Competition law investigations
A fact base on what happened between you and your competitors, and what it cost, ready for counsel's response to the Commission or a claimant.
Forensic review of contacts with competitors, pricing and bids, with economic analysis when the Competition Commission or a claimant is involved.
Competition cases turn on evidence of contact and on numbers. A regulator or a claimant will look at what your people said to competitors, how prices and bids moved, and whether margins can be explained by costs. Counsel need to see the same picture first.
We review the e-mail, chat and devices of the people concerned for contacts with competitors and trade associations, and set them against pricing, bidding and margin data. Where the case needs it, we work with counsel and economists on market definition, the counterfactual and the effect of the conduct.
When fines or damages are in issue, we quantify or test the numbers: the turnover a penalty is based on, overcharge and loss-of-profit claims, and the assumptions behind the other side's model. Findings then feed remediation, so the same conduct does not recur.
A competition authority is examining your sector, a cartel allegation has surfaced, or you face a claim for overcharge or loss.
Signs we see most often
- 01The Competition Commission has started an inquiry into your sector or issued a notice.
- 02A lesser-penalty application is being considered and the facts must be established quickly.
- 03Bids, prices or discounts move together with competitors' in ways that need explaining.
- 04Sales staff attend trade-association meetings or share market data with competitors.
- 05A customer or competitor claims compensation for overcharge or lost profits.
- 06A search has taken place and counsel need to know what the documents show.
Scoped in writing, run by one accountable team.
Every engagement starts with agreed questions, a reporting line and a confidentiality protocol. The steps below are how this service usually runs; we adapt them to your matter.
- 01ScopeAgree the conduct, period, people and products under review with counsel, under privilege.
- 02PreserveImage devices and collect e-mail, chat and pricing data for the people concerned.
- 03ReviewSearch communications for contacts with competitors and map them on a timeline.
- 04AnalyseCompare prices, bids, costs and margins against the allegation.
- 05QuantifyQuantify fines, overcharge and loss, or test the other side's figures.
- 06RemediateRecommend changes to pricing governance, trade-association conduct and training.
A fact base on what happened and what it cost, ready for counsel's response to the regulator or the claimant.
- A chronology of competitor contacts, with the documents behind each one
- Price, cost and margin analysis set against the allegation
- Quantification or rebuttal of fines and damages claims, with stated assumptions
- A privileged report for counsel
- Remediation recommendations for the compliance programme
The law and frameworks this work is aligned to
- Competition Act, 2002 ss.3 and 4 on anti-competitive agreements and abuse of dominance
- Competition Act, 2002 s.27 on penalties and s.46 on lesser penalty
- Competition Commission of India (Lesser Penalty) Regulations
- Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 s.63 for electronic records
- Aligned to the ICAI Forensic Accounting and Investigation Standards
References show the standard the work is built to. They do not imply accreditation or endorsement by the bodies that publish them.
This is a summary of the service. For a deeper understanding of how it would work for your organisation, please reach out to us.
Talk to a BDI partnerQuestions clients ask before we start.
Is the review privileged?
It is commissioned and directed by counsel so that privilege can be claimed. We agree the reporting line and the handling of documents with counsel at the start.
Do you provide economic analysis?
We provide the financial and data analysis, such as prices, costs, margins and volumes, and work with counsel and economists on market definition and effects where a case needs it.
Can this help with a lesser-penalty decision?
Yes. Establishing quickly what the documents show helps counsel advise on whether, and how, to approach the Commission.