LIBYA Law and Practice Contributed by: Salaheddin El Busefi, Heba Gedwar and Mahmud Zahaf, Zahaf & Partners
dle East, whose supply chains may experience downstream effects over time.
illegal for companies or groups of individuals to fix prices of goods and services by way of agree - ment, nor can they impact prices and compe - tition in the market by dumping to undermine locally available goods. These arrangements are not just limited to price fixing, but can also include groups agreeing to deal on mutually favourable terms amongst themselves so as to create an anti-competitive environment. With regard to dumping, the law makes careful distinctions, recognising that price reductions may be necessary in certain legitimate situa - tions. This includes, for instance, the sale of per - ishable goods or seasonal produce, which are exempt from anti-dumping regulations, provided such practices do not breach broader competi - tion principles. 6.4 Abuse of Dominant Position Laws within Libya’s Commercial Code that govern competition also specifically address unilateral conduct. Although a dominant mar - ket position in an open market environment is not encouraged, it is not illegal either. However, Libyan law on competition addresses abuse of a dominant market position in the action taken to improve upon or maintain that position. Here, Libyan law clearly prohibits several actions tak - en by an entity in a dominant position, which include: • fixing prices in a way that is not consistent with market expectations; • market manipulation in supply and demand so as to manipulate a consumer’s behaviour; • refusing to deal with competitors on equal terms and/or imposing discriminatory terms; • manipulating economic factors that force customers to trade in a situation that under - mines competition; and
6. Competition Law 6.1 Merger Control Notification
The Commercial Code Law No 23 (2010) gov - erns competition as it relates to mergers and acquisitions. As a first step, the merger is registered in the commercial registry; after that is done, the legal representatives of the merging companies must notify all creditors within ten days. This notifi - cation must also be published publicly both in the official procedural journal and in at least two national daily newspapers. Creditors then have 90 days from the registration date to raise any objections to the merger. If no objections are raised within this period or if any objections are legally dismissed, the merger becomes fully effective. 6.2 Merger Control Procedure The merger process begins with a decision by the extraordinary general assembly of each company involved to approve the merger. Next, an expert committee (including at least one certi - fied accountant) appointed by the first instance court evaluates the assets and liabilities of each company to determine their net shareholder equity. Following this valuation, authorised rep - resentatives sign the merger agreement. Upon completion of these steps, the merged or acquir - ing company assumes all rights and obligations of the original companies. 6.3 Cartels Anti-competitive agreements and cartel-like conduct are explicitly outlawed in Libya’s com - petition laws within the Commercial Code. It is
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