Business · Companies · 1 day ago
Spain’s Supreme Court rejects UPS’s final challenge to €19.2m fine
Spain’s Supreme Court has rejected UPS’s latest challenge to a €19.2 million fine, bringing the company’s legal fight in Spanish courts to an end.
The fine was imposed by Spain’s competition authority, the CNMC, over UPS’s dealings with Mail Boxes.
The CNMC said the companies agreed from 2009 to 2016 not to compete for each other’s business customers, calling it market sharing.
UPS argued that it was a transport provider and Mail Boxes a reseller, so they were not direct competitors.
The court had already upheld the fine in May, finding that the agreement affected competition for customers in the retail market.
In its latest decision, the court refused to reconsider UPS’s arguments about how the fine was calculated, saying the company had not shown that carrying out the ruling could cause irreparable harm.
The rejection exhausts UPS’s legal route in Spain over the penalty.
Spain’s Supreme Court has rejected UPS’s final legal challenge to a €19.2 million fine over an alleged parcel-delivery market-sharing cartel.
The court said UPS had not shown that carrying out the ruling could cause it irreparable harm and declined to revisit the substance of its arguments.
The fine stems from an agreement between UPS and Mail Boxes from 2009 to 2016 not to compete for each other’s business customers, according to Spain’s competition authority.
UPS argued that its relationship with Mail Boxes was mainly that of a transport-services provider and a reseller, rather than direct competitors.
- Who
- UPS and Mail Boxes were involved in the conduct; Spain’s Supreme Court rejected UPS’s challenge.
- What
- The court rejected UPS’s final challenge to a €19.2 million competition fine.
- When
- The court’s order was dated 21 October; the original fine covered conduct from 2009 to 2016.
- Where
- Spain.
- Why
- The CNMC found that UPS and Mail Boxes agreed not to compete for each other’s business customers, amounting to market sharing.
Spain’s competition authority and Supreme Court
UPS
Conduct
Spain’s competition authority and Supreme Court
The CNMC found that the companies’ agreement not to compete for each other’s customers amounted to market sharing.
UPS
UPS argued that the relationship was mainly vertical: it provided transport and parcel services, while Mail Boxes was a reseller.
Market
Spain’s competition authority and Supreme Court
The Supreme Court said the agreements also affected the retail market where both companies competed for customers.
UPS
UPS argued that the companies could not be considered direct competitors.
Fine and challenge
Spain’s competition authority and Supreme Court
The court upheld the competition authority’s position and rejected UPS’s final challenge.
UPS
UPS disputed the calculation of the fine and the revenue base used.
The CNMC said UPS and Mail Boxes had an agreement not to compete for each other’s business customers.
The Supreme Court rejected UPS’s appeal against the fine, following the position of the National Court.
The Supreme Court issued an order rejecting UPS’s challenge to the ruling.
- Fine against UPS
- €19.2 million
- Companies involved in agreement
- UPS and Mail Boxes
- Period of alleged agreement
- 2009–2016
- CNMC’s total cartel fines
- €68 million
- CNMC complainant
- General Logistics Spain (GLS)