Cartel Act (CartA)

Introduction KG

The Swiss Antitrust Act is a law that aims to promote and protect competition in Switzerland. It prohibits anti-competitive practices such as cartels, collusion and abuse of a dominant position. The act also regulates merger control to ensure that mergers and acquisitions do not unduly restrict competition. The Antitrust Act is enforced by the Competition Commission (COMCO), which has powers to investigate violations and can impose sanctions if necessary. Companies that violate the Antitrust Law can be fined. Overall, the Antitrust Act serves to ensure fair competition and to protect the interests of consumers.

The articles KG

Art. 1 General Provisions
Art. 2 Scope
Art. 3 Relationship to other statutory provisions
Art. 4 Definitions
Art. 5 Substantive ProvisionsSection 1 Unlawful Restraints of Competition
Art. 6 Categories of agreements affecting competition that are deemed justified
Art. 7
Art. 8 Exceptional authorisation for compelling public interest reasons
Art. 9 Concentrations of Undertakings
Art. 10 Assessment of concentrations
Art. 11 Exceptional authorisation for compelling public reasons
Art. 12 Civil Procedure
Art. 13 Enforcement of the right to elimination and desistance
Art. 14
Art. 15 Assessment of the legality of a restraint of competition
Art. 16
Art. 18 Administrative ProcedureSection 1 Competition Authorities
Art. 19 Organisation
Art. 20 Internal rules of procedure
Art. 21 Decisions
Art. 22 Recusal of members of the Competition Commission
Art. 23 Duties of the Secretariat
Art. 24 Secretariat's staff
Art. 25 Official and business secrets
Art. 26 Investigation of Restraints of Competition
Art. 27 Opening an investigation
Art. 28 Publication
Art. 29 Amicable settlement
Art. 30 Decision
Art. 31 Exceptional authorisation
Art. 32 Review of Concentrations of Undertakings
Art. 33 Investigation procedure
Art. 34 Legal effect
Art. 35 Failure to comply with the notification requirement
Art. 36 Exceptional authorisation procedure
Art. 37 Restoration of effective competition
Art. 38 Revocation and revision
Art. 39 Procedure and Rights of Appeal
Art. 40 Duty to provide information
Art. 41 Administrative assistance
Art. 42 Investigative measures
Art. 42a Investigations in proceedings under the Swiss/EC Air Transport Agreement
Art. 42b Disclosure of data to foreign competition authorities
Art. 43 Participation of third parties in the investigation
Art. 44
Art. 45 Other Duties and Powers of the Competition Authorities
Art. 46 Opinions
Art. 47 Expert reports
Art. 48 Publication of decisions and judgments
Art. 49 Duty to provide information
Art. 49a Administrative Sanctions

Originally before Art. 50.
Art. 50 Breaches of amicable settlements and administrative decisions
Art. 51 Breaches in the context of concentrations of undertakings
Art. 52 Other breaches
Art. 53
Art. 53a Fees
Art. 54 Criminal Sanctions
Art. 55 Other violations
Art. 56 Limitation period
Art. 57 Procedure and legal remedies
Art. 58 Implementation of International Agreements
Art. 59 Elimination of incompatibilities
Art. 59a Evaluation
Art. 60 Final Provisions
Art. 61 Repeal of current legislation
Art. 62 Transitional provisions
Art. 63 Referendum and commencement