CCPC publishes new settlement procedure for competition law investigations
April 23, 2025
The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) has published a new procedure for agreeing settlements in administrative competition law investigations. Since September 2023, the CCPC – through independent adjudication officers – is empowered to find that a business has breached competition law and impose financial sanctions of up to 10% of the business’s annual worldwide turnover or €10 million (whichever is greater). Under the new Settlement Procedure, the CCPC can agree to the imposition of a reduced financial sanction on a business where the business admits to breaching competition law and agrees to a streamlined procedure to conclude the investigation. The CCPC and the business can also agree any actions that the business will be required to take to end the breach or to prevent similar breaches from reoccurring in future.
Commenting on the publication of the Settlement Procedure, Úna Butler, Member of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, said:
“The CCPC’s new Settlement Procedure strengthens our ability to effectively and efficiently enforce competition law in Ireland. It provides a clear framework for businesses to resolve investigations promptly while ensuring that breaches are sanctioned appropriately. This increases the likelihood of reaching swift outcomes, reducing costs for the CCPC and businesses. This allows us to allocate our resources more effectively to promote competitive and open markets in Ireland.”
The introduction of this Settlement Procedure aligns the CCPC with other enforcement authorities in Ireland and internationally. Experience shows that the introduction of a settlement regime enhances efficiency in enforcing competition law, benefitting both enforcers and businesses by achieving quicker outcomes and reducing costs.
The CCPC’s Settlement Procedure can be applied, in principle, to any suspected infringement of competition law where the CCPC has decided to pursue (or is intending to pursue) the new administrative enforcement route in respect of that particular investigation.
The publication of the CCPC’s Settlement Procedure follows a public consultation in 2024 where the CCPC invited interested stakeholders to provide feedback on a draft settlement procedure. During the consultation process, stakeholders commented on various aspects of the CCPC’s proposed approach to settlement such as the conduct of settlement discussions, the obligations placed on businesses under the procedure, and the level of reduction to the financial sanction which may be applied if a settlement is reached. The CCPC considered the input it received from stakeholders prior to adopting the new Settlement Procedure.
View the CCPC’s new Settlement Procedure in full.
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