Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:2012:544
Date: 2012-09-06
Language of the case: French
Subject matter: Competition
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: France

Summary — Judgment of the Court (Second Chamber), 13 December 2012 1. Agreements, decisions and concerted practices — Effect on trade between Member States — Appreciable effect — Criteria for assessment (Art. 101(1) TFEU) 2. Competition — EU rules — Commission Notice on agreements of minor importance which do not appreciably restrict competition — Binding effect on Member States — None (Art. 101 TFEU; Commission Notice 2001/C 368/07) 3. Agreements, decisions and concerted practices — Adverse effect on competition —Criteria for assessment — Anti-competitive object — Sufficient — Distinction between infringements by object and infringements by effect (Art. 101(1) TFEU) 4. Agreements, decisions and concerted practices — De minimis agreements — Application of the EU rules by the national competition authorities — Condition (Art. 101(1), TFEU; Council Regulation No 1/2003, Art. 3(2)) 1. See the text of the decision. (see paras 16-21) 2. See the text of the decision. (see paras 24-31) 3. See the text of the decision. (see paras 35, 36) 4. Articles 101(1) TFEU and 3(2) of Regulation No 1/2003 must be interpreted as not precluding a national competition authority from applying Article 101(1) TFEU to an agreement between undertakings that may affect trade between Member States, but that does not reach the thresholds specified by the European Commission in its notice on agreements of minor importance which do not appreciably restrict competition under Article 81(1) EC (de minimis), provided that that agreement constitutes an appreciable restriction of competition within the meaning of that provision. (see para. 38, operative part)