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Law
Competition Policy

Data rooms and confidentiality rings

Data rooms

Data rooms are an exceptional tool which can, depending on the circumstances of the individual case, safeguard the rights of defence while respecting the legitimate interests of confidentiality of the undertakings or persons from which the Commission has obtained the information. By means of a data room, documents in the Commission's file are made accessible to an addressee of a Statement of Objections in a restricted manner, i.e. by limiting the number and/or category of persons having access and the use of the information being accessed to the extent strictly necessary for the exercise of the rights of defence.

The use of Data Rooms enhance the efficiency of both antitrust and merger investigations.

Best Practices on the disclosure of information in data rooms in proceedings under Articles 101 and 102 TFEU and under the EU Merger Regulation

Standard Data Room Rules (docx format)

Standard non-disclosure agreement (docx format)

 

Confidentiality rings

Confidentiality rings are a form of negotiated disclosure set out in point 96 of the Commission notice on best practices for the conduct of proceedings concerning Articles 101 and 102 TFEU. Through confidentiality rings, DG Competition can safeguard the rights of defence while respecting the legitimate interests in confidentiality of the information providers. In addition, confidentiality rings remove or reduce the burden of preparing non-confidential versions of documents, thus enhancing the efficiency both antitrust and merger investigations.

Guidance on the use of voluntary confidentiality rings (docx format)