What Mexico Federal Economic Competition Law (Ley Federal de Competencia Económica - LFCE) 2014 requires
The Ley Federal de Competencia Económica (LFCE - Federal Economic Competition Law) was published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación (DOF) on 23 May 2014, replacing the 1992 LFCE. The law establishes Mexico's constitutional competition framework pursuant to Art. 28 of the Mexican Constitution (as reformed in 2013), which declares monopolies, monopolistic practices, and barriers to free competition to be prohibited. Two autonomous constitutional bodies enforce the LFCE: (1) the Comisión Federal de Competencia Económica (COFECE) - the general competition authority for all economic sectors not regulated by a specific constitutional regulator; and (2) the Instituto Federal de Telecomunicaciones (IFT) - which exercises competition powers exclusively in the telecommunications and broadcasting sectors. Both COFECE and IFT are constitutionally autonomous bodies whose decisions can only be challenged via amparo (constitutional challenge) before federal courts. Prohibited conduct: Absolute monopolistic practices (Art. 53 LFCE) are horizontal restraints treated as per se illegal without requiring proof of competitive harm, including: price-fixing, market and customer allocation, bid-rigging, output restriction, and group boycotts. Criminal liability applies under Art. 254 Bis of the Código Penal Federal: 5 to 10 years imprisonment and a personal fine up to 10% of the defendant's annual personal income for individuals who participate in cartel conduct. Administrative fines for the entity: up to 10% of total annual revenue from Mexico-related sales (LFCE Art. 127). Relative monopolistic practices (Art. 54 LFCE) are vertical restraints assessed under a rule-of-reason standard requiring proof of competitive harm (exclusive dealing, resale price maintenance, tying, market foreclosure). Administrative fine: up to 8% of total annual revenue. Market dominance: Art. 59 LFCE - an economic agent is presumed dominant if it has 50% or more of the relevant market. Merger control (Arts. 86-97 LFCE): transactions meeting applicable COFECE notification thresholds require prior approval before closing. COFECE publishes annual CPI-adjusted UDI-denominated thresholds: as of 2024, notification is required when (a) the transaction value in Mexico exceeds approximately MXN 1.9 billion (18 million times the daily UMA value) or (b) the combined Mexico revenue of all parties exceeds approximately MXN 18.5 billion, or (c) the Mexico revenue or assets of the entity being acquired exceed approximately MXN 950 million. Review periods: 15 business days for Phase 1 (concentrations); up to 70 additional business days for in-depth investigation (Phase 2). Leniency program (Arts. 103-115 LFCE): the first applicant who self-discloses cartel participation and cooperates fully receives full immunity from administrative fines and COFECE will not refer the individual participants for criminal prosecution; subsequent applicants receive graduated fine reductions (40-60% for second applicant; 20-40% for third applicant). Private enforcement: Art. 134 LFCE allows private parties to claim treble damages before federal civil courts for losses caused by monopolistic practices, following a final COFECE or IFT resolution. Limitation period: 10 years from the date of the anticompetitive conduct. No leniency applicant is immune from private damages claims.
Pillar: Competition & Antitrust · Authority: Comisión Federal de Competencia Económica (COFECE); Instituto Federal de Telecomunicaciones (IFT) · Version: 1.0.0 · Last updated:
Primary source: https://www.diputados.gob.mx/LeyesBiblio/pdf/LFCE.pdf
SHA-256 integrity: 559db0b17864ca0afd9bf568e2e2ed86f55ffbed3718fbcb0144b3be94df7fc9
Primary Citations — 7 traced to source
- Ley Federal de Competencia Económica (LFCE) - published Diario Oficial de la Federación 23 May 2014; establishes COFECE and IFT as constitutional autonomous competition authorities; replaces 1992 LFCE; implements Art. 28 of the Mexican Constitution (as reformed 2013) prohibiting monopolies and monopolistic practices
- LFCE, Art. 53 - absolute monopolistic practices (horizontal cartel conduct): per se illegal without proof of market harm; includes price-fixing, market/customer allocation, bid-rigging, output restriction, group boycotts; administrative fine up to 10% of annual Mexico revenue
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