Waselius & Wist Navigation
  • Our team
  • In Focus
    • Recent Work
    • News
    • Legal Updates
    • Publications
    • Rankings
    • Blog
    • Newsletter
  • About Us
    • Corporate Social Responsibility
  • Expertise
    • Banking and Finance
    • Capital Markets
    • Corporate and Commercial
    • Corporate governance and Investigations
    • Data Protection
    • Dispute Resolution
    • Employment and Incentives
    • Energy and Natural Resources
    • EU and Competition
    • Financial Regulatory and Compliance
    • Insurance
    • Intellectual Property and Technology
    • Marketing
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Private Equity
    • Real Estate
    • Restructuring and Insolvency
    • Tax and Structuring
  • Careers
    • Lawyers
    • Law students
    • Support staff
    • Open Positions
    • Contact
  • Contact
  • Our team
  • In Focus
    • Recent Work
    • News
    • Legal Updates
    • Publications
    • Rankings
    • Blog
    • Newsletter
  • About Us
    • Corporate Social Responsibility
  • Expertise
    • Banking and Finance
    • Capital Markets
    • Corporate and Commercial
    • Corporate governance and Investigations
    • Data Protection
    • Dispute Resolution
    • Employment and Incentives
    • Energy and Natural Resources
    • EU and Competition
    • Financial Regulatory and Compliance
    • Insurance
    • Intellectual Property and Technology
    • Marketing
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Private Equity
    • Real Estate
    • Restructuring and Insolvency
    • Tax and Structuring
  • Careers
    • Lawyers
    • Law students
    • Support staff
    • Open Positions
    • Contact
  • Contact
In Focus
Home In Focus The Supreme Administrative Court of Finland significantly increased penalty payments imposed on several companies in the bus cartel case

Legal Updates05.11.2019

The Supreme Administrative Court of Finland significantly increased penalty payments imposed on several companies in the bus cartel case

On 20 August 2019, the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland (the “SAC”) gave its decision regarding the so-called bus cartel case in Finland.

The Market Court had already in 2017 found several bus companies, the Finnish Bus and Coach Association and Matkahuolto, which is a service and marketing company promoting bus and coach services in Finland, (the “cartel participants”) to have formed a cartel.

In its ruling, the SAC stated that the cartel participants committed competition infringement by excluding certain new scheduled services on Matkahuolto’s scheduling, ticketing and parcel services after the market had been opened up to competition. The purpose of the cartel was therefore to systematically impede the opening of the bus market to competition, thereby harming consumers in the form of weakened price and quality competition.

The SAC imposed penalty payments of EUR 8.9 million in total to the cartel participants. As an example, Matkahuolto was imposed a fine amounting to EUR 4.3 million and one of the bus companies EUR 2.3 million. By way of comparison, the Market Court had earlier ordered each of the cartel participants to pay EUR 100,000 as a penalty payment. The increase of the amount of fines was therefore significant in respect of several cartel participants.

According to the SAC, the decision of the Market Court regarding the penalty payments had to be amended on the grounds of equal treatment. In accordance with SAC’s reasoning, the imposition of the same amount of penalty on different sized economic entities without providing sufficient reasons was contrary to the principle of equal treatment of the parties.

The SAC also considered the Finnish Bus and Coach Association to be a separate legal entity from the companies involved although the bus companies, which are members of the Finnish Bus and Coach Association, contribute to the financing of the association by paying membership fees, for example. The SAC therefore did not consider the imposition of fines on the Finnish Bus and Coach Association to violate the ne bis in idem principle.

For further information, please contact:

Lotta Pohjanpalo

Partner

Share:
Image

Contact info

Eteläesplanadi 24 A
00130 Helsinki, Finland

+358 9 668 9520
+358 9 668 95 222
ww@ww.fi

Quick links

  • Our Team
  • In Focus
  • About Us
  • Expertise
  • Careers

E-invoicing

E-address: 003710525214
Operator: Apix Messaging Oy
Service ID: 003723327487


BUSINESS ID 1052521-4
VAT ID FI10525214

Legal notice
Privacy notice
General Terms and Conditions

© 2023 Waselius & Wist

This website uses cookies to compile statistical data on the use of our website in order to enable us to evaluate and improve our site. OK Decline Cookie Policy
Manage Cookies

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are as essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT