Case C‑680/20 Unilever Italia Mkt. Operations Srl v Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato, Judgment of the Court (Fifth Chamber) of 19 January 2023
In the Unilever case1 the CJEU finds that in specific circumstances the conduct of distributors forming part of a distribution network can be attributed under Article 102 TFEU to a producer at the head of this network. It is not necessary that these distributors are part of the dominant undertaking or that ‘hierarchical links’ exist between those distributors and the dominant undertaking. In addition, if in the course of administrative proceedings an undertaking submits evidence that its conduct is unable to produce anti-competitive effects, the competition authority is required to examine this evidence.