By Yasmine EDDAM
4 April 2025
An unexpected visit from competition investigators can be a destabilising experience for any business, whatever its size. Knowing how to react and what your rights and obligations are is crucial. Poor management of this situation can have serious consequences, ranging from significant financial penalties to criminal prosecution for obstruction. The purpose of this article is to explain how these investigations are conducted, the powers of the officers and the essential reflexes to adopt in order to best protect your company's interests. Who can conduct a competition investigation? There are two main types of officer authorised to conduct competition investigations in France. It is useful to be able to distinguish between them, as their prerogatives may differ slightly. On the one hand, there are the staff of the Competition Authority's investigation departments. These officers, authorised by the Autorité's general rapporteur,...
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