Competition/antitrust law is becoming increasingly important in the Western Balkans, as the region prepares for EU membership. In that regard, while the local competition rules are based on the EU model, legislative and practical peculiarities on the ground make local expertise essential.
Doklestic Repic & Gajin competition practice is one of the leading practices in Serbia and the region, recognized as such by Chambers Europe and Legal 500 EMEA. We are well versed both in local competition rules and in the relevant EU acquis. Such expertise, combined with our lawyers’ practical experience, equips us to resolve any kind of matter you would have in the Balkans – be it a plain vanilla merger filing, a delicate state aid complaint, or a complex antitrust investigation.
We have significant experience in all areas of competition law:
- In the area of antitrust, our lawyers have drafted a number of individual exemption request to the Serbian, Montenegrin, and Bosnian competition authority, respectively. They have also defended undertakings in antitrust probes, both related to restrictive agreements and with respect to alleged abuse of dominance.
- In the area of merger control, our lawyers have prepared dozens of merger filings throughout the region – in no-issue extraterritorial transactions and complex Phase II procedures alike.
- We also regularly advise on state aid issues, both as part of wider transaction support and as stand-alone issues.
Our competition team is led by Dr. Dragan Gajin, a competition law expert and attorney admitted in Serbia and New York. Dr. Gajin regularly assists clients in antitrust, merger control, and state aid matters throughout Western Balkans. Chambers Europe and Legal 500 EMEA recognize him as a leading competition/antitrust practitioner.
Our practice
Restrictive agreements
- Analysis of horizontal and vertical agreements from, in particular from the perspective of block exemption rules
- Drafting and submission of individual exemption requests to the competition authority
- Drafting and submission of leniency applications
- Representing clients in antitrust proceedings before the competition authority
Abuse of dominance
- Analysis of commercial policies of dominant undertakings
- Drafting commercial policies of dominant undertakings to ensure they are in line with the applicable competition regulations
- Representing clients in abuse of dominance cases before the competition authority
Merger control
- Drafting and submission of merger filings
- Analysis of the applicable merger filing thresholds and accompanying issues
- Representing clients in Phase II merger probes with respect to combinations which may raise competition concerns
State aid
- Analysis of state support to undertakings from the perspective of the applicable state aid rules
- Representing clients in the notification procedure before the state aid control authority
Advisory
- Drafting the company’s antitrust compliance documents
- Training of the client’s management employees on the relevant competition law issues
- Competition law analysis as part of due diligence procedures
Competition litigation
- Representing clients in competition litigation cases, both on the side of plaintiff and on the side of plaintiff
- Advising clients on alternative dispute resolution of competition claims
How we stand out?
- Merger filing app
- We have developed an innovative way of checking whether your transaction triggers a merger filing threshold in one of the Western Balkan jurisdictions (Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Albania). To access the app, please click here.
- Competition blog
- Our competition blog (gajin.rs) is possibly the most relevant source of competition news and insights concerning the Western Balkans.
- Regional approach (one-stop-shop for the Western Balkans)
- We fully understand that our clients often view the Western Balkans as one market. So do we – our lawyers have a plethora of experience throughout the region. Thanks to that, we offer a one-stop-shop for competition/antitrust law support for all jurisdictions in the region.
Contact
Dr. Dragan Gajin
PARTNER
Tel. +381 (0)11 414 33 60 (switchboard)
+381 (0)62 767 883 (cell)
E-mail: dragan.gajin@doklestic.law