TITLE V: Powers of investigation.

I.-The officers of the Competition Authority’s investigation departments authorised for this purpose by the general rapporteur may carry out any investigation necessary for the application of the provisions of Titles II and III of this Book. They may also, for the application of Title VI of this Book, implement the powers of investigation defined in Article L. 450-3. In the event that investigations are conducted in the name of or…

Investigations give rise to minutes and, where appropriate, reports. The minutes are forwarded to the competent authority. Copies are sent to the persons concerned. They are authentic until proven otherwise.

The documents drawn up by the agents referred to in Article L. 450-1 may be drawn up or converted into digital format and may be stored in their entirety in this form, in secure conditions, without the need for a paper medium. Where these documents are drawn up in digital format and the provisions of this Code require them to be signed, they shall be signed, irrespective of the number…

The officers mentioned in article L. 450-1 may operate on the public highway, enter between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. any premises used for business purposes and any premises where services are being provided, as well as gain access to any means of transport used for business purposes. They may also enter these same premises outside these hours when they are open to the public or when production, manufacturing, processing,…

When investigating or ascertaining an infringement or failure to comply with this book, the officers mentioned in Article L. 450-1 are authorised to identify the person they are controlling. If the person refuses or is unable to prove his or her identity, they shall immediately report this to any territorially competent judicial police officer, who may then carry out an identity check under the conditions set out in article 78-3…

I. – Where the establishment of proof of the infringement or breach depends on it and cannot be established otherwise, the officials mentioned in Article L. 450-1 may postpone the time at which they decline their status until at the latest the notification to the inspected person of the finding of the infringement or breach. II. – For the monitoring of the sale of goods and provision of services over…

I.-As an exception to the last two paragraphs of Article L. 450-3, for the purposes of investigating and establishing the offences and breaches provided for in Title II of this Book, access to data stored and processed by telecommunications operators, under the conditions and within the limits provided for in article L. 34-1 of the French Post and Electronic Communications Code, and by the service providers mentioned in 1 and…

The officers mentioned in article L. 450-1 may visit any premises and seize documents and any data media and, where applicable, the means of decrypting them, which may be held, accessible or available only in the context of investigations requested by the European Commission, the Minister for the Economy or the General Rapporteur of the Autorité de la Concurrence on a proposal from the Rapporteur, with judicial authorisation granted by…

The General Rapporteur of the Autorité de la concurrence shall be informed before they are launched of any investigations that the Minister responsible for the economy wishes to be carried out into facts likely to fall within the scope of Articles L. 420-1 to L. 420-2-2 and L. 420-5 or be contrary to measures taken pursuant to Article L. 410-3 and may, within a period set by decree, take over…

The rapporteur general shall designate, for the examination of each case, one or more agents of the investigating departments to the functions of rapporteur.At its written request, the authority to which the agents mentioned in II of Article L. 450-1 shall without delay place at its disposal, in the number and for the duration that it has indicated, the agents necessary to carry out the operations mentioned in Article L….