The Commission for Protection of Competition has prepared proposals for four regulations, which it intends to submit to the Government of the Republic of Serbia for adoption, pursuant to the authorities conferred by the Law on Protection of Competition. The proposed legislative acts include the following:

1. Regulation on categories of vertical agreements exempted from the prohibition of restrictive agreements;
2. Regulation on categories of technology transfer agreements exempted from the prohibition of restrictive agreements;
3. Regulation on categories of vertical agreements on repair and maintenance of motor vehicles and agreements on the sale of spare parts in the motor vehicle sector exempted from the prohibition of restrictive agreements; and
4. Regulation on categories of agreements in the railway and road transport sector exempted from the prohibition of restrictive agreements.

The texts of the proposed regulations have been published on the portal https://ekonsultacije.gov.rs/. The Commission invites all market participants, business associations, law firms, experts, and other interested parties to submit their comments, proposals, and suggestions by July 15, 2024, via the eKonsultacije portal.

The Commission for Protection of Competition extends its heartfelt congratulations to the Dean and the team of the University of Belgrade Faculty of Law for their remarkable achievement in securing third place at the prestigious Herbert Smith Freehills Competition Law Moot, an international competition in EU competition law held recently in London.

The competition was held for the tenth consecutive year at the King’s College London Faculty of Law – The Dickson Poon School of Law. In the written phase of the competition, 49 teams from distinguished universities across the globe participated, whereby this year marked the first occasion on which the University of Belgrade Faculty of Law had a representative in this esteemed event.

As a result of their success in the written phase of the competition and their qualification as one of the top 12 teams, the team from the University of Belgrade Faculty of Law, under the mentorship of Assistant Professor Dr. Nikola Ilić and Maja Dobrić from the Commission for Protection of Competition, participated in the oral rounds. Following the first day of the competition, the team was ranked first in their group, achieving a victory over the University of Amsterdam, last year’s runner-up. On the second day of the competition, the team concluded the semifinals with one point fewer than the University of Hong Kong, ultimately securing third place in the overall standings, while the University of Hong Kong was proclaimed the winner of the competition.

The Commission for Protection of Competition of the Republic of Serbia took part in the 23rd Annual Conference of the International Competition Network (ICN), under the auspices of the ICN Secretariat. The conference was held in Sauipe, Brazil, and hosted by Brazil’s competition authority, the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE).
During the conference, Ms. Nina Vasić, LL.M., Senior Advisor in the Department for Legal Affairs and Domestic and International Cooperation at the Commission, participated as a speaker in the panel of the ICN Agency Effectiveness Working Group (ICN AEWG). The panel addressed the topic of effective training and capacity development for competition authorities.

This year’s conference addressed some of the most relevant topics in competition protection, such as combating cartels in the face of socio-economic challenges and digitalization, and the interplay between global markets and local needs in agriculture and food supply. It also featured discussions on the activities of ICN working groups, covering key issues like the abuse of dominant market positions, anti-cartel enforcement, enhancing the effectiveness of competition authorities, and promoting competition advocacy to the public.

The conference brought together approximately 400 participants from 80 countries, including representatives from competition authorities, international organizations, university professors, lawyers, consultants specializing in competition law, and other experts in the field.

The delegation of the Commission for the Protection of Competition of North Macedonia, led by President Ana Nikoloska, visited the Commission for Protection of Competition and held discussions with Council members Čedomir Radojčić and Siniša Milošević.

The discussions primarily focused on bilateral cooperation in the enforcement of competition protection policies and on exploring concrete avenues for enhancing collaboration, as defined by the Memorandum of Understanding and Cooperation in the area of competition policy and law, signed in 2016.

The discussions also encompassed the exchange of experiences between the two institutions in the context of Serbia’s and North Macedonia’s EU accession processes, as well as the continued enhancement of regional cooperation among competition authorities.
The meeting was also attended by Rozana Vankovska, member of the North Macedonian Commission, Jovan Todorov, Head of the State Aid Department of North Macedonia’s CPC, and Mile Uzunovski, Head of the Sector within the Commission for Protection of Competition.

The Commission for Protection of Competition and public prosecutors’ offices held a joint workshop to exchange experiences regarding public procurement procedures in which violations of competition, as stipulated in Article 10 of the Law on Protection of Competition, were identified. This workshop was organized by the Judicial Academy as part of the USAID project aimed at improving public procurement.

The workshop presented and analyzed measures for the protection of competition and the leniency program under the Law on Protection of Competition. It also addressed restrictive agreements and the specifics of administrative procedures related to public procurement, where violations of competition as outlined in Article 10 of the Law on Protection of Competition were identified. Additionally, it covered prosecutorial practices concerning the conditions for criminal prosecution of offenses related to abuse in connection with public procurement under Article 228, paragraph 1, and the conclusion of restrictive agreements under Article 229, paragraph 1, of the Criminal Code and the conditions for optional exemption from penalties as stipulated in Article 229, paragraph 2, of the Criminal Code.

Following discussions at the workshop, conclusions and recommendations were adopted to define the scope and possibilities for collaboration between the Commission for Protection of Competition and the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

The workshop was attended by public prosecutors from Belgrade, Niš, Novi Sad, and Kraljevo, as well as representatives from the Commission for Protection of Competition.