Carlos Mena Labarthe

This is an Insight article, written by a selected contributor as part of GCR's co-published content. Read more on Insight Mexico's competition enforcement regime outlines strict penalties for infringing conduct, with fines of up to 15% of annual income for cartels and potential 10-year prison sentences for individuals found to be criminally liable. The framework provides for extensive dawn raid powers and operates a first-come leniency programme offering complete immunity.

Creel García-Cuéllar Aiza y Enríquez SC (Mexico City) Senior Associate Édgar Martín-Padilla is part of the antitrust team of Creel, García-Cuéllar, Aiza and Enríquez. His practice has mostly focused on advising national and international companies in complex pre-merger authorizations, cartel investigations and procedures before regulatory entities, as well as compliance programs. Prior to joining the firm, he worked for the Mexican government as an economic policy and foreign investment advisor.

Collaboration among competitors in Mexico is still significantly underdeveloped. As in other developing countries, legal uncertainty impedes companies to effectively and lawfully engage in efficient arrangements that would result in benefits for consumers. This is another example of how the innovative but incomplete competition framework that has been developed in Mexico is still insufficient to address the reality of the markets.