Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners has successfully represented insurance company Rosgosstrakh in a case in which Russia’s Federal Antimonopoly Service considered an agreement between the company and another undisclosed insurance company as anti-competitive.
According to EPAM, this is the first time that the Federal Antimonopoly Service has considered anti-competitive agreements between two independent insurance companies.
According to the firm, on July 14, 2021, the FAS ruled that "Article 11(4) of the Law on Protection of Competition on Life, Health, and Medical Insurance Markets had been violated and issued an order to terminate the anticompetitive agreements." It further explained that, under an indemnity program, Rosgosstrakh's fine is to be waived, while the fine for the counterparty could amount to RUB 300 million.
Anna Numerova, the Partner who led the EPAM team, commented: "The case had been pending since October 2020 amid significant personnel changes at the Antimonopoly Service. The regulator's decision could be decisive for the ongoing litigation between the insurance companies."
"We have made a number of attempts to terminate the agreements before the proceedings at the FAS commission," added Natalia Cheltsova, Vice President for Legal Affairs at Rosgosstrakh. "Rosgosstrakh is in agreement with the FAS commission’s decision and will take steps to comply with the improvement notice issued by the antimonopoly authority."
Aside from Numerova, the EPAM team included Senior Associate Olga Denchenkova.