Pecuniary penalties imposed on undertakings within the EU competition policy

Abstract

The European internal market allows people and businesses to circulate freely in the 28 member states. The possibility of companies to compete equally and fairly is guaranteed by European Union (EU) competition policy. These rules encourage companies to be more efficient. The present study provides an overview of the discussion of relevant issues with these objectives: describing the creation and development of EU’s competition policy and characterise the importance of the role played by the European Commission in this area in addition to examining the imposition of pecuniary sanctions on companies. Is at issue the application of the rules in the Treaty on the functioning of the EU and Regulation No 1/2003? In conclusion, it was verified that the system adopted by the EU shows some fragility in the defence of the fundamental rights of companies.