Key Benefits:
1340 OF 2009
(July 24)
Official Journal No. 47.420 of 24 July 2009
CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC
By means of which rules on the protection of competition are dictated.
COLOMBIA CONGRESS
DECRETA:
GENERAL PROVISIONS.
ARTICLE 1o. OBJECT. This law aims to update the regulations on the protection of competition in order to adapt it to the current market conditions, to make it easier for users to follow up and optimize the tools with which national authorities count for the fulfilment of the constitutional duty to protect free economic competition in the national territory.
ARTICLE 2o. ACT OF LAW. Add article 46 of Decree 2153 of 1992 with a second paragraph of the following tenor:
The provisions on the protection of competition cover restrictive business practices, this is agreements, acts and abuses of the position of dominance, and the regime of business integrations. The provisions of the rules on protection of competition shall apply in respect of any person who carries out an economic activity or may affect or may affect such development, irrespective of its legal form or nature and in relation to the Conduct that has or may have full or partial effects on national markets, whatever the business or economic sector.
ARTICLE 3o. PURPOSES OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS. 2o. Decree 2153 of 1992 was expressly repealed by Article 19 of Decree 3523 of 2009 > Amend the number 1 of Article 2or of Decree 2153 of 1992 which shall henceforth be as follows:
To ensure compliance with the provisions on protection of competition; to address complaints or complaints by facts that may imply their violation and to process those that are significant to achieve in particular following purposes: the free participation of companies in the market, consumer welfare and economic efficiency.
PARAGRAFO. The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce will take into account the purposes of this article at the moment of resolving the significance of the practice and initiating or not an investigation, without that the trial of the conduct of the conduct is only affected by this fact.
COMPETITION PROTECTION REGIME.
ARTICLE 4. APPLICABLE REGULATIONS. Law 155 of 1959, Decree 2153 of 1992, this law and the other provisions that modify or add them, constitute the general regime of protection of competition, applicable to all sectors and all economic activities. In case there are particular rules for certain sectors or activities, they will prevail exclusively on the specific subject.
ARTICLE 5o. APPLICATION OF THE GENERAL SYSTEM OF COMPETITION IN THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR. For the purposes of the paragraph of Article 1 of Law 155 of 1959, consider it as a basic sector of interest for the general economy, the agricultural sector. In this respect, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall issue a prior, binding and reasoned concept concerning the authorisation of agreements and conventions aimed at stabilising that sector of the economy.
NATIONAL AUTHORITY ON THE PROTECTION OF COMPETITION.
ARTICLE 6o. NATIONAL COMPETITION AUTHORITY. The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce will know in a private way of the administrative investigations, impose fines and adopt other administrative decisions by infringement of the provisions on protection of competition, as well as with regard to the administrative oversight of compliance with the provisions on unfair competition.
PARAGRAFO. For compliance with this objective, government entities in charge of regulation and control and surveillance on all sectors and economic activities will provide technical support to them. required by the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce.
ARTICLE 7o. COMPETITION LAW. 2o. Decree 2153 of 1992 was expressly repealed by Article 19 of Decree 3523 of 2009 > In addition to the provisions enshrined in Article 2or Decree 2153 of 1992, the Superintendence of Industry and Trade may give prior concept to state regulatory projects which may have an impact on free competition in the markets. For these purposes, the regulatory authorities shall inform the Superintendency of Industry and Commerce of the administrative acts intended to be issued. The concept issued by the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce in this regard will not be binding. However, if the respective authority deviates from such a concept, it must express in an express manner within the considerations of the decision the reasons for which it departs.
ARTICLE 8o. NOTICE TO OTHER AUTHORITIES. On the opportunity provided for in article 10 4) of this law, or, in the case of an investigation, within ten (10) days of its commencement, the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce shall communicate such facts to the regulatory and control and surveillance entities competent according to the sector or sectors involved. The latter may, if they consider it, issue their technical concept in relation to the case brought to their attention within 10 (10) days of receipt of the communication and without prejudice to the possibility of taking action, either ex officio or at the request of the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce, at any time of the respective performance. The concepts issued by the authorities concerned must be given in the framework of the legal provisions applicable to situations that are being aired and will not be binding on the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce. However, if the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce deviates from that concept, it must express, in an express manner within the considerations of the decision, the legal or economic reasons for its decision.
PARAGRAFO. The Civil Aviation Special Administrative Unit shall retain its competence for the authorisation of all commercial operations between aircraft operators consisting of code contracts shared, joint exploitation, use of aircraft in chartering, exchange and space blockade on aircraft.
BUSINESS INTEGRations.
ARTICLE 9o. CONTROL OF BUSINESS INTEGRATION. Article 4 of Law 155 of 1959 will thus remain:
Companies that engage in the same economic activity or participate in the same value chain, and which meet the following conditions, will be required to report to the Superintendency of Industry and Commerce on the operations that project to be carried out for the purpose of merging, consolidating, acquiring control or integrating whatever the legal form of the planned operation:
1. When, as a whole or individually, they have had during the fiscal year prior to the operation projected operating income greater than the amount that, in current monthly legal minimum wages, has established the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce, or
2. When, at the end of the fiscal year preceding the planned operation, total assets in excess of the amount which, in current monthly legal minimum wages, have been established by the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce.
In events where the stakeholders comply with either of the above two conditions but together with less than 20% relevant market, the operation shall be deemed to be authorised. For the latter case, only the Industry and Commerce Superintendence of this operation should be notified.
In the processes of integration or business reorganization in which the entities monitored by the Financial Superintendence of Colombia participate exclusively, it will know and decide on the origin of these operations. In these cases, the Financial Superintendence of Colombia will have the obligation to require prior to the adoption of the decision, the analysis of the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce on the effect of these operations in the free competition. The latter may suggest, if necessary, conditions to ensure the preservation of effective competition on the market.
PARAGRAFO 1o. The Industry and Commerce Superintendence shall establish the operational revenue and assets to be taken into account as provided for in this Article during the year immediately preceding that year. in which the forecast is to be taken into account and cannot change those values during the year in which they are to be applied.
PARAGRAFO 2o. When the Superintendent refrains from objecting to an integration but points to conditions, these must meet the following requirements: Identify and isolate or eliminate the anticompetitive effect that it would produce the integration, and implement the structural remedies with regard to such integration.
PARAGRAFO 3o. The integration operations in which the interveners credit that they are in a Business Group situation in the terms of Article 28 of Law 222 of 1995, whatever the legal form they adopt, they are exempt from the duty of prior notification to the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce.
ARTICLE 10. ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE IN CASE OF BUSINESS INTEGRATIONS. For the purpose of obtaining the prior pronouncement of the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce in relation to a projected integration operation, the following will be followed procedure:
1. The interested parties shall submit to the Superintendency of Industry and Commerce an application for a preliminary assessment, accompanied by a summary report showing their intention to carry out the business integration operation and the conditions under which the basic of the same, in accordance with the instructions issued by the single competition authority.
2. Within three (3) days following the submission of the previous report and unless it has sufficient elements to establish that there is no obligation to report the transaction, the Superintendency of Industry and Commerce will order the publication of an advertisement in a newspaper of broad national circulation, so that within ten (10) days of publication, the information that can provide useful elements for the analysis of the operation is provided to that entity. projected. The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce shall not order the publication of the notice when it has sufficient elements to establish that there is no obligation to inform the operation, when the interveners of the operation, for reasons of order public, by reasoned written request that the same stay in reserve and this request is accepted by the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce.
3. Within thirty (30) days following the submission of the information referred to in the numeral 1 of this Article, the competition authority shall determine the provenance of continuing with the authorisation procedure or, if it finds that there are no substantial risks to competition that may arise from the operation, to be terminated and to be free of charge.
4. If the procedure continues, the competition authority shall communicate it to the authorities referred to in Article 8or to this law and to the persons concerned, who shall, within fifteen (15) days, the following, the totality of the information required in the guides issued for the purpose by the competition authority, in complete and reliable form. The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce will be able to request that it be supplemented, clarified or explain the information to be made. In the same way, interested parties may propose actions or behaviors to be followed in order to neutralize the possible anticompetitive effects of the operation. Within the same term, interested parties may be able to know the information provided by third parties and to issue it.
5. If three (3) months after the date on which the parties concerned have completed the whole of the information the operation has not been objected or conditioned by the competition authority, it shall be deemed to have been authorised.
6. The inactivity of those interested in more than (2) months at any stage of the procedure will be considered as withdrawal of the application for authorization.
