Given that there is a general intention for Serbian regulators to comply with European regulations in all aspects of commercial and corporate law, the Law on Protection of Competition is primarily based on the respective Directives of the European Union.

From the enactment of the previously valid Law on Protection of Competition and establishment of the Commission for Protection of Competition ("Commission") in 2005 our firm has been engaged in different procedures before the mentioned authority, including obtaining merger and acquisition clearances, exclusivity clearances, official opinions on the necessity of concentration and exclusivity clearances in specific cases, etc.  

Since many of the subordinate regulations designed to regulate the procedures in detail had at the time not been enacted, Prica & Partners were engaged to help in the formal implementation of practice of the Commission for Protection of Competition.

Most of the projects we conduct for our clients require a clearance from the Commission and we are actively involved in filing the necessary requests. We have successfully completed the filing process and obtained the clearance for, inter alia, Nokia-Siemens Networks, Generali-PPF Holding, Schering Plough and Merck in the matter of registration and approval by the Commission of their global merger. We have also been involved in the process of obtaining the clearance in acquisition of Oil Industry of Serbia-NIS by Gazprom Neft and acquisition of TBI leasing by the National Bank of Greece.

Besides representing clients before the Commission, our office provides advice on competition issues including drafting legal opinions, preparation of client compliance programs, harmonization of agency and distribution agreements with requirements of the local competition regulations, etc.

Within our regional network of law firms covering ex-Yugoslavia we have established a separate Regional Competition Group, whose goal is to develop an understanding of regional competition laws and policies, to examine the impact on trade and investment flows, enhance the practice and broaden the knowledge of the lawyers and officials, in order to comply with European standards.

As a continuation of on-going cooperation with one of the leading international law firms, Baker & McKenzie, and having significant expertise in the field of competition, Prica & Partners contributed the Chapter on Serbia to Baker & McKenzie's Competition Handbook.

"In 2007, the firm's most prominent mandate came from the Nokia-Siemens joint network venture, which saw the firm work on the registration of and approval by the Commission for Protection of Competition of their global venture."  -IFLR 1000 (2008)