OREANDA-NEWS. September 17, 2009. The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia) summed up work undertaken on applying the leniency programme for participation in competition-restricting agreements and concerted actions (the Notes to Article 14.32 of the Code of Administrative Violations), reported the press-centre of FAS Russia.

Under the leniency programme, economic entities that voluntarily reported to an antimonopoly body about entering into anticompetitive agreements and refused to participate in them and gave evidence about the cartel, are fully relieved from administrative liability.

Within a year, around 500 companies took advantage of the leniency programme.

Among them are the largest financial companies, leading producers of food products, large retail chains and the champions of the telecommunication markets, as well as regional oil companies, bakery plants in several provinces, wood-processing companies, and manufacturers of cash-register equipment.

FAS Russia expresses confidence that in the new legal environment the leniency programme will also be popular among the business community and will render beneficial effects на development of fair competition in the Russian economy.

Earlier all companies that participated in a cartel and approached FAS Russia were able to take advantage of the leniency programme. With amendments to the Code on Administrative Violations (CoAV) coming into force in August 2009, only the first company to report to FAS Russia will be relieved from liability for participating in competition-restricting agreements and concerted actions. Other cartel members will face "turnover fines", and from the end of October - also criminal charges.

Reference:
The Notes to Article 14.32 of CoAV. A person that voluntarily reported to the federal antimonopoly authority or its regional body about entering in a competition-restricting agreement, forbidden by the antimonopoly legislation of the Russian Federation, or on exercising competition-restricting concerted actions forbidden by the antimonopoly legislation of the Russian Federation, and refused to participate or further participate in such concerted actions and presented available information (data) to ascertain the fact of such an agreement or such concerted actions, is relieved from administrative liability for an administrative violation provided for by this Article.