ARTICLE 11. CONDITIONAL APPROVAL AND OBJECTION OF INTEGRATIONS. The Superintendent of Industry and Commerce shall object to the operation when it finds that it tends to produce an undue restriction on free competition. However, it may authorise it to be subject to conditions or obligations where, in its judgment, there are sufficient grounds to consider that such conditions are appropriate to ensure the effective preservation of competition. In the event where an integration operation is approved under conditions the single competition authority shall regularly monitor compliance with them. Failure to comply with the conditions under which the operation is submitted shall give rise to the penalties provided for in this law upon application of the relevant charges. The recidivism in such behavior will be causal for the Superintendent to order the reversal of the operation.
ARTICLE 12. EXCEPTION OF EFFICIENCY. amend Article 51 of Decree 2153 of 1992, which will remain so:
The national competition authority may not object to a business integration if the stakeholders demonstrate within the respective process, with studies based on methodologies of recognised technical value that the beneficial effects of the Operation for consumers exceeds the potential negative impact on competition and that such effects cannot be achieved by other means.
This event will have to accompany the commitment that the beneficial effects will be transferred to the consumers.
The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce will be able to refrain from objecting to an integration when independent of the participation in the national market of the integrated company, the conditions of the external market guarantee the free competition in the national territory.
PARAGRAFO 1o. When the competition authority refrains from objecting to an enterprise integration operation with sustenance in the application of the efficiency exception, the authorization will be considered subject to the conduct of the data subjects, which must be consistent with the arguments, studies, tests and commitments submitted to request the application of the efficiency exception. The authority may require the granting of guarantees to support the seriousness and the fulfilment of the commitments thus acquired.
PARAGRAFO 2o. In development of the function provided for in Article 2o of Decree 2153 of 1992, the competition authority may issue the instructions that specify the elements to be taken into account for the analysis and assessment of the studies submitted by the data subjects.
ARTICLE 13. ORDER FOR THE REVERSAL OF A BUSINESS INTEGRATION OPERATION. Without prejudice to the imposition of penalties for infringement of the rules on competition protection, the competition protection authority may, on the basis of the investigation, determine the origin of the order for the reversal of a business integration operation when the transaction was not informed or was performed before the completion of the term that the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce had for rule, if it is determined that the operation carried out carried out an undue restriction on free competition, or where the transaction was objected to or when the conditions under which it was authorised are not met.
In this virtue, if the administrative investigation carried out by the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce shows the origin of ordering the reversal of the operation, its corresponding reversal will be carried out.
RESTRICTIVE COMPETITION PRACTICES.
ARTICLE 14. BENEFITS IN COLLABORATION WITH THE AUTHORITY. The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce may grant benefits to natural or legal persons who have participated in a conduct that violates the rules of protection of competition, in (a) to inform the competition authority of the existence of such conduct and/or to cooperate with the provision of information and evidence, including the identification of the other participants, even if the competition authority is already find the appropriate action ahead. The above, according to the following rules:
1. The benefits may include the total or partial exemption from the fine imposed on you. The benefits of the instigator or promoter of the conduct shall not be accessible.
2. The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce shall establish whether there is a place for profit and shall determine them according to the quality and usefulness of the information provided, taking into account the following factors:
(a) The effectiveness of the collaboration in the clarification of the facts and in the repression of the conduct, understanding in collaboration with the authorities the supply of information and evidence that allow to establish the existence, modality, duration and effects of the conduct, as well as the identity of those responsible, their degree of participation and the benefit obtained with the unlawful conduct.
b) The opportunity for authorities to receive collaboration.
ARTICLE 15. RESERVATION OF DOCUMENTS. Those investigated for the alleged conduct of a restrictive practice of competition may request that information concerning business secrets or other information in respect of which there is a legal standard of reservation or confidentiality to be supplied within the investigation, has a reserved character. To do so, they must submit, together with the content of the information on which they request the reservation, a non-confidential summary of the reservation. The competition authority shall in such cases include the summaries in the public file and open another file, of a reserved nature, in which the full documents shall be included.
PARAGRAFO 1o. The disclosure in all or part of the contents of the reserved files shall constitute a serious disciplinary failure for the responsible official, without prejudice to the other penalties laid down in the law.
PARAGRAFO 2o. 159 of Decree 19 of 2012. The new text is as follows: > The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce may at the request of the complainant or the applicant for benefits in collaboration keep in reserve the identity of those who report restrictive practices of the competition, where there are risks to the complainant in the sole jurisdiction of the complainant for commercial retaliation on account of the complaints made.
