COMPETITION • FRENCH LAW • RESTRICTIVE AGREEMENTS
Disparagement, initially an act of unfair competition, may constitute an anticompetitive practice subject to the jurisdiction of the Competition Authority when it is implemented in a concerted manner by several undertakings in order to discredit a competitor. However, in order to fall within the scope of Article L. 420-1 of the Commercial Code, the disparagement must not only result from an agreement likely to affect the operation of the market, but must also have all the characteristics required by civil case law, in particular the absence of objectivity. Thus, statements that merely objectively convey the positions taken by the administrative authorities in charge of product health and safety, as well as the results of studies conducted by various scientific committees, which are verifiable and comply with the legal provisions in force, cannot lead to a conviction.
