Features and grounds of legal liability for abuse of monopoly (dominant) position in the market

Abstract

Introduction. Issues of legal liability for abuse of monopoly (dominant) position in the market are quite relevant in connection with the dynamic development of legislation, as well as given the active law enforcement practice of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine. In the current conditions, the necessary guarantee of stable development and functioning of domestic commodity markets and economic entities operating in them is the effective counteraction to the negative manifestations of monopoly. Among modern types of violations of the legislation on protection of economic competition by business entities, abuse of monopoly (dominant) position in the market is quite common. The purpose of the paper is to investigate the features and grounds for legal liability for abuse of monopoly (dominant) position in the market. Results. The criteria and conditions of monopoly position of business entities in a certain market are shown. The types of actions that constitute an abuse of the monopoly (dominant) position in the market and the types of prohibitions of this abuse are indicated. The results are summarized and the main directions of work of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine are outlined. Important aspects of prosecution for violation of the legislation on protection of economic competition and the process of determining the monopoly (dominant) position of the subject in the market are highlighted. The most common types of abuse of monopoly (dominant) position in the market and the relevant types of legal liability are considered. The grounds for legal liability for abuse of monopoly position in the market, the object and subject of this offense are identified. Conclusion. The abuse of monopoly (dominant) position in the market should be considered as actions or omissions of the economic entity that holds a monopoly (dominant) position in the market, which have led or may lead to the prevention, elimination or restriction of competition. For committing an offense in the form of abuse of monopoly (dominant) position, the legislation provides for the application of legal liability of the following types: economic, legal and administrative, which can be applied in the form of fines and compulsory division. The basis for legal liability for abuse of monopoly position in the market is the establishment of factual, legal and procedural grounds. The purpose of legal liability for abuse of monopoly (dominant) position in the market is to prevent such negative manifestations in the economic sphere as unfair competition. Continuous development and improvement of legislation on protection of economic competition in combination with economic and organizational measures contributes to the creation of unified system and effective mechanism for combating the abuse of monopoly (dominant) position in the market, including through prosecution. The key function of the Antimonopoly Committee is not to fill the budget with fines, but to effectively protect economic competition, including through active advocacy for competition in Ukraine.