnering with WV International (formerly Windvision). WV International has been developing wind farm projects in Serbia since 2010 and has been active […]
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The Treaty of Nice, a landmark agreement in the history of the European integration process, celebrated its 20th anniversary last Friday. The legislation was signed on February 26, 2001 and came into force on February 1, 2003. The key aim of the Treaty was to introduce institutional changes and decision-making reform, amending the Maastricht Treaty and the Treaty of Rome, which would allow for the ensuing EU enlargement. The Treaty introduced qualified majority voting in the European Council, removed national vetoes in many areas and gave the European Parliament the power to elect the Commission President. It formalized the principles […]
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As you already know, we make it our business to bring you news of cases that are out of the ordinary and interesting in so many ways. But this one is a first. It is not new as in recent, because it all began 10 years ago, but new in the context of originality. What you are about to read is the story of probably the most flagrant “abuse of dominant position” ever. Factual originality Providing the backdrop to this story is a business relationship in the Baltics between Lithuanian Railways (“LR”), the state-owned rail company in Lithuania, with responsibility […]
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One Belgrade University professor used to say that cinematography is an arranged marriage that marries investors and intellectual creators/artists. We respectfully disagree with that statement – the “marriage” is missing a legal professional. Media law is a broad area that could, in some segments, include almost every branch of law – intellectual property, state aid, competition, company & commercial law, criminal law, human rights law, etc. With this bulletin focusing on filming in Serbia, we are going to cover two of the most relevant issues for the film industry. The first one is creators’ copyrights and producers’ right to economic […]
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Here we bring you a more detailed overview of the State aid package granted to Montenegro Airlines A.D. Podgorica, Montenegro’s national airline. We touched on the topic a few weeks ago. Introduction To recap, just days after announcing a EUR 133 million aid package for Montenegro Airlines the country’s national competition and state aid authority, the Protection of Competition Agency (“Agency“), launched an investigation into the State aid package. The Agency’s investigation found that the MEO test conditions had not been fulfilled, therefore qualifying this boost to Montenegro Airlines as State aid. On foot of that finding the Agency ordered […]
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The New Public Procurement Act (“new Act”) was adopted in December 2019 and came into force on January 1, 2020. The key objectives of the new act are increased transparency within the public procurement procedure, elimination of the administrative burden and increased competition between the participants in the procedure. If conducted legally, the public procurement process should result in the acquisition of the highest possible quality of goods or services for the lowest possible price. However, collusion between bidders, i.e. “bid-rigging”, eliminates genuine competition and hinders the interests of both purchasers and taxpayers. Bids can be rigged through secret coordination […]
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On July 29, 2020, the Slovenian Supreme Court (“Court“) reached a decision by which it ordered that the Slovenian Competition Protection Agency (“AVK“) shall restore the Croatian Agrokor d.d.’s shares in the Slovenian retailer Mercator. In its press release, the AVK stated that the decision by which it ordered the withdrawal of shares held by Agrokor was rendered in accordance with Article 201 of the Slovenian Misdemeanor Act (Zakon o prekrških) in 2019. Article 201 enshrines that anyone’s property may be confiscated in cases there is likelihood of the perpetrator hiding or fleeing the country during the procedure before the […]
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For some reason May is THE month for competition. Mays of yesteryear have witnessed many intriguing courtroom battles: May 2016, May 2019 and finally in May 2020. True to form, merger control is making the headlines again. The General Court (GC) annulled the European Commission’s (Commission) decision in Hutchison 3G UK (Hutchison) and Telefónica UK (Telefónica) merger on May 28, 2020. If you have not seen it yet, the underlying reason behind the annulment is quite thought-provoking: in a nutshell, the GC held that the Commission made errors in law and manifested errors of assessment, and to boot, infringed essential […]
