J. Sroczyński for WuW No. 12/1998 – Changes to the regulations governing mergers

 Proposed amendments of the Antimonopoly Law were released by the Government to the Parliament. The most important changes pertain to the merger regulation and include an elimination of the first notification threshold, i.e., 10% votes acquired at the shareholders’ meeting of another undertaking. As a result, only the three currently existing notification thresholds would remain (25%, 33% and 50%). The combined turnover threshold is planned to be increased from the present ECU 5 million to ECU 25 million. In addition, the ECU 2 million threshold applicable in case of assets acquisitions shall be raised to ECU 5 million. Transformations of undertakings would no longer be subject to an antimonopoly clearance. In view of the existing legal doubts, it was proposed to clearly define the statute of limitation for non compliance with the obligations to file merger notifications. The statute of limitation would extend to five years calculated from the date on which the notification was due.

The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection declared to undertake all efforts enabling the Polish Parliament to adopt  a package of laws which would allow for a full harmonization in 1999 of Polish consumer laws with the legislation of the European Union.

The Antimonopoly Court ruled that the District Council of Advocates committed monopolistic practices, refusing to admit an advocate to practice in Wrocław. The Antimonopoly Court has confirmed that advocates’ councils should be treated as ”unions” for purposes of the Antimonopoly Law, and as such are qualified to commit acts contrary to the rules of competition.

J. Sroczyński, Wirtschaft und Wettbewerb. Developments in national competition law, No. 12/1998.