– Several important legal amendments
The law commission, which includes NHH researcher Linda Orvedal, has submitted the official report on the Competition Act.
The Competition Act
- The purpose of the Competition Act is to promote competition in order to ensure the efficient use of society’s resources.
- The Act prohibits cooperation that restricts competition and prohibits the abuse of a dominant position.
- Administrative responsibility lies with the Norwegian Competition Authority, which has the power to impose significant fines for violations of the Act’s prohibitions.
When the commission was established in September 2024, the task was clear: a full review of how the Competition Act can be modernised.
Needs modernisation
It has been 20 years since the Competition Act entered into force, and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries wants it updated. The ministry therefore appointed a new law commission consisting of several legal and economic experts, chaired by lawyer Kristin Hjelmaas Valla.
Today, Minister of Trade and Industry Cecilie Myrseth received the NOU on the Competition Act.
Associate Professor Linda Orvedal from the Department of Economics at NHH has been a member of the expert commission. She highlights three proposals that she considers particularly important.
Cartels and leniency
`The commission proposes strengthening the leniency programme. The leniency programme allows companies that have participated in cartel activity and come clean to avoid penalties,´ Orvedal says.
The strengthening consists of allowing companies that receive full leniency to also avoid civil damages claims. The remaining cartel members will continue to be jointly liable for any private lawsuits.
In addition, the commission proposes immunity from criminal liability for individuals in companies that receive full leniency.
Merger cases
Another proposal from the expert group is legal amendments ensuring that the Competition Authority gains faster access to more information in merger cases.
`This enables the authority to clear mergers more quickly, or allows the parties to propose remedies earlier in the process,´ Orvedal says.
They also propose strengthening case processing through additional mechanisms for checks and balances.
The commission believes these measures will contribute to faster case handling while safeguarding legal certainty and ensuring more effective enforcement.