INTEGRITES has successfully defended Farmak in the case related to abuse of monopoly position by Pharmhim LTD

INTEGRITES has successfully defended the interests of Farmak Public Joint Stock Company (PJSC Farmak), a leading pharmaceutical firm in Ukraine, in the exclusive and complex case regarding the abuse of dominant position on the national market of medical substances used for the production of completed pharmaceutical products.

This project is absolutely unique because the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (Ukrainian competition authority) for the first time has conducted such an investigation of the abusive actions committed by the monopolist, specifically in respect to the medical substance Mebhydrolin that is used by many members of the pharmaceutical market, including PJSC Farmak.

In the course of this case, Antitrust & Competition practice of INTEGRITES, consisting of Vyacheslav Korchev (Senior Partner), Serhiy Shershun (Counsel) and Bohdan Ilchenko (Associate) implemented a comprehensive legal strategy intended to protect PJSC Farmak’s interests based on the fact that Pharmhim Limited Liability Company (LLC Pharmhim) partly refused to supply Mebhydrolin, medical substance that was actively used by PJSC Farmak in order to produce its well-known pharmaceutical product – Diazolin®.

Antitrust & Competition practice of INTEGRITES faced with a number of complicated issues during the investigation. Nevertheless, we have managed to provide the legal support to PJSC Farmak to prove the AMCU that the medical substance Mebhydrolin could not be replaced with any other medical substance for the production of Diazolin®. In fact, there was no alternative supplier on the pharmaceutical market at that time and therefore, LLC Pharmhim abused its monopoly position towards PJSC Farmak. In addition, we calculated the number of losses caused by the anticompetitive actions of LLC Pharmhim.

As a result of the professional legal assistance provided by INTEGRITES, the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine on August 16, 2018, defended the interests of PJSC Farmak by imposing a fine on LLC Pharmhim for the competition violation.