Comments on a bill modifying Antitrust Law No 25,156

This is not a new project, but the reintroduction of a previous one, by the same author, that had been voted on by the House of Representatives in 2006[1], but had not been passed.

The project proposes the creation of the role of a “Competition Prosecutor” who would participate in every antitrust investigation. The existing Consumers’ Protection Agency (Subsecretaría de Defensa del Consumidor) would carry out this function, protecting the “interest of consumers” and would have the following powers:

(i)            to report any infringement of the Antitrust Law, offer and produce evidence, present final pleadings and appeal imposed sanctions;

(ii)           to be part of any investigation; to be heard in all economic concentrations analyzed by the Authorities, and to have its opinion expressly taken into account by the Authorities;

(iii)           to request preventative measures.

Likewise, acting with the local authorities indicated in Article 41 of the Consumer Protection Act (e.g. the Government of the City of Buenos Aires and the Provinces), the Competition Prosecutor may:

(i)            request the Antitrust Tribunal to start an investigation when it sees clear indications of antitrust activities in any market;

(ii)           promote the enactment of regulations and public policies that defend competition and consumers’ rights.

It is too early to know if the bill will be passed, since despite its parliamentary record, the bill will have to complete all the steps in both Chambers. But, due to the importance the amendment of the law will have on Antitrust Law procedures, we think it necessary to report it.