Products

Competition law is one of the most important areas for business, that significantly affect operations of both large and small companies, and violations of antitrust legislation constitute great risks for businesses and entail impositions of heavy fines.

BGP Litigation Competition Law Practice team helps businesses from various industries, such as agricultural, pharmaceuticals, financial and banking sectors, digital technologies operating in Russia and abroad, resolve antitrust regulation problems. Lawyers advise on the application of anti-monopoly, advertising laws, laws on natural monopolies, foreign Investments in business entities of strategic importance, and public procurement.

The practice lawyers are experienced in representing customer interests before the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service of Russia in cases of violation of anti-monopoly legislation and administrative offenses, challenging decisions of anti-monopoly authorities in court and representing customer interests in arbitration courts, including in cases of abuse of market power, concluding anti-competitive agreements, unfair competition.

In addition, the team conducts anti-monopoly audits, develops anti-monopoly compliance systems, supports approval of mergers and acquisitions with the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service of Russia and Governmental Commission for Control over Foreign Investment in the Russian Federation, as well as obtaining special permit from the President of the Russian Federation in accordance with counter-sanction decrees.

Among competitive advantages of the team is experience in working at the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service of Russia and in leading law firms, participation in legislation issuing, including within the framework of the Association of Anti-Monopoly Experts and expert councils under the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service of Russia, which taken in totality allows for a comprehensive approach to solving various business problems and deeply and comprehensively exploring the customer’s stand.


Services
Audits by FAS Russia
Representation before FAS Russia and in court
Approval of transactions and joint venture agreements
Antimonopoly due diligence
Public procurement
Register of unfair suppliers (RNP)
Antimonopoly compliance and commercial policies
Counselling on advertising law
Training in antimonopoly legislation

Products

We advised:

A major Insurance Company

on issues related to approval by FAS Russia of the first agreement in the Russian Federation on joint activities on the voluntary medical insurance market

A Russian Petroleum Company

on issues related to approval by FAS Russia of six parallel asset-purchase transactions, including preparation of written and verbal opinions on the situation on the relevant commodity markets and potential impact on competition

A Major Russian Pharmaceutical Manufacturer

in connection with the antimonopoly authority preventing unjustified refusal to enter into agreements based on abuse of dominant position

A French Chemical Company

on issues related to approval by FAS Russia and the Government Commission of a transaction to purchase shares in a Russian producer of noble gases

A Czech Pharmaceutical Company

on the legality of restrictions on publication of the client's advertising materials on the Yandex.Direct platform, including liaising with FAS Russia and the advertising distributor

A British Law Firm

in connection with preparation of a memorandum on the need to have a transaction for sale and purchase of shares in a Russian strategic company approved by the antimonopoly authority and the Government Commission

A Major Automobile Manufacturing Corporation

in a dispute with FAS Russia over charges of unfair competition resulting from refusal by a parallel importer to import products bearing the client's trade marks into Russia

A World-Class Helicopter Manufacturer

in connection with analysis of the internal pricing regulation for compliance with the antitrust legislation, legislation on procurement by certain types of legal entity, as well as the state defence procurement programme legislation

A Major Company

engaged in construction, renovation and repair of industrial and civil facilities, in connection with a case on violation of Competition Law, within which a defence strategy was prepared, as well as litigation documents confirming violation by FAS Russia of both substantive and procedural law when initiating and considering the case

A Japanese Automobile Corporation

during the antimonopoly authority's inspection of existing product sales and pricing schemes on the automobile market

A Manufacturer of Diagnostic Reagents and Medical Equipment

in connection with assessment of the existing business model for collaboration with distributors, dealers and individual counterparties to develop a system for minimising and eliminating identified risks (development of a compliance system for collaboration with counterparties)

One of the Biggest Construction Companies

and repair of roads, improvement of new buildings and yard landscaping, as part of an antitrust case on the grounds of entry into an anticompetitive agreement with a government agency

A Major Telecommunications Company

in connection with a judicial appeal in the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation against the FAS Russia decision on a case on violation of the antimonopoly legislation, within which the authority concluded there were no signs in the actions of another telecommunications company of discriminatory conditions being created for the client during provision of zonal call initiation services using access codes to telecommunications services

A Japanese Automotive Corporation

in a dispute with former dealers in a case over having the FAS Russia decision refusing to initiate a case against the client for violating antitrust legislation on the grounds of abuse of dominant position recognised as illegal

Team

Irina Akimova
Partner, attorney, member of the General Council of the Association of Antimonopoly Experts — Competition law