The Study On Leniency Program Under Anti-monopoly Law

Monopoly agreements are the most common and most harmfulrestriction of competition behavior of monopolistic behaviors, alwaysbeen the combat focus of all countries’ Anti-monopoly Law. However,the monopoly agreements usually are extremely secretive, whether theAnti-monopoly Law enforcement agencies, or ordinary consumers haveno way of knowing, and this increases the difficulty of antitrustenforcement, in addition to the anti-monopoly law enforcement agencieslimited human, material. The effect to investigate and deal with theagreement is not obvious in long-term. In order to ensure the effectiveinvestigation and prosecution of monopolistic agreements, the UnitedStates’ leniency program was set up in1978. Nearly two decades after theDepartment of Justice Antitrust Division improving and implementing,Anti-monopoly Law leniency program gradually becomes a "carrot andstick" type of rewarding voluntary disclosure of information and timelycooperation and severely punishing monopoly agreement system. Inpractice, the system had a positive effect for the discovery andinvestigation of monopoly agreements. Each country realizes thatleniency program play a positive role in the Anti-monopoly Lawenforcement process and the EU, Australia, Canada, Japan, South Koreaand other countries are gradually establishing leniency program.《The people’s Republic of China Anti-monopoly Law》also introduced leniency program in2008, but only a principled provision, andthe lack of concrete rules for the operation, resulting in practice notpossible. After that, the State Administration for Industry and Commerceand the National Development and Reform Commission have announced《the industrial and commercial administrative organs to investigatemonopoly agreements, abuse of market dominance cases proceduralrequirements》,《the provisions of the administrative department forindustry and commerce Prohibition of Monopoly Agreements》 as well as《anti-price monopoly Chief enforcement procedural requirements》andso on. These regulations refine the application conditions of leniencyprogram, but the relevant provisions are still too principle, lackingfeasible applicable conditions to be further improved.This paper uses comparative analysis, economic analysis, andHistorical Survey research methods, in accordance with the logicalstructure of system overview-evolution-theoretical basis-the applicableconditions-perfection. Striving on the basis of studying theAnti-monopoly Law leniency program systematically and roundly, basedon an objective analysis of the applicable status of China’sAnti-monopoly Law leniency program, this paper makes suggestions forimprovement. This paper first defines the concept of leniency program,clears the application scope of leniency program, and summarizes thesuperiority of leniency program. Secondly, this paper analyzes the theoretical basis of leniency program and cards the development processof leniency program to sort out the theoretical basis for the applicabilityof leniency program. Again, from the subject conditions, time conditions,behavioral conditions, leniency results, this paper analyzes the specificapplication conditions of the United States, the European Union leniencyprogram in order to provide a reference for the perfection of our leniencyprogram. Finally, this paper discusses in depth the applicable status ofChina’s Anti-monopoly Law leniency program and combining withChina’s fact proposes suggestions for improvement.