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General Court brings the curtain down on epic court battle between Apple Ireland and the EU/European Commission in a state aid case labelled the ‘Apple Tax case’. On July 15, 2020, the EU’s General Court overturned the Commission’s decision because the Commission failed to prove Apple had broken competition rules. Following an in-depth state aid investigation launched in June 2014, the Commission requested information on any rulings granted by Ireland in favour of the Apple Group companies: Apple Operations International (AOI), Apple Sales International (ASI) and Apple Operations Europe (AOE). The Commission concluded that two tax rulings issued by Ireland to […]
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One learns early on – if you want to sit at the cool kids’ table, you must do the work and engage in tedious diplomatic battles and quid pro quo bargains. Yet, does the accession to the EU automatically erase ghosts of times past? If one looks at the love-hate triangle between the EU, Romania and the Micula brothers, the answer is not necessarily positive. The Micula phenomenon No international lawyer is likely to ever ask: “Micula – who?” On the contrary, the Micula case(s) have by now generated such notoriety that they represent household terms in law offices around […]
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We don our Facebook spyglass once again. However, unlike the last time it was on our radar, Facebook is now a model co-operator. With the goal of putting their products and services on the map, and bringing home the bacon, many users on social media and other online platforms have been involved in trading fake and misleading reviews as a way of reaching their selling point. The thing is, Facebook and eBay users have been using word-of-mouth marketing to go viral. Creating a buzz around your product/service is certainly what sells in this digital age. Good for them! What is […]
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Serbia’s Parliamentary Committee on Finance, State Budget and Control of Public Spending held a public hearing yesterday, December 3, 2019. Among the items on the agenda was the shortlisting of candidates for election to the State Aid Commission’s new Council and election of the Commission’s chairperson. Incumbent chairperson of the Commission, Vladimir Antonijević, was nominated for reelection to another five years in office, whereas other nominees for Council membership include Marko Vidaković, Ljiljana Blagojević, Dragan Đurđević, and Dušica Đorđević. In the light of the recently enacted new State Aid Act, on which draft we provided proposals in the course of […]
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We all love to see the famous musketeer whoop, as a true stalwart of modern society. Notwithstanding a reality check which may be otherwise, it does not necessarily mean that society is not continually aiming to reverse such “otherwise” state of affairs. Is it really: every man for himself and the Devil take the hindmost? … even before the eerie courts? Well, fortunately not always. Casting an eye over justice systems around the world, one bumps into something called class action, or collective redress. In common law systems, with the United States as their standard-bearer, class action is currently in […]
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“I want to get away, I want to fly away”, Lenny Kravitz sang. Ok Lenny, but which airline will you choose? The cheapest one? Way to go! But let’s check something first. Have you noticed the disparity in ticket prices between EU and non-EU airlines, which in turn has a knock-on effect on who you chose to fly with, Lenny? Oh, so, you haven’t noticed? Who cares, right? You usually take to the skies in your private jet so matters as trivial as these don’t concern you. Well, guess what Lenny – THE EU CARES! Aviation is widely regulated throughout […]
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Gecić Law is delighted to announce yet another commendation by The Legal 500 EMEA, one of the most eminent and prestigious directories of the legal world. Our Banking & Finance practice continues its bullish run to the national top. Its head Nikola Aksić was named to the guide’s “Leading Individuals” elite list of outstanding lawyers in the country, only one year after being recommended by the guide. The practice also went up in the overall rankings, securing a Tier 2 recognition. And we haven’t stopped there. Our Corporate/M&A practice is not lagging behind. The practice head Ognjen Colić […]
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As recent events suggest, the harmony and tranquility (of the most wonderful time of the year) in the UK audit market, dominated by the Big Four[1], is soon to be interrupted. The UK Competition & Markets Authority (“CMA”) has published an updated paper outlining serious competition concerns and proposing legislative changes in order to improve the audit sector for the sake of both savers and investors. After conducting a market study into the statutory audit market, the CMA reached the following conclusions: Since the companies are free to choose their own auditors, there has been too much evidence of them […]
