1E9Ct5D

242C H A P T E R X I Vwas ultimately published in the Official Federal Gazette (Diario Oficial de la Federación) onDecember 24, 1992, entering into force on June 22, 1993. 2 The LFCE was drafted usingthe U.S. law as a model, 3 as we can see from the concepts that were included in it.During the month of April, 2006, in the second ordinary session of the third year ofthe LIX Legislature, the Congress of the Union approved a reform of the LFCE. 4 The purposeof the reform was: (i) to include the relevant rulings issued by the Judicial Branch,(ii) to elevate certain regulatory provisions to the level of law, and (iii) to incorporate newelements in order to give the Federal Competition Commission (Comisión Federal deCompetencia, CFC) additional powers.The LFCE has seven chapters, each of which we will mention in order to have a generalidea of their scope. However, our focus will be on monopolistic practices and mergers.Among the most important aspects of the first chapter of general provisions is theidentification of those who will be considered economic agents for purposes of the lawand the indication of the purpose of the law. This chapter also determines what activitiesof the State will not be considered monopolies and defines the sphere of each activity. Inthe second chapter, the LFCE enters into the material itself and refers to monopolies andmonopolistic practices, of which there are two types: absolute monopolistic practicesand relative monopolistic practices.In its third chapter, the LFCE addresses the question of concentrations and establishesrules that govern the notification of said concentrations in order for the CFC toauthorize them or impose conditions on their approval. The fourth chapter of the lawcreates the CFC as a semi-independent administrative body (for example, it has its ownbudget) of the Ministry of Commerce and Industrial Development (Secretaría de Comercioy Fomento Industrial), now the Ministry of Economy (Secretaría de Economía),and establishes its structure and operation. The fifth chapter addresses proceduralmatters before the CFC, while Chapter 6 establishes the sanctions to which the economicagents that violate the law will be subject. Finally, Chapter 7 addresses proceduresfor filing a motion for review.The internal rules of the Commission were published in the Official Federal Gazette onOctober 12, 1993, and on October 12, 2007, the new Regulation of the Federal EconomicCompetition Law (Reglamento de la Ley Federal de Competencia Económica, RLFCE)was published in order to regulate the recent amendments of the LFCE.__________2NAFTA, in force since January 1, 1994.3In this regard, see Joshua A. Newberg, “Mexico’s New Economic Competition Law: Toward the Developmentof a Mexican Law of Antitrust,” in Columbia Journal of Transnational Law, vol. 31, 1994, no. 3, p. 591,and Sergio García Ramírez, “Reflexiones comparativas de la Ley Federal de Competencia Económica: la reglaper se y la regla de la razón”, in Estudios en torno a la “Ley Federal de Competencia Económica,” UNAM, Mexico,1994, p. 53. The latter is a comparative study of U.S. and Mexican law.4Published in the Official Federal Gazette (Diario Oficial de la Federación), June 28, 2006.