Aktualne podejście Komisji do ograniczeń wertykalnych w świetle rozporządzenia 2022/720 i towarzyszących mu wytycznych
The Commission's current approach to vertical restraints in the light of Regulation 2022/720 and accompanying guidelines

Summary/Abstract: Agreements concluded between entrepreneurs operating at various levels of trade for the purpose of distributing goods or services are one of the most common agreements in business transactions. The universality of this type of agreements explains why the assessment of certain clauses contained in vertical agreements under competition law is particularly important for the practice of business transactions. The scale on which distribution agreements are concluded was one of the reasons why, as early as 1965, the exclusion of certain types of distribution agreements from the prohibition of concluding competition-restricting agreements was introduced into the EU competition law. The approach to assessing this type of agreements has evolved significantly over the years and is now reflected in the European Commission Regulation 2022/720. This article presents the current approach of the European Commission to the antitrust assessment of vertical agreements by comparing the solutions adopted in Regulation 2022/720 with the preceding Regulation 330/2010, which ceased to apply on May 31, 2022. Although the article focuses on the provisions of EU law, the assessment presented therein, including critical comments regarding the current approach of the European Commission, also applies to national regulations regarding the antitrust assessment of vertical agreements. The new national competition law provisions dedicated to the antitrust assessment of distribution agreements almost entirely duplicate EU solutions, both those that should be assessed positively from the point of view of suppliers and distributors, and those that may raise doubts.

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