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If you open the eighth edition of the Oxford Dictionary of Law and turn to page 461, poaching is defined as “taking game without permission from private land or from land on which the killing of game is restricted. Wild animals cannot usually be stolen […]”. Although the current degree of development of human rights and basic human decency forbid referring to employees as “wild animals” (at least publicly), and killing is certainly considered a criminal offence, in the corporate world of today to poach someone means to hire an employee from another, often competing, undertaking. Agreements among companies not […]
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The year 2018 is witnessing a period of constant developments and dynamics in the area of competition law in Serbia. The latest news concerns a constitutional challenge against Article 45(4) of the Competition Act of Serbia (“Competition Act”), submitted by the Commissioner for information of public importance and personal data protection (“Commissioner”). Said provision exempts information gathered for the purpose of conducting competition proceedings, which are considered as ‘protected information’ to be disclosed to the public under the Free Access to Information of Public Importance Act (“Free Access Act”). In Commissioner’s view this provision seems to be in discord with […]
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Gecić Law has successfully advised the Republic of Serbia and EPS, one of the largest energy companies in the region, in a probe led by Energy Community Secretariat regarding alleged State support for the multi-million-euro Kolubara B project. On Monday, June 25, 2018, the Energy Community Secretariat announced the parties reached an amicable solution bringing the two-year long case to an end. The Kolubara B power plant project will enable EPS to add 700 MW of electricity annually, constituting the most important investment in the Serbian energy infrastructure in the last four decades. The ruling not only confirmed our team’s […]
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Gecić Law successfully represented the Bar Association of Serbia in a positive resolution of a landmark antitrust probe in Serbia (link). On May 24, 2018, the Serbian Commission for Protection of Competition, the national competition authority (“Commission”) dropped a four-year antitrust investigation into the Bar Association of Serbia – Advokatska komora Srbije (“AKS”), without taking any further action (link). The Commission’s decision puts to rest one of the longest standing investigations in recent history against AKS, a more than 9000-lawyer strong organization and one of the largest bar associations in the Balkans. In 2014, the Commission opened a probe against […]
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On May 23, 2018, the Bar Association of Vojvodina (“AKV”) held a panel in Novi Sad on the topic “Overview of Proceedings before the Serbian National Competition Authority in Light of the Existing Practice and Implications of the New Administrative Procedure Act”. The speakers on this ever-evolving, complex yet news-worthy topic were Milica Subotić, attorney specializing in competition law matters, Isidora Nikolić Savin, attorney and specialist for civil and EU business law, and Bogdan Gecić, partner at Gecić Law, specialized in competition/State aid and European law. Moderated by Isidora Nikolić Savin, the panel elaborated on variety of topics such as: overview of proceedings before the […]
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A testament to human rights safeguards or show of a deeply flawed system? Summary Gecić Law successfully assisted EPS Distribution, the leading regional distribution operator, in obtaining a landmark judgement from the Administrative Court that annulled the RSD 330 million fine (cca. EUR 3 million) previously levied against this company by the Serbian watchdog. The court confirmed that the record fine was imposed in violation of the basic principles of national and EU competition law, as well as ECHR guaranteed human rights. After a long and tumultuous battle, which took years and a total of three judgements, EPS Distribution finally […]
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A series of interesting developments, unorthodox actions and landmark decisions surrounding the Serbian Protection of Competition Act that took place in recent months seem to be approaching its final resolution in the form of a brand new competition act that will enhance market competition and at the same time protect companies’ human rights. As this peculiar story approaches its final chapter, we analyse the chronological developments and measure expectations on a potentially milestone development for both Serbia, the region and the European antitrust discourse as a whole. The Uprising The first signs of what was to come happened in late […]
