“Prosecution offices have an important role in antitrust cases. They are better equipped to investigate and have higher access to collecting evidence than the Competition Council. It is important to us that we have better investigations and access to evidence obtained by prosecutors. If we are to talk about discouragement, our fines are large but coupled with prison time, the effects would be stronger,” Chiritoiu said.
He added the antitrust authority seeks to raise the level of acceptance of its penalties. While the authority is good at building cases, it has problems when it has to motivate the fines it applies in courts of law.
“We have well-built cases. The Council fares less well in convincing courts of law that the level of the fines it applies is justified. It is also important to collaborate with courts and reach a common understanding of competition rules to discourage excessive litigations in this sector,” Chiritoiu said, adding more than 90% of the fines the antitrust body applies are challenged in court.