ENFORCEMENT

Section 31. Fact Finding; Preliminary Inquiry

The Commission, motu proprio, or upon the filing of a verified complaint by an interested party or upon referral by a regulatory agency, shall have the sole and exclusive authority to initiate and conduct a fact-finding or preliminary inquiry for the enforcement of this Act based on reasonable grounds.

The Commission, after considering the statements made, or documents or articles produced in the course of the fact-finding or preliminary inquiry, shall terminate the same by:

(a) Issuing a resolution ordering its closure if no violation or infringement of this Act is found; or

(b) Issuing a resolution to proceed, on the basis of reasonable grounds, to the conduct of a full administrative investigation.

The Commission, after due notice and hearing, and on the basis of facts and evidence presented, may issue an order for the temporary cessation or desistance from the performance of certain acts by the respondent entity, the continued performance of which would result in a material and adverse effect on consumers or competition in the relevant market.

If the evidence so warrants, the Commission may file before the DOJ criminal complaints for violations of this Act or relevant laws for preliminary investigation and prosecution before the proper court. The DOJ shall conduct such preliminary investigation in accordance with the Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure.

The preliminary inquiry shall, in all cases, be completed by the Commission within ninety (90) days from submission of the verified complaint, referral, or date of initiation by the Commission, motu proprio, of the same.

Except as provided in Section 12(i) of Chapter II of this Act, no law enforcement agency shall conduct any kind of fact-finding, inquiry or investigation into any competition-related matters.

Section 32. Relationship With Sector Regulators. – The Commission shall have original and primary jurisdiction in the enforcement and regulation of all competition-related issues.

The Commission shall still have jurisdiction if the issue involves both competition and noncompetition issues, but the concerned sector regulator shall be consulted and afforded reasonable opportunity to submit its own opinion and recommendation on the matter before the Commission makes a decision on any case.

Where appropriate, the Commission and the sector regulators shall work together to issue rules and regulations to promote competition, protect consumers, and prevent abuse of market power by dominant players within their respective sectors.

Section 33. Power to Investigate and Enforce Orders and Resolutions. – The Commission shall conduct inquiries by administering oaths, issuing subpoena duces tecum and summoning witnesses, and commissioning consultants or experts. It shall determine if any provision of this Act has been violated, enforce its orders and carry out its resolutions by making use of any available means, provisional or otherwise, under existing laws and procedures including the power to punish for contempt and to impose fines.

Section 34. Confidentiality of Information. – Confidential business information submitted by entities, relevant to any inquiry or investigation being conducted pursuant to this Act as well as any deliberation in relation thereto, shall not, in any manner, be directly or indirectly disclosed, published, transferred, copied, or disseminated. Likewise, the Commission shall, to the extent possible, subject such information to the confidentiality rule provided under this section when it issues notices, bulletins, rulings and other documents: Pi’ovided., That the confidentiality rule shall not apply if the notifying entity consents to the disclosure, or the document or information is mandatorily required to be disclosed by law or by a valid order of a court of competent jurisdiction or of a government or regulatory agency, including an exchange. The identity of the persons who provide information to the Commission under condition of anonymity, shall remain confidential, unless such confidentiality is expressly waived by these persons.

Any violation of this provision shall be imposed a fine of not less than one million pesos (PI,000,000.00) but not more than five million pesos (P5,000,000.00).

Section 35. Leniency Program

The Commission shall develop a Leniency Program to be granted to any entity in the form of immunity from suit or reduction of any fine which would otherwise be imposed on a participant in an anti-competitive agreement as provided in Section 14(a) and 14(b) of this Act in exchange for the voluntary disclosure of information regarding such an agreement which satisfies specific criteria prior to or during the fact-finding or preliminary inquiry stage of the case.

Immunity from suit will be granted to an entity reporting illegal anti-competitive activity before a fact-finding or preliminary inquiry has begun if the following conditions are met:

(a) At the time the entity comes forward, the Commission has not received information about the activity from any other source;

(b) Upon the entity’s discovery of illegal activity, it took prompt and effective action to terminate its participation therein;

(c) The entity reports the wrongdoing with candor and completeness and provides full, continuing, and complete cooperation throughout the investigation; and

(d) The entity did not coerce another party to participate in the activity and clearly was not the leader in, or the originator of, the activity.

Even after the Commission has received information about the illegal activity after a fact-finding or preliminary inquiry has commenced, the reporting entity will be granted leniency, provided preceding conditions (b) and (c) and the following additional requirements are complied with:

(1) The entity is the first to come forward and qualify for leniency;

(2) At the time the entity comes forward, the Commission does not have evidence against the entity that is likely to result in a sustainable conviction; and

(3) The Commission determines that granting leniency would not be unfair to others.

