Member Article

Global Competition Review (GCR) publishedThe European, Middle Eastern and African Antitrust Review 2019. The “Israel Overview” chapter was written by FBC’s Tal Eyal-Boger, Ziv Schwartz and Shani Brown.

Recent years have been characterised by a trend for strengthening the position of the Israeli Antitrust Authority (IAA); increasing administrative enforcement and criminal enforcement, as well as the focus of the IAA on its advisory capacity within the government; and increasing civil ‘follow-on’ class actions against international cartels. The IAA also continued to promote a comprehensive reform to The Restrictive Trade Practices Law, including suggested changes of substantive matters as well as procedure and terminology.

The Restrictive Trade Practices Law, 5748-1988 (the Law) is the primary law dealing with antitrust issues in Israel and its objective is
to prevent harm to competition or the public. The Law contains the substantive rules that apply to the various restrictive trade practices
(restrictive arrangements; mergers; monopolies; concerted groups). In addition, the Law encompasses rules concerning the structure
and the powers of the Israeli Antitrust Authority (the IAA), the director general of the IAA (the Director General) and the Antitrust
Tribunal (the Tribunal), as well as procedural rules that apply to cases brought before each of them. Recent years have been characterised by a trend for strengthening the position of the IAA; increasing administrative enforcement, criminal enforcement as well as the focus of the IAA on its advisory capacity within the government; and increasing civil ‘follow-on’ class actions against international cartels. The IAA also continued to promote in the previous year a comprehensive reform to the Law, including suggested changes of substantive matters as well as procedure and terminology.

Restrictive arrangements control regime

Definition
Section 2(a) of the Law defines a restrictive arrangement as an arrangement, between persons (including legal entities) conducting business, according to which at least one of the parties restricts itself in such manner that might prevent or reduce competition between
the person and the other parties to the arrangement, or any of them, or between the person and a third party. Section 2(b) of the Law
also provides conclusive presumptions that an arrangement involving a restraint will be deemed to be a restrictive arrangement if it
relates to:

• the price to be demanded offered or paid;
• the profit to be obtained;
• market allocation; and
• the quantity, quality or type of assets or services in the business.

Please find a PDF copy of the Israel Overview here