Pharmaceutical market players support introduction of clear methods for setting fines by antitrust agency

Kyiv, November 10 (Interfax-Ukraine) - Pharmaceutical market players support the introduction of clear methods for calculating fines imposed by the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine for all types of competition law violations.

This support was voiced by participants of a roundtable entitled "Urgent Issues of Protection From Unfair Business Practice on the Pharmaceutical Market," which was held at Interfax-Ukraine on Wednesday.

President of Association for Resistance to Unfair Competition Serhiy Shkliar said that the committee uses a special rule to calculate finds for acquisitions without preliminary agreement with the agency, although there is no similar rule for other types of infringements.

"It's very important that [calculation methods] are created. It's better [to draw them up] not in the form of rules, but in the form of amendments to the law," he said, adding that now the committee can impose fines from UAH 1 to 10% of the annual income of companies, and at present it is difficult to explain the rationale behind imposing a particular sum.

In turn, a counsel at GlaxoSmithKline Ukraine Lana Sinichkina, said that when the procedure for fine calculation is approved, the committee will encourage market players to observe the law.

"Now we don’t understand the scale of the risk… If a clear fine calculation system were created, companies would better understand the risks of certain infringements," she said.

A managing partner of JSC Arzinger Timur Bondaryev said that the settling of the issue is especially important in the context of expansion of the antimonopoly committee's powers.

"We see more and more interest from the committee in business… I think that it could obtain powers comparable to the powers of the tax and customs services… The Antimonopoly Committee is obtaining the kind of powers that their European counterparts have," he said.

In turn, Shkliar said that if the draft law on amendments to the law on the protection of economic competition of December 20, 2010 were made, Antimonopoly Committee representatives would be able to open the premises of companies, withdraw documents and materials, seal premises, and restrict the use of communications systems an PCs.

In addition, he pointed to joint order of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine and Interior Ministry No. 79/470 of July 15, 2011, which foresees the creation of joint working groups to carry out investigations and ongoing information exchanges.

"If the committee does not have additional powers, it will never be able to prove there is collusion… The powers have to be granted, but we hope that the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine will use them wisely," he said.