Spain: The Audiencia Nacional annuls the fine imposed by the Spanish Competition Authority on the national refrigerated road transport association due to the lack of evidence of participation in the conduct after 2008 (ATFRIE)

In 2015, the Spanish competition authority (CNMC) fined ATFRIE and 12 refrigerated transport companies for colluding to fix prices in the refrigerated road transport sector in Spain from April 1993 to December 2012 (Decision of the CNMC of 25 June 2015, case S/0454/12, Transporte frigorífico). The companies had also tried to establish a franchising company to hide their illegal practices in 2012, according to the CNMC. ATFRIE lodged an appeal with the Audiencia Nacional against the CNMC Decision alleging, as its main ground of appeal, that the authority had infringed the principle of presumption of innocence insofar as there was no evidence of the commission of anticompetitive practices or those practices were time-barred. The appellant alleged a breach of the principle of the