ISRAEL Law and Practice Contributed by: Talya Solomon, Iris Achmon, Ekaterina Yaremchuk and Niva Orion, Herzog Fox & Neeman
Related Facts As the ICA is a monopoly in competition and antitrust enforcement, it is highly unlikely to have multiple or simultaneous enforcement proceed - ings involving the same or related facts. 5. Sanctions and Remedies in Criminal Cartel Enforcement 5.1 Imposition of Sanctions/Fines Administrative Sanctions The Commissioner, after consultation with the Advisory Committee for Exemptions and Merg - ers, may impose administrative fines (monetary sanctions) directly on companies and individu - als involved in a breach. She may also issue a determination of breach, used as prima facie, evidence in any legal proceedings. The Competition Tribunal may, at the Commis - sioner’s request, order the parties to cease an arrangement. Such order shall have the force of a court order, and its breach carries criminal and civil sanctions. Criminal Sanctions These are imposed in an ordinary criminal proce - dure by the district court, where the ICA serves as a prosecutor. 5.2 Plea Bargaining/Settlement In criminal cases, the plea bargain mechanism works like a plea bargain in any criminal proce - dure. The ICA (as criminal prosecutor) reaches an agreement with the defendant, which is then brought for the approval of the court. The plea bargain may include the removal of indictment clauses, an agreement on the sentence request - ed by the state or other commitments such as a commitment to testify.
protect the information, such as partial disclo - sure or to the parties′ counsels. Access to Information Held by Third Parties According to case law, access to information in possession of the third party should be held by summons to testify. There are some exceptions, like where the third party is, in fact, a company controlled by one of the parties to the trial. Access to Information Held by the ICA As mentioned, the ICA is subject to the Israeli Freedom of Information Law. The ICA will not expose information gathered during criminal or administrative procedures (see further details in this regard in 2.8 Protection of Confidential/ In most cases, the ICA has not used experts in criminal litigation. However, it is common for defendants to use experts in establishing their defence. For example, the defendants may use an expert to prove that no harm has been caused to the competition or with regard to the exact market definition. The ICA may or may not bring forth expert witnesses for rebuttal of expert evidence presented by the defendants. 4.9 Possibility of Multiple Proceedings Multiple Enforcements Enforcement actions involving cartels are typi - cally brought against multiple parties in a sin - gle proceeding. There are some cases where the ICA will submit two indictments in the same cartel case. One case is where one of the parties to the cartel pleaded guilty to actions before or during the trial, and the ICA wants to summon them to testify at the trial. It is also the case if two or more defendants are either husband and wife or parents and their children. Proprietary Information ). 4.8 The Role of Experts
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