Dominant position abuse

The dominant position abuse is a Infraction envisaged by the Droit of competition to sanction a Entreprise, in situation of Domination because of sound To be able of market, which benefits from its position for émanciper of the conditions that should impose to him the Marché.

The behavior of a Entreprise can be sanctioned for dominant position abuse on the base of article 82 of the Traité on the European Community if it affects the trade between the Member States of the European Union.

The control of the Dominant position abuse belongs to the Compétences of execution of the European commission.

The Community legislation of the competition is supplemented by national provisions taken by the Member States of the European Union which ensure the sanction of the dominant position abuse. Thus, in France, the sanction of the dominant position abuse is envisaged by the article L. 420-2 of the Commercial law (Book IV).

The attack with the competition is made up only insofar as one company is in dominant position and that she misuses it.

Domination

The Domination is a de facto situation (v. Article 82) which is defined by the Court of justice of the European Communities by a jurisprudential standard . This standard was given at the origin in the decision United Brands of 1978, taken again by that of Hoffman-Laroche of 1979: " the dominant position aimed to article 82 of the treaty on the European Community relates to the situation of economic power held by a company which gives him the capacity to make obstacle with the maintenance of a effective Concurrence on the Marché in question, by providing him the possibility of independent behaviors with respect to its concurrents".

The dominant position abuse

So that the behavior is the subject of a sanction by a Autorité of competition (or by a Juge), the company must misuse its position.

The abuse is characterized by “the behaviors of a company in dominant position which are likely to influence the structure of the Marché, where, after precisely the position of the company in question, the degree of Concurrence is already weakened, and which causes to make obstacle, by the recourse to means different from those which control the normal competition produced S or service S on the basis of service of the economic operators, with the maintenance of the degree of Concurrence still existing on the Marché or with the development of this Concurrence” CJCE Hoffman-Laroche of 1979.

External bond

Stop of the CJCE of February 14th, 1978

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