ARTICLE 16. OFFERING SUFFICIENT GUARANTEES FOR THE EARLY TERMINATION OF AN INVESTIGATION. Additional Article 52 of Decree 2153 of 1992 with a paragraph 1o of the following tenor:
In order for an investigation for violation of restrictive business practice rules to be terminated early on the basis of guarantees, the investigation will be required to present its offer before the end of the term granted by the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce to request or provide evidence. If the guarantees are accepted, the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce shall, in the same administrative act for which the closure of the investigation be ordered, indicate the conditions under which it will verify the continuity of the performance of the obligations. acquired by the investigated.
Failure to comply with the obligations arising from the acceptance of the guarantees in respect of this Article is considered to be an infringement of the rules on the protection of competition and will give rise to the penalties provided for in the law upon application of the explanations required by the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce.
PARAGRAFO. The competition authority will issue the guidelines setting out the criteria on the basis of which it will analyze the adequacy of the obligations that the investigated would acquire, as well as the way in which These can be guaranteed.
MENTAL PROVISIONS.
ARTICLE 17. PUBLICATION OF ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS. 156 of Decree 19 of 2012. The new text is as follows: > The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce will publish on its website the administrative actions listed below and will also order the publication of a notice in a regional circulation journal or national, depending on the circumstances, and at the expense of the investigated or interested parties, as appropriate, in which it is reported about:
1. The start of an authorization procedure for an integration operation, as well as the conditioning imposed on a business integration process. In the latter case, once the corresponding administrative act is signed.
2. The opening of an investigation for infringements of the rules on competition protection, as well as the decision to impose a penalty, once the corresponding administrative acts are signed.
3. The guarantees accepted, when their publication is considered by the authority as necessary to support the fulfilment of the commitments made by the stakeholders.
ARTICLE 18. PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES. Amend the number 11 of Article 4or of Decree 2153 of 1992, which will be as follows:
The competition authority may, as a precautionary measure, order the immediate suspension of conduct which may be contrary to the provisions of the competition protection rules, provided it is deemed not to be Such measures put at risk the effectiveness of an eventual sanctioning decision.
ARTICLE 19. THIRD PARTY INTERVENTION.
157 of Decree 19 of 2012. The new text is as follows: > Competitors, consumers or, in general, the one who accredits a direct and individual interest in investigations for restrictive commercial practices of the competition, will have the character of interested third parties and In addition, within the fifteen (15) working days after the publication of the opening of the research on the website of the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce, to intervene contributing the considerations and tests that they intend to make It is necessary for the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce to make a statement in one direction or another.
Accredited consumer leagues and associations will be understood as interested third parties.
The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce will give the investigation to those investigated, as provided by the third parties through an administrative act, in which it will also set a term for the investigations to be made on them. No third party shall have access to the documents in the file under reservation.
The request to terminate the investigation by offering guarantees will be transferred to the third parties recognized by the term that the Superintendence considers appropriate.
PARAGRAFO. Addition to the third indent of Article 52 of Decree 2153 of 1992 which will henceforth be as follows: " The investigation will be presented to the Superintendent a reasoned report regarding whether there has been an infringement. The report shall be forwarded to the investigation and to the third parties concerned, if any. "
ARTICLE 20. ACTS OF PROCEDURE. For the purposes of the provisions of Article 49 of the Administrative Code Administrative Code all acts that are issued in the course of the administrative actions of the protection of competition is a matter of procedure, with the exception of the act which denies evidence.
ARTICLE 21. VICES AND OTHER IRREGULARITIES IN THE PROCESS. The vices and other irregularities which may be presented in an investigation by restrictive practices of the competition, will be made by sound if they are not alleged before the start of the transfer to the investigated in the report referred to in paragraph 3 of Article 52 of Decree 2153 of 1992. If they occur after this transfer, they must be alleged within the term established for the purpose of bringing an action for replacement against the administrative act which puts an end to administrative action.
Where defects or other irregularities in the process are alleged, the authority may decide on them at any stage of the process, or in the same act as an end to administrative action.
