Title: Leniency regimes in BRICS nations: lessons for India

Authors: Narender Kumar

Addresses: Vivekananda Institute of Professional Studies (VIPS), Pitampura, New Delhi, India

Abstract: Hardcore cartels are considered the most egregious violation and a part of domestic competition law. It garbles world trade through concentration of economic power, and inefficiency which destroys the market due to its secret nature, and it is very difficult to detect its existence. Thus, nearly all competition regimes declare cartels as an illegal activity, and have different enforcement mechanisms including 'leniency programs'. It offers businesses the opportunity to come uncontaminated about their participation in cartel demeanour in exchange for immunity. This study attempts to trace the strength and scope of the leniency programmes in BRICS countries and to analyse the jurisprudence behind identifying parameters of its efficiency by comparing BRICS leniency regulations which reflects the weaknesses of the existing leniency programmes as deterrence in India and BRICS countries. The paper concludes by contributing an imminent path for possible perfection in the form of positive recommendations.

Keywords: cartels; confidentiality; efficiency; Leniency Program; BRICS; India.

DOI: 10.1504/IJPLAP.2022.120666

International Journal of Public Law and Policy, 2022 Vol.8 No.1, pp.52 - 67

Received: 12 Feb 2021
Accepted: 16 Sep 2021
Published online: 31 Jan 2022 *

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