Restriction of parallel trade in pharmaceutical industry

The article examines one of the hardcore vertical restraints in competition law – prohibition (restriction) of parallel trade, with the focus on the assessment of such agreements within the context of pharmaceutical industry. The article discloses that due to the very specific economical and legal environment of the pharmaceutical sector, agreements restricting parallel trade should not be condemned as anticompetitive in all cases. It is discussed whether it is reasonable that extremely negative attitude towards such agreements is more conditioned upon the European Union’s internal market integration goal than legal or economic logic