Mr. Andrés Barreto, newly appointed Head of the Colombian Antitrust Authority (the “SIC”), expressed his intention of creating a Deputy Superintendence for Compliance. He is considering including compliance programs as mitigating factors for antitrust fines.

"[The Deputy Superintendence for Compliance will be in charge of] creating doctrine and compliance guidelines that companies actually adopt. And this should be useful for them from a legal standpoint, (...) if they engage in conduct that could be investigated by the authority, [compliance programs] could be considered as a mitigating factor for the reduction of fines". (Andrés Barreto, Superintendent of Industry and Commerce, Portafolio, October 15, 2018).

This is a unique opportunity for companies to adopt antitrust and competition corporate compliance programs. In addition to helping prevent illegal conduct and identify existing risks, they may eventually serve to reduce fines.

What are corporate compliance programs?

They are guidelines adopted by a company, mandatory to all employees, which describe the scope of antitrust laws, prohibited conducts, consequences of violating the law, and the internal procedure to anonymously inform a potentially unlawful conduct to the company’s management.

What benefits do they bring?

• They establish a commitment from the company and its employees to follow the law.
• They prevent illegal conduct.
• They are key in the identification of risks.
• They allow the company to react quickly and effectively to any potential risk.
• They may become a mitigating factor to reduce fines.

What are the possible sanctions?

Violating antitrust laws can give rise to significant fines: the SIC may impose sanctions of up to COP$78 Billion (c. US$25 Million) to companies, and of up to COP$1.5 Billion (c. US$500,000) to officers and employees. Additionally, violating antitrust laws can cause serious damages to the company’s reputation and good name.

At Dentons Cárdenas and Cárdenas, we have ample experience in:

• Training seminars on Colombian antitrust law, directed to officers, managers, and employees.
• Designing and implementing corporate compliance manuals tailored for each company depending on its economic activity and related industry.