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(Update: 02.25.2022.) CJEU Reaches Final Decision in Landmark Anti-Dumping Case The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) reached a final decision in a landmark anti-dumping case, with far-reaching implications for HBIS Serbia and the Serbian economy. The CJEU sided with the General Court’s ruling which confirmed the European Commission’s (EC) decision not to impose anti-dumping measures on steel producers from Serbia in 2017, simultaneously imposing these measures on products originating from Brazil, Iran, Russia and Ukraine, following months of investigation into alleged anti-competitive practices (link). Gecić Law was legal counsel to the Government of Serbia and the Smederevo […]
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Photo courtesy of Aleksandar Milutinović, photographer On October 4, 2017, the Bar Association of Vojvodina (BAV) held a panel in Novi Sad (city known as Serbian Athens) on the topic, “The proceedings of the Commission for Protection of Competition (Commission) against the Bar Association of Serbia (BAS), possible implications for the BAV and constitutional challenges against the Protection of Competition Act”. The speakers on this complex and news-worthy topic were Isidora Nikolić Savin, attorney and specialist for civil and EU business law, and Bogdan Gecić, partner at Gecić Law. Great attendance and interest by attorneys and associates specialized in various fields […]
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The trust buster himself, President Theodore Roosevelt, looks on as a trust is squeezed by Treasury Secretary George B. Cortelyou Illustration by Udo J. Keppler, courtesy of Library of Congress In 2015, Professor Dijana Marković Bajalović, one of the founders and renowned presidents of the National Competition Authority (NCA), and the country’s most respected trust-buster – during her tenure at the NCA, Professor Bajalović took on Delta, for the illegal takeover of C Market, and other major incumbents, a feat unheard off at the time (and was eventually removed from office in 2010) – along with others, filed a constitutional challenge […]
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For the first time since Agrokor—one of the leading regional companies with almost 60,000 employees, became the biggest national news in the Balkans for facing liquidity issues—former Agrokor owner, Ivica Todoric, broke his silence, claiming he gave up control “under duress” and that “this is not Parmalat” indicating a potential and broader legal battle against the Croatian state on multiple fronts? Possible ramifications may include EU law, state aid & competition issues, constitutional claims, ECHR and even more. The extensive public announcement issued today and signed by Mr. Todoric points to “an unconstitutional and illegal nationalization” and states he “will […]
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This update considers how exchange of information, as an essential part of any M&A transaction (from pre-acquisition discussions, through the due diligence procedure, and up to the closing of the transaction), may cause significant competition concerns under the Serbian Competition Act in terms of potential collusion between competitors. The prohibition on entering into restrictive agreements under the current Serbian Competition Act (CA) applies, as a general rule, to sharing of commercially sensitive information between undertakings. Relevant provisions of the CA prohibit contracts, certain contract provisions, express or tacit agreements, concerted practices, as well as decisions of undertakings associations which have […]
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Recent developments in Serbia, in particular an unprecedented number of hastily opened investigations and Competition Commission’s push for a complete revamp of the competition act, discussed in a recent PLC article “The Dawn of Dawn Raids or the Twilight of Due Process in Serbia?”, raised many eyebrows and prompted significant dissent from both public and private stakeholders. The widespread dissent took an interesting twist on August 21, 2017 when the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia (hereinafter: the Chamber of Commerce) issued an invitation for consultations to the members of its Assembly and Managing Board re the application and […]
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During the last ten days of May 2017, Serbian competition authority has hastily opened an unprecedented number of investigations. Simultaneously, the authority announced a push for a complete revamp of the competition act. Reviewing these developments through the lens of the New Administrative Act, which came into force on 1 June 2017, a strong argument can be made that behind these actions is a desire to circumvent the robust human rights safeguards introduced by the New Administrative Act and guaranteed under the ECHR and the Serbian Constitution. During the last ten days of May, the Commission for Protection of Competition of […]