Such program shall include the immunity from any suit or charge of affected parties and third parties, exemption, waiver, or gradation of fines and/or penalties giving precedence to the entity submitting such evidence. An entity cooperating or furnishing information, document or data to the Commission in connection to an investigation being conducted shall not be subjected to any form of reprisal or discrimination. Such reprisal or discrimination shall be considered a violation of this Act subject to the sanctions provided in this Act.

Nothing in this section shall preclude prosecution for entities that report to the Commission false, misleading, or malicious information, data or documents damaging to the business or integrity of the entities under inquiry as a violation of said section. An entity found to have reported false, misleading or malicious information, data, or document may be penalized by a fine not less than the penalty imposed in the section reported to have been violated by the entity complained of.

The DOJ-OFC may likewise grant leniency or immunity as provided in this section in the event that there is already a preliminary investigation pending before it.

Section 36. Nolo Contendere. – An entity charged in a criminal proceeding pursuant to Section 14(a) and 14(b) of this Act may enter a plea of Nolo Contendere, in which he does not accept nor deny responsibility for the charges but agrees to accept punishment as if he had pleaded guilty. The plea cannot be used against the defendant entity to prove liability in a civil suit arising from the criminal action nor in another cause of action: Provided, That a plea of Nolo Contendere may be entered only up to arraignment and subsequently, only with the permission of the court which shall accept it only after weighing its effect on the parties, the public and the administration of justice.

Section 37. Non-Adversarial Remedies. — As an implementing and enforcement policy, the Commission shall, under such rules and regulations it may prescribe, encourage voluntary compliance with this Act and other competition laws by making available to the parties concerned the following and other analogous non-adversarial administrative remedies, before the institution of administrative, civil or criminal action:

(a) Binding Ruling. — Where no prior complaint or investigation has been initiated, any entity that is in doubt as to whether a contemplated act, course of conduct, agreement, or decision, is in compliance with, is exempt from, or is in violation of any of the provisions of this Act, other competition laws, or implementing rules and regulations thereof, may request the Commission, in writing, to render a binding ruling thereon: Provided, That the ruling is for a specified period, subject to extension as may be determined by the Commission, and based on substantial evidence.

In the event of an adverse binding ruling on an act, course or conduct, agreement, or decision, the applicant shall be provided with a reasonable period, which in no case shall be more than ninety (90) days, to abide by the ruling of the Commission and shall not be subject to administrative, civil, or criminal action unless the applicant fails to comply with the provisions of this Act;

(b) Show Cause Order. — Upon preliminary findings motu proprio or on written complaint under oath by an interested party that any entity is conducting its business, in whole or in part in a manner that may not be in accord with the provisions of this Act or other competition laws, and it finds that the issuance of a show cause order would be in the interest of the public, the Commission shall issue and serve upon such entity or entities a written description of its business conduct complained of, a statement of the facts, data, and information together with a summary of the evidence thereof, with an order requiring the said entity or entities to show cause, within the period therein fixed, why no order shall issue requiring such person or persons to cease and desist from continuing with its identified business conduct, or pay the administrative fine therein specified, or readjust its business conduct or practices;

(c) Consent Order. – At any time prior to the conclusion by the Commission of its inquiry, any entity under inquiry may, without in any manner admitting a violation of this Act or any other competition laws, submit to the Commission a written proposal for the entry of a consent order, specifying therein the terms and conditions of the proposed consent order which shall include among others the following:

(1) The payment of an amount within the range of fines provided for under this Act;

(2) The required compliance report as well as an entity to submit regular compliance reports;

(3) Payment of damages to any private party/parties who may have suffered injury; and

(4) Other terms and conditions that the Commission deems appropriate and necessary for the effective enforcement of this Act or other Competition Laws:

Provided, That a consent order shall not bar any inquiry for the same or similar acts if continued or repeated;

(d) Monitoring of Compliance. – The Commission shall monitor the compliance by the entity or entities concerned, their officers, and employees, with the final and executory binding ruling, cease and desist order, or approval of a consent judgment. Upon motion of an interested party/parties, the Commission shall issue a certification or resolution to the effect that the entity or entities concerned have, or have not, as the case may be, complied with a final and executory ruling, order, or approval.

(e) Inadmissibility of Evidence in Criminal Proceedings. – The request for a binding ruling, the show cause order, or the proposal for consent order; the facts, data, and information therein contained or subsequently supplied by the entity or entities concerned; admissions, oral or written, made by them against their interest; all other documents filed by them, including their evidence presented in the proceedings before the Commission; and the judgment or order rendered thereon; shall not be admissible as evidence in any criminal proceedings arising from the same act subject of the binding ruling, show cause order or consent order against such entity or entities, their officers, employees, and agents.

