CADE wins international award with study on market definition

The working paper "New Developments on Market Definition", by the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE), won the category "Best Soft Law - Economics" in the Antitrust Writing Awards 2023. The ceremony was held on 28 March, in Washington, United States.

The awards are presented by Concurrences, a French publisher specialised in antitrust law. They acknowledge innovative initiatives to promote a competition culture and compliance with antitrust laws. The category Best Soft Law aims to highlight the best practices in the area and the tools employed by competition authorities around the globe.

The winning document was produced by the Department of Economic Studies (DEE) of CADE in 2021. It reviews a study from 2010 about quantitative methods used in defining relevant markets and presents an overview of how the authority sees this topic today.

The prize was received by President Alexandre Cordeiro, Superintendent General Alexandre Barreto, and Commissioner Luiz Hoffmann.

"Winning this prize reinforces the protagonism of CADE in Brazil and globally and reaffirms our commitment to defend and promote competition whilst following the international best practices", says Mr. Cordeiro.

The authority already won the Best Soft Law category in 2020, 2018, and 2017 with the documents “Guide for Fighting Cartels in Procurements”, “Dawn Raids Proceedings: General Information about Operationalization”, and “Guidelines: Cease and Desist Agreement for cartel cases”, respectively.

In 2021, the “Guidelines for Competition Compliance Programs” won the Antitrust Compliance Awards, also ran by Concurrences, in the category "Readers Awards". Moreover, the Council was a finalist in 2016, 2017, and 2019 with the documents “Guidelines for Competition Compliance Programs”, “Guidelines for the Analysis of Previous Consummation of Merger Transactions”, and “Guide to Antitrust Remedies”, respectively.

International recognition

CADE has been devoting sustained efforts to defend and promote competition through mechanisms for legal interaction between countries, allowing for better service provision to Brazilian citizens and safe interactions with foreign actors.

Following the strategic plan for 2021–2024, CADE is seeking to increase its relevance on the international stage and antitrust agenda. To this end, the body has worked towards expanding its participation in forums, promoting cooperation with other competition authorities, and extending the international reach of institutional information.

The authority’s dynamism has been recognised globally. In 2022, 2021, and previous years, the authority received a four-star review in the GCR Rating Enforcement: a testament to its position as one of the best-performing antitrust agencies worldwide.

Access the working paper "New Developments on Market Definition" and learn more about CADE's initiatives for competition.