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One of the amendments to the Serbian Criminal Code (the Code) that will take effect on 1 March 2018 is a new criminal offence for restrictive agreements. Antitrust law has been criminalized in Serbia for decades. So what may be the underlying intention behind these new amendments? In one word: Focus. The Code does away with abuse of dominance and targets only restrictive agreements. But it does not stop there. The new provision is not only narrower than its predecessor but also than the general prohibition on restrictive agreements found in the Serbian Act on Protection of Competition (the Competition […]
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The Serbian 2009 Protection of Competition Act (as amended in 2013) (the Act) provides for rather low merger control thresholds, compared both to EU law and countries in the region. Thresholds set this low can (and usually do) result in excessive merger control which eventually brings more harm than good to market competition. In order to put an end to this, a change in decisional practice and/or legislative change in regards to this important aspect of merger control is required. The Act provides for rather low merger control thresholds, compared both to EU law and countries in the region. Namely, […]
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In the last 10 days of May 2017, the Commission for Protection of Competition of the Republic of Serbia (hereinafter: the Commission) has decided to roll up its sleeves and put a number of companies suspected of committing competition violations on its conveyor belt. Unusually high number of unannounced inspections – conducted at the premises of B2M d.o.o., Grafo Trade d.o.o., Trgodunav d.o.o., Master Clean Express d.o.o., AD HI Panonija and Frikom d.o.o. – begs a question, why now? By way of comparison, the Commission has used its powers to carry out dawn raids on business premises only six times […]
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On 11 May 2017, Advocate General of the Court of Justice of the European Union, Mr. Maciej Szpunar, issued a landmark opinion on legal qualification of Uber, the US ride hailing app, claiming that, from the perspective of the EU law, Uber should be characterized and treated as a transport company rather than as a mere information technology provider. The question that was posed to the EU highest court and that, according to Advocate General, needs to be assessed on a rather technical level, deals with Uber’s standing within the EU regulatory framework. Although non-binding, the opinion given by the […]
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On April 27, 2017, Advocate General of the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”), Ms. Juliane Kokott, issued an opinion stating that not every creation of joint ventures ought to be under control of the European authorities: only formation of those joint ventures which are to be entirely autonomous, full-function entities should be subject to the official scrutiny. As per words of the opinion’s respected author, said issue, although technical in essence, holds a “practical significance” for national and European watchdogs on the one hand, and market undertakings, on the other, given that it tackles the matter of interpretation […]
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Gecić | Law advised Železara Smederevo and the Government of Serbia on EU, regulatory and corporate matters in connection with the €46 million ($52 million) sale of assets of Železara Smederevo’s through a public tender procedure to the Chinese company Hebei Iron and Steel Company Limited (HBIS). Under the transaction, HBIS pledged to invest at least $300 million in a new company and to utilize the acquired assets to develop its global layout and to provide better service for its customers in Europe. Leading Serbian Steel Manufacturer Železara Smederevo is Serbia’s leading producer of steel and is the second-largest Serbian […]
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The French Court of Cassation, the highest court in French judiciary, referred to the Court of Justice of the European Union (the “ECJ”) for the preliminary ruling certain questions related to interpretation on the intersection between farm policy in France under the Common Agricultural Policy (the “CAP”) and the EU antitrust legislation. The referral stems from the 2012 case in which the French Competition Authority fined 10 growers of endives and seven associations in France with more than 4 million euros for price fixing, managing volumes of endives put on sale and exchange of information. Namely, according to the Article […]
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After the European Commission (the “Commission”) by its decision from 5 October 20141 imposed a fine of more than 38 millions of euros on Slovak Telekom for the abuse of its dominant position on Slovak market for broadband services, Slovak Telekom has come to face damage claims from mobile operators Orange Slovensko and SWAN. The said operators claimed damages they allegedly suffered before Bratislava court, in the amount exceeding 280 million euros on the grounds of the said Commission’s decision that found Slovak Telekom has abused its dominant position. By the same 2014 decision of the Commission, Deutsche Telekom was […]