Section 38. Contempt. — The Commission may summarily punish for contempt by imprisonment not exceeding thirty (30) days or by a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand pesos (P 100,000.00), or both, any entity guilty of such misconduct in the presence of the Commission in its vicinity as to seriously interrupt any hearing, session or any proceeding before it, including cases in which an entity willfully fails or refuses, without just cause, to comply with a summons, subpoena or subpoena duces tecum legally issued by the Commission being present at a hearing, proceeding, session or investigation, refused to be sworn as a witness or to answer questions or to furnish information when lawfully required to do so.

Section 39. Appeals of the Decisions of the Commission. – Decisions of the Commission shall be appealable to the Court of Appeals in accordance with the Rules of Court. The appeal shall not stay the order, ruling or decision sought to be reviewed, unless the Court of Appeals shall direct otherwise upon such terms and conditions it may deem just. In the appeal, the Commission shall be included as a party respondent to the case.

Section 40. ‘Writ of Execution. – Upon the finality of its binding ruling, order, resolution, decision, judgment, or rule or regulation, collectively, the Commission may issue a writ of execution to enforce its decision and the payment of the administrative fines provided in the preceding sections.

Section 41. Basic Necessities and Prime Commodities. – If the violation involves the trade or movement of basic necessities and prime commodities as defined by Republic Act No. 7581, as amended, the fine imposed by the Commission or the courts, as the case may be, shall be tripled.

Section 42. Immunity from Suit. – The Chairperson,the Commissioners, officers, employees and agents of the Commission shall not be subject to any action, claim or demand in connection with any act done or omitted by them in the performance of their duties and exercise of their powers except for those actions and omissions done in evident bad faith or gross negligence.

Section 43. Indemnity. – Unless the actions of the Commission or its Chairperson, any of its Commissioners, officers, employees and agents are found to be in willful violation of this Act, performed with evident bad faith or gross negligence, the Commission, its Chairperson, Commissioners, officers, employees and agents are held free and harmless to the fullest extent permitted by law from any liability, and they shall be indemnified for any and all liabilities, losses, claims, demands, damages, deficiencies, costs and expenses of whatsoever kind and nature that may arise in connection with the exercise of their powers and performance of their duties and functions.

The Commission shall underwrite or advance litigation costs and expenses, including legal fees and other expenses of external counsel, or provide legal assistance to its Chairperson, Commissioners, officers, employees, or agents in connection with any civil, criminal, administrative or any other action or proceeding, to which they are made a party by reason of, or in connection with, the exercise of authority or performance of duties and functions under this Act: Provided, That such legal protection shall not apply to any civil, criminal, administrative, or any action or proceeding that may be initiated by the Commission, against such Chairperson, Commissioners, officers, employees, or agents: Provided, further, That the Chairperson, Commissioners, officers, employees, or agents, who shall resign, retire, transfer to another agency or be separated from the service, shall continue to be provided with such legal protection in connection with any act done or omitted to be done by them in good faith during their tenure or employment with the Commission: Provided, finally, That in the event of a settlement or compromise, indemnification shall be provided only in connection with such matters covered by the settlement as to which the Commission is advised by counsel that the persons to be indemnified did not commit any negligence or misconduct.

The costs and expenses incurred in defending the aforementioned action, suit or proceeding may be paid by the Commission in advance of the final disposition of such action, suit or proceeding upon receipt of an undertaking by or on behalf of the Chairperson, Commissioner, officer, employee, or agent to repay the amount advanced should it ultimately be determined by the Commission that one is not entitled to be indemnified as provided in this section.

Section 44. Jurisdiction of the Regional Trial Court. – The Regional Trial Court of the city or province where the entity or any of the entities whose business act or conduct Constitutes the subject matter of a case, conducts its principal place of business, shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction, regardless of the penalties and fines herein imposed, of all criminal and civil cases involving violations of this Act and other competition-related laws. If the defendant or anyone is charged in the capacity of a director, officer, shareholder, employee, or agent of a corporation or other juridical entity who knowingly and willfully authorized the commission of the offense charged, the Regional Trial Court of the city or province where such corporation or juridical entity conducts its principal place of business, shall have jurisdiction.

Section 45. Private Action. – Any person who suffers direct injury by reason of any violation of this Act may institute a separate and independent civil action after the Commission has completed the preliminary inquiry provided under Section 31.