MOLDOVA Trends and Developments Contributed by: Ina Jimbei, Efrim Rosca & Associates
ment decisions concerning the petroleum products and sunflower oil markets are currently under judi - cial review, while the earlier fertilisers investigation, decided more than six years ago, has yet to be finally resolved in its entirety. One practical aspect observed in some of these pro - ceedings is that appeals lodged by different undertak - ings against the same Competition Council decision have not always been examined within a single set of proceedings. As a result, courts may examine sepa - rate challenges to the same administrative decision independently. While this approach is consistent with the procedural autonomy of each claimant, it may also prolong the overall resolution of the dispute and delay the emergence of a final and consistent judicial inter - pretation of the Competition Council’s findings. From the perspective of businesses, judicial review therefore represents more than a procedural safe - guard; it is an integral part of competition enforcement, particularly in cases involving complex factual assess - ments, economic evidence and substantial financial penalties. At the same time, the gradual development of judicial practice will play an important role in provid - ing greater legal certainty regarding the interpretation and application of Moldovan competition law. As competition cases become more complex, the role of the courts in reviewing the Competition Council’s decisions is likely to become increasingly significant. The body of judicial decisions that will emerge from these cases is expected to contribute to a more pre - dictable enforcement framework for both the Compe - tition Council and the business community. Private Enforcement: A Framework in Development Compared to public enforcement, private enforce - ment of competition law remains at an early stage of development in the Republic of Moldova. Although the Competition Law recognises the right of persons harmed by anti-competitive conduct to seek compen - sation, private damages actions have so far played only a marginal role in competition litigation. To date, there is little publicly available case law concerning either standalone or follow-on antitrust damages claims.
This, however, is expected to evolve as part of Mol - dova’s broader EU accession process. One of the key legislative initiatives currently under way is the prepa - ration of a dedicated law on actions for damages for infringements of competition law, aimed at transpos - ing Directive 2014/104/EU (the “EU Damages Direc - tive”). Once adopted, the new legislation is expected to establish a comprehensive legal framework for private antitrust enforcement by introducing specific rules on issues such as the disclosure of evidence, the evidentiary value of final infringement decisions, limi - tation periods, joint and several liability, the passing- on defence and the quantification of harm. The adoption of this legislation is likely to represent an important step towards achieving a better balance between public and private enforcement. While public enforcement by the Competition Council will undoubt - edly remain the principal enforcement mechanism, the implementation of the EU Damages Directive should create greater legal certainty for potential claimants and facilitate the gradual development of private anti - trust litigation. Whether these legislative changes will result in a sig - nificant increase in damages actions will ultimately depend on the evolution of judicial practice and the willingness of market participants to rely on private enforcement as a complementary mechanism for pro - tecting their rights. Nevertheless, the ongoing legis - lative reform demonstrates that the development of private enforcement has become an integral part of Moldova’s competition law agenda in the context of EU approximation. Increasing Focus on Compliance and Preventative Enforcement One of the most notable recent developments in Moldova’s competition law landscape is the growing attention paid by businesses to competition compli - ance. Although the Competition Law has long prohib - ited anti-competitive agreements and abuses of domi - nance, compliance programmes have traditionally not been a priority for many undertakings operating in the Moldovan market. In practice, competition law issues were often addressed only after the initiation of an investigation or in the context of a merger notification.
119 A NTITRUST LI T IGATI O N 2026
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