ARTICLE 22. MONITORING CONTRIBUTION. The monitoring activities carried out by the competition authority on the basis of the acceptance of guarantees for the closure of the investigation for alleged restrictive practices of competition and of the the authorisation of a business integration operation conditional on the fulfilment of particular obligations by the parties concerned shall be subject to the payment of an annual monitoring contribution in favour of the institution.
Annually, the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce will determine, by resolution, the rates of contributions, which may be different depending on the follow-up of commitments arising from the termination of investigations by the offering guarantees or the monitoring of obligations for conditional integrations. The fees shall be determined by weighting the sum of the current assets of the previous fiscal year of the undertakings subject to monitoring during that period against the operating costs of the institution for development. of the monitoring work during the same period and may not exceed one per thousand of the current assets of each undertaking subject to follow-up. That contribution shall be settled in accordance with the following rules:
1. The value of the current assets of the previous fiscal year of the company subject to follow-up shall be used.
2. The contribution will be calculated by multiplying the rate by the total current assets of the previous fiscal year.
3. The contributions shall be settled annually, or in proportion to the case, for each undertaking subject to follow-up.
ARTICLE 23. NOTIFICATIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS. 158 of Decree 19 of 2012. The new text is as follows: > The decisions of the opening of the investigation, the one that ends the action and the one that decides the resources of the governmental way, must be notified personally.
If no personal notification is made after five (5) days of the sending of the summons, it shall be made by means of a notice to be sent to the address, to the fax number or to the e-mail appearing in the file or to the obtained from the trade register, accompanied by a full copy of the administrative act. The notice must indicate the date and the date of the act notified, the authority that issued it, the legal remedies, the authorities to whom they must be brought, the respective time limits and the warning that the notification is shall be deemed to be stocked at the end of the day following the delivery of the notice at the place of destination.
When the information about the recipient is not known, the notice, with full copy of the administrative act, will be published on the electronic page and in any case in a place of access to the public of the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce by the Five (5) days, with the warning that the notification shall be deemed to be taken at the end of the day following the withdrawal of the notice.
The file shall be recorded as a reference or publication of the notice and of the date on which the personal notification is hereby dispensed.
The other administrative acts which are issued in the course of the procedures provided for in the protection regime of the competition shall be communicated to the address provided for these purposes by the investigation or proxy and, in the absence of she, to the physical or e-mail address appearing in the commercial register of the investigation.
Electronic notifications will be subject to the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Code and Administrative Contentious.
ARTICLE 24. PROBABLE AND LEGITIMATE DOCTRINE. The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce will have to compile and update periodically the implementing decisions to be taken in the actions of protection of the competition. Three uniform executed decisions against the same subject constitute probable doctrine.
SANCTIONING REGIME.
ARTICLE 25. AMOUNT OF FINES TO LEGAL PERSONS. Article 15 (15) of Article 4or Decree 2153 of 1992 shall be as follows:
For violation of any of the provisions on protection of competition, including the failure to comply in due form with requests for information, orders and instructions to be issued, obstruction of investigations, failure to comply with obligations to report a business integration transaction or those arising from its approval under conditions or termination of an investigation for acceptance of warranties, to impose, for each violation and to each In addition, the Commission has not yet been able to make a decision on this issue. 100,000 minimum monthly wages in force or, if it turns out to be higher, up to 150% of the utility derived from the offender's conduct.
For the purposes of graduating the fine, the following criteria will be taken into account:
1. The impact the conduct has on the market.
2. The size of the market concerned.
3. The benefit obtained by the offender with the conduct.
4. The extent of involvement of the involved.
5. The procedural conduct of the investigated.
6. The market share of the infringing company, as well as the share of its assets and/or its sales involved in the infringement.
7. The Heritage of the infringer.
PARAGRAFO. It will be aggravation circumstances for the purposes of the penalty graduation. The existence of an infringement, the existence of a history in relation to infringements of the system of protection of competition or the failure to comply with commitments acquired or orders from the competition authorities; acted as a leader, instigator or in any form promoting the conduct. The collaboration with the authorities in the knowledge or in the investigation of the conduct will be circumstance of attenuation of the sanction.
ARTICLE 26. AMOUNT OF THE FINES TO NATURAL PERSONS. Article 16 (16) of Article 4or Decree 2153 of 1992 shall be as follows:
" Impose any person who collaborates, facilitates, authorizes, executes or tolerates acts of violation of the rules on the protection of competition referred to in Law 155 of 1959, Decree 2153 of 1992 and rules that supplement or modify it, fines up to the equivalent of two thousand (2,000) minimum monthly legal salaries in force at the time of the imposition of the penalty, in favor of the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce.
