Practice

Consultations on investigation initiated before the Commission for Protection of Competition regarding alleged violation of Bulgarian law on protection of competition and EU law in the distribution of expensive medicine

Our client is one of the leading wholesalers of medicinal products in the country. Another wholesaler filed a request to the Commission for Protection of Competition for conducting a check regarding an eventual violation of the Bulgarian law on protection of competition by our client and by one of the leading manufacturers in the global market of medicinal products concerning the dissemination of an expensive medicine in Bulgaria. The claims were filed for a breach of the Bulgarian competition law and art. 101 from TFEU. The law firm advised the client in preparing the required by the Commission for Protection of Competition information and documents in the case, and in the preparation for the future protection in the case. Currently the Commission for Protection of Competition is carrying out a preliminary study.

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Connection with other practices: Competition Law

Consultations on the order of the contracting authority for ranking a participant in a public procurement, who has offered a price that does not cover the production costs

Our client was involved in a public procurement procedure whereit was ranked second. The successful tender had offered a price that does not cover the production costs. This behavior had already been sanctioned as violating the rules for the implementation of fair competition by a decision of the Commission for Protection of Competition in 2012. Our team advised the client about the legality of the conducted public procurement. An analysis was made in order to take action before the Commission for Protection of Competition in connection with the failure to comply with the Commission’s decision issued under the Law on Protection of Competition.

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Connection with other practices: Competition Law

Defense before the Commission for Protection of Competition on the occasion of an addressed signal against a competitor of our client for unfair competition, comparative and misleading advertising

The Law Firm consults one of the main importers of a famous brand cosmetic product. We assisted our client with filing a signal in front of the Commission for Protection of Competition for unfair competition, comparative and misleading advertising on behalf of a competitor. The signal was filed because the competitor sold its stores a cosmetic product, for which our client is the exclusive distributor and which was not purchased from our client. Additionally, the competitor had placed the name and address of our client on the label of the product that was purchased from another distributor. As a result of the defense of our client, the unlawful practices were significantly limited..

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Consultations on investigation of alleged manipulation of tenders

Our team advised a client in connection with the initiated by the Commission for Protection of Competition investigation into an alleged manipulation of tenders. The check involved examining the behavior of the participants in several large public procurement contracts. The representation of the client continues in 2014 before a three-member panel of the Supreme Administrative Court.

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Connection with other practices: Litigation, Competition Law

Consultations on unfair trade practices in procedures for the award of public contracts

Our team represents a client in combined proceedings before the Commission for Protection of Competition on cross-claims of the parties for unfair trade practices in procedures for the award of public procurement contracts. The behavior of three of the competitors of our client in the public procurement procedures and the information they provided in the documentation preparation for participation in procedures for the award of public contracts were examined. The representation of our client continued in 2013 before a five-member panel of the Supreme Administrative Court.

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Connection with other practices: Litigation, Competition Law

Advice in relation to proceedings before the Commission for Protection of Competition in connection with charges of offering services at prices below the cost of production and marketing

Our team advised a client in connection with several proceedings before the Commission for Protection of Competition concerning alleged execution of services at fees below the cost of realization. At our request, the majority of the participants in the relevant market were involved in the combined proceedings. In 2013 the representation of the client continued before a five-member panel of the Supreme Administrative Court. Key for the dispute were the findings that our client and the other competitors provide two different groups of users with two interconnected yet different types of services, while the product market includes all goods and services that can be accepted by consumers as interchangeable in terms of their characteristics, price and intended use. Based on this, it could be concluded that the provision of this specific service forms two distinct but vertically linked markets.

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Connection with other practices: Litigation, Competition Law

Protection before the Commission for Protection of Competition and the annulment of a decision of a contracting authority under a public procurement because of lacking motivation in the act of selecting a contractor

We advised a client in relation to an appeal of the award of a public procurement contract on the basis of the contracting authority’s lack of motives for selecting a contractor. The Supreme Administrative Court upheld the decision of the CPC for annulment of the decision of the contracting authority and ordered the continuation of the tender from the stage of examination, evaluation and justification of the technical proposals of the participants.

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Connection with other practices: Litigation

Consultations regarding a filed signal to the Commission for Protection of Competition on the occasion of alleged unlawful market concentration between companies due to sale of assets and transfer of staff and clients from a competitor company to our client

Our team consulted a client regarding alleged unlawful concentration proceedings before the Commission for Protection of Competition due to sale of assets and transfer of staff and customers from a competitor company to our client. In 2013 the case was resolved and the allegations of infringements of competition law were denied by the Commission for Protection of Competition.

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Connection with other practices: Competition Law

Representation of the contracting authority in an appeal of a procedure regarding public procurement

Our team was engaged with the representation of a contracting authority before the Supreme Administrative Court in relation to an appeal of a procedure concerning the award of a contract for the development of information technologies aimed at improving the administrative services provided by the entity.

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Connection with other practices: Litigation

Consultations on proceedings before the Commission for Protection of Competition concerning alleged concerted practices between competitors and sharing of "sensitive information"

Our team consulted a client in connection with initiated by him proceedings before the Commission for Protection of Competition and the Supreme Administrative Court in the field of prohibited agreements and concerted practices. The claims were for the sharing "sensitive information" between competitors, which created a risk of coordinated behavior of three of the competitors of our client. Additionally, this posed the risk of the competitors combining their efforts in providing a service together, which would put these companies in terms of advantage over the other companies that carry out the service on their own. The proceedings covered complex issues of antitrust law and the request to seek a preliminary ruling by the European Court of Justice.

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Connection with other practices: Litigation, Competition Law

Consultations on the lack of clarity and transparency in the bids evaluation in a tender procedure

We represented a client before the Commission for Protection of Competition in an appeal of the award of a contract on the grounds of lack of clarity and transparency in the evaluation of the bids in the procedure. As a result of the initiated proceedings, the Commission for Protection of Competition ruled on the returning of the procurement procedure to the stage of review and assessment of tenders.

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Connection with other practices: Litigation

Consultations regarding alleged inconsistencies in the bid of a participant in a public procurement procedure with the set by the contracting entity requirements

Our team advised a client in connection with an appeal of the decision of the contracting authority in a procedure for public procurement before the Commission for Protection of Competition and the Supreme Administrative Court. The appeal was based on the grounds of alleged inconsistencies in the bid of the bidder with the requirements that were set by the contracting authority.

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Connection with other practices: Litigation, Competition Law

Consultations on initiated proceedings before the Commission for protection of Competition in connection with allegations of unfair trade practices in the distribution of promotional videos on Bulgarian television

Our team was engaged by one of the producers of snacks in Bulgaria on the occasion of initiated proceedings before the Commission for Protection of Competition to investigate allegedly unfair trade practices in the distribution of promotional videos on Bulgarian television. The case included also a request addressed to the Supreme Administrative Court to stop the immediate execution of the decision of the Commission for Protection of Competition, by which the broadcasting of commercials of our client’s products had been stopped. The client’s products enjoy great popularity among consumers and the case had large media coverage.

Practice: Administrative Procedures and Public Procurement

Connection with other practices: Litigation, Competition Law