CJEU Case C-857/19 / Judgment

Slovak Telekom a.s. v Protimonopolný úrad Slovenskej republiky
Policy area
Competition
Deciding body type
Court of Justice of the European Union
Deciding body
Court (Eighth Chamber)
Type
Decision
Decision date
25/02/2021
ECLI (European case law identifier)
ECLI:EU:C:2021:139
  • CJEU Case C-857/19 / Judgment

    Key facts of the case:

    Request for a preliminary ruling from the Najvyšší súd Slovenskej republiky.

    Reference for a preliminary ruling – Competition – Article 102 TFEU – Abuse of a dominant position – Division of competences between the European Commission and the national competition authorities – Regulation (EC) No 1/2003 – Article 11(6) – National competition authorities relieved of their competence – Principle ne bis in idem – Article 50 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

     

    Outcome of the case:

    On those grounds, the Court (Eighth Chamber) hereby rules:

    1. The first sentence of Article 11(6) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2003 of 16 December 2002 on the implementation of the rules on competition laid down in Articles [101 and 102 TFEU] must be interpreted as meaning that the competition authorities of the Member States are relieved of their competence to apply Articles 101 and 102 TFEU in the case where the European Commission initiates proceedings for the purposes of adopting a decision finding an infringement of those provisions in so far as that formal act relates to the same alleged infringements of Articles 101 and 102 TFEU, committed by the same undertaking or undertakings on the same product market or markets and the same geographical market or markets during the same period or periods as those concerned by the proceeding or proceedings previously brought by those authorities.
    2. The principle ne bis in idem, as enshrined in Article 50 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, must be interpreted as meaning that it applies to infringements of competition law, such as the abuse of a dominant position referred to in Article 102 TFEU, and precludes an undertaking from being found liable or proceedings from being brought against it afresh on the grounds of anticompetitive conduct for which it has been penalised or declared not liable by an earlier decision that can no longer be challenged. By contrast, that principle does not apply where proceedings are brought against or sanctions imposed on an undertaking separately and independently by a competition authority of a Member State and the European Commission for infringements of Article 102 TFEU relating to separate product markets or separate geographical markets, or where a competition authority of a Member State is relieved of its competence pursuant to the first sentence of Article 11(6) of Regulation No 1/2003.
  • Paragraphs referring to EU Charter

    1) This request for a preliminary ruling concerns the interpretation of the first sentence of Article 11(6) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2003 of 16 December 2002 on the implementation of the rules on competition laid down in Articles [101 and 102 TFEU] (OJ 2003 L 1, p. 1) and of Article 50 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (‘the Charter’).

    ...

    19) In those circumstances the Najvyšší súd Slovenskej republiky (Supreme Court of the Slovak Republic) decided to stay the proceedings and to refer the following questions to the Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling:

    1. 'Does the phrase “shall relieve the competition authorities of the Member States of their competence to apply Articles [101 and 102 TFEU” in the first sentence of Article 11(6) of Regulation No 1/2003] mean that the authorities of the Member States lose their powers to apply Articles [101 and 102 TFEU]?
    2. Does Article 50 (Right not to be tried or punished twice in criminal proceedings for the same criminal offence) of the [Charter] also apply to administrative offences consisting of the abuse of a dominant position within the meaning of Article 102 [TFEU] for which the Commission and the authority of a Member State have imposed sanctions separately and independently in the exercise of their competence under Article 11(6) of [Regulation No 1/2003]?’

    ...

    39) By its second question, the referring court asks, in essence, whether the principle ne bis in idem, as enshrined in Article 50 of the Charter, must be interpreted as meaning that it applies to infringements of competition law, such as the abuse of a dominant position referred to in Article 102 TFEU, where those infringements are sanctioned separately and independently by the Commission and by a competition authority of a Member State in the exercise of their competences under Article 11(6) of Regulation No 1/2003.

    40) In that regard, it should be recalled that the principle ne bis in idem is a fundamental principle of EU law (judgment of 15 October 2002, Limburgse Vinyl Maatschappij and Others v Commission, C‑238/99 P, C‑244/99 P, C‑245/99 P, C‑247/99 P, C‑250/99 P to C‑252/99 P and C‑254/99 PEU:C:2002:582, paragraph 59). That principle has also been laid down in Article 50 of the Charter as regards criminal proceedings and penalties.

    ...

    48) Consequently, the answer to the second question is that the principle ne bis in idem, as enshrined in Article 50 of the Charter, must be interpreted as meaning that it applies to infringements of competition law, such as the abuse of a dominant position referred to in Article 102 TFEU, and precludes an undertaking from being found liable or proceedings from being brought against it afresh on the grounds of anticompetitive conduct for which it has been penalised or declared not liable by an earlier decision that can no longer be challenged. By contrast, that principle does not apply where proceedings are brought against or sanctions imposed on an undertaking separately and independently by a competition authority of a Member State and the Commission for infringements of Article 102 TFEU relating to separate product markets or separate geographical markets, or where a competition authority of a Member State is relieved of its competence pursuant to the first sentence of Article 11(6) of Regulation No 1/2003.