For the purposes of graduating the fine, the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce will take into account the following criteria:
1. Persistence in infringing conduct.
2. The impact the conduct has on the market.
3. The reiteration of the prohibited conduct.
4. The procedural conduct of the investigation, and
5. The degree of involvement of the person involved.
PARAGRAFO. The payments of the fines that the Superintendency of Industry and Commerce imposes under this article, cannot be covered or insured or in general guaranteed, directly or by person, by the legal person to whom the natural person was bound when he incurred the conduct; neither by the parent company or subordinate undertakings of the natural person; nor by the undertakings belonging to the same business group or subject to the same control of that.
ARTICLE 27. EXPIRY OF THE SANCTIONING POWER. The power of the competition protection authority to impose a penalty for the violation of the competition protection regime shall lapse five (5) years after the expiry of the executed the violative conduct or the last fact constitutive of the same in the cases of the conduct of the successive tract, without the administrative act sanctioning has been notified.
Complementary PROVISIONS.
ARTICLE 28. PROTECTION OF COMPETITION AND PROMOTION OF COMPETITION. The powers assigned to the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce by this law relate exclusively to the functions of protection or defence of competition in the all sectors of the economy.
The rules on restrictive practices in competition, and in particular those relating to the control of business integration operations, do not apply to rescue and public trust institutes ordered by the Commission. Financial superintendence of Colombia and decisions for its execution and fulfillment.
ARTICLE 30. Facultate the National Government so that within the six (6) months following the validity of this law, the administrative structure of the Superintendence of Industry and Trade to the new responsibilities as a single competition authority, as well as its budgetary regime for provisions on monitoring rights and fines contained in this law.
ARTICLE 31. STATE INTERVENTION. The exercise of State intervention mechanisms in the economy, following the mandate provided for in Articles 333 and 334 of the Political Constitution, constitutes a restriction of the right to competence in the terms of the intervention. These are State intervention mechanisms that restrict the application of the provisions of this law, the price stabilization funds, the Parafiscal Funds for Agricultural Promotion, the establishment of minimum prices for guarantee, the regulation of the internal markets of agricultural products provided for in Decree 2478 of 1999, the agreements of chain in the agricultural sector, the Regime of Safeguards, and the other mechanisms provided for in Laws 101 of 1993 and 81 of 1988.
ARTICLE 32. EXTERNAL SITUATIONS. The State may intervene when external or external situations arise from domestic producers, which affect or distort competition conditions in the markets for domestic products. To be done, such intervention will be carried out through the Ministry of the competent branch, through the implementation of measures that compensate or regulate the conditions of the markets guaranteeing the equity and the competitiveness of the production national.
ARTICLE 33. TRANSITIONAL. TRANSITION REGIME. The surveillance and control authorities to which the law has exceptionally attributed specific powers in the field of restrictive practices of competition and/or prior control of business integrations, continue to exercise such powers for the six (6) months following the validity of this law, in accordance with the following points.
The investigations that at the end of the term established in the previous paragraph are in progress in the matter of restrictive practices of the competition will continue to be handled by those authorities. Other complaints and preliminary investigations in the field of restrictive practices in competition should be transferred to the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce.
Information about business integration projects submitted to other authorities before the end of the same term will be processed by the authority to which the application is based. However, before the decision is made, the respective authority shall hear the concept of the Superintendent of Industry and Commerce.
ARTICLE 34. VALIDITY. This law governs from its publication and repeals other provisions that are contrary to it.
The President of the honorable Senate of the Republic,
HERNAN FRANCISCO ANDRADE SERRANO.
The Secretary General of the honorable Senate of the Republic,
EMILIO RAMON OTERO DAJUD.
The President of the honorable House of Representatives,
GERMAN MALE COTRINO.
The Secretary General of the honorable House of Representatives,
JESUS ALFONSO RODRIGUEZ CAMARGO.
COLOMBIA-NATIONAL GOVERNMENT
Publish and comply.
Dada in Bogotá, D. C., on July 24, 2009.
ALVARO URIBE VELEZ
The Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism,
LUIS GUILLERMO SILVER PAEZ.
The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development,
ANDRES DARIO FERNANDEZ ACOSTA.
