Collusion in public bidding (bid rigging) and its effects on public procurement

Abstract

We study the phenomenon of collusion in public auctions (bid rigging) as a way of affecting the principle of free competition. In the first part of the work, the problems that occur due to the lack of bidders in public tenders are raised; In second place, the way in which collusion materializes in a context of public purchases is described, exposing the modalities it adopts, its characteristic elements and some indications of suspicion of collusion; In the third part, the criteria followed by the Tribunal de Defensa de la Libre Competencia (TDLC) and the European Court of Justice (CJEU) will be analyzed to penalize these anti-competitive practices, ending with some conclusions and recommendations.