Economic Evidence in Cartel
Investigation
by Andrey Zakataev
Of Counsel
Investigations Based on Economic Evidence
 Economic
process
analysis is crucial for screening
 If
investigation is based on economic evidence
the outcome depends on the thorough
understanding of the market
 Issues
of relying on leniency evidence
Defendants in Cartel Cases
 Lack
access to entirety of information
 Lack
understanding of what constitutes an
offense
 Suffer
from ‘calculated’ leniency
applications
Bid rigging cases in pharma market
(2012)
Distributors of pharmaceuticals didn’t show up for the
auctions where they applied for bidding
 Out of 4 decisions 2 were upheld by the court and 2
were overturned

+
Circumstantial evidence (sub-contracts between
winners)
-
Lack of thorough market analysis (exclusive input of
product did not allow for competitive bidding)
Locating the Actual Agreement
 Economic
analysis in cartel cases is weak at
answering the question when and how the parties
arrived at agreement
 Cases
involving the concept of implicit
agreement