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A race to the bottom is a socio-economic phrase used to describe a situation in which countries or companies try to compete in order to attract and retain economic activity and the latest data from the Center for Economic Analysis (CEA) in Macedonia suggests that the country is pushing the envelope on its regional counterparts. CEA recently published that seven companies doing business within Macedonian technological industrial development zones have have been granted a total of 56 million euros in state aid. In certain cases, the state aid granted amounted up to 47% of overall value of the investment. Vesna Garvanlieva, CEA […]
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On 1 February 2016 the European Free Trade Organization (“EFTA”) Surveillance Authority has sent a Statement of Objections to Telenor over the possible breach of EEA competition rules in Norway. Telenor now has until 11 April to claim its position regarding the received antitrust charge sheet. Namely, the EFTA Surveillance Authority suspects that Telenor may have abused its dominant position in Norway, by obstructing competitors in three markets related to the provision of mobile communications services to Norwegian users: the market for wholesale mobile access and origination services, the market for mobile broadband services to residential customers, and the market for […]
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On 23 January 2016 the Serbian Government adopted the new Regulation on the Content and Method of Submittal of Request for Issuing of Approval for Proposed Concentration (Official Gazette of RS no. 5/2016 – the “Regulation”) that will be effective as of 2 February 2016. The importance of the new Regulation lies in the fact that it introduces a simplified method for notification of the proposed concentration, harmonizing in that regards the national procedure with the existing EU procedure for notification of concentration. The simplified procedure allows merging undertakings to use a shorter notification form for concentration that are unlikely […]
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On January 22, 2016, Yuriy Terentyev, chairman of the Ukrainian competition watchdog, the Anti-Monopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMCU), took to Facebook to announce that Gazprom, Russia’s state-owned gas enterprise and the exclusive supplier of gas through Ukraine’s transit pipeline, will be fined for the abuse of dominant position in the Ukrainian gas transit market. According to Mr. Terentyev, the AMCU issued a fine of 85 billion hryvnias, or 3.4 billion dollars. No other details were disclosed. Whether or not Gazprom ends up paying said amount, this case is particularly interesting as it represents the first time that a fine was actually levied […]
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We are very pleased to announce that Gecić Law contributed the first-ever Serbia chapter for The International Comparative Legal Guides to Cartels & Leniency. The publication comes at a defining moment in terms of antitrust enforcement in Serbia as the Commission for Protection of Competition (the “Competition Commission”) conducted a number of dawn raids in two ongoing investigations in 2015. This was the first time the Competition Commission invoked such investigative powers since it was established in 2006. We have already published a short guide on dawn raids, available here, in the light of the aforementioned developments, and a standalone piece on […]
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The Commission for Protection of Competition (the “Commission”) opened an ex officio procedure against Philip Morris Services (PM), British American Tobacco South East Europe (BAT), JT International, Imperial Tobacco SCG, TDR1, and Monus, as announced on 1 December 2015.2 This followed two dawn raids against PM and BAT. As indicated in the decision3, the Commission suspects that undertakings involved concerted in order to align their pricing policies for factory manufactured cigarettes, thereby violating Article 10 of the Competition Act (a provision prohibiting restrictive agreements, and mirroring, to considerable extent, Article 101(1) of Treaty on Functioning of the EU – TFEU). This is the first […]
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We are pleased to announce that our partner Bogdan Gecić together with Dr. Tatjana Jovanić, an associate professor at the University of Belgrade Faculty of Law, co-authored the Serbian chapter for Legal Aspects of Doing Business in Europe – Second Edition. The chapter provides a comprehensive overview of most important legal aspects for both domestic and foreign investors and businesses in Serbia. The chapter provides an in-depth analysis of the following topics: Enterprises: Establishment, Acquisition & Bankruptcy Customs Regulation Investment Incentives and Currency Regulation Competition and Market Regulation Intellectual Property Employment Banking The edition is published by Juris Publishing, Inc., a full-service […]
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