THAILAND-AUSTRALIA
FREE TRADE AGREEMENT

CHAPTER 12
COMPETITION POLICY
ARTICLE 1201
Objective and Definitions

1. The aim of this Chapter is to contribute to the fulfilment of the objectives of this Agreement through the promotion of fair competition and the curtailment of anti-competitive practices.
2. For the purposes of this Chapter, "anti-competitive practices" means business conduct or transactions that adversely affect competition, such as:
(a) anti-competitive horizontal arrangements between competitors;
(b) misuse of market power, including predatory pricing;
(c) anti-competitive vertical arrangements; and
(d) anti-competitive mergers and acquisitions.

ARTICLE 1202
Promotion of Competition

Each Party shall promote competition by addressing anti-competitive practices in its territory, and by adopting and enforcing such means or measures as it deems appropriate and effective to counter such practices.

ARTICLE 1203
Application of Competition Laws

1. The Parties shall ensure that all businesses are subject to such generic or relevant sectoral competition laws as may be in force in their respective territories.
2. Any measures taken by a Party to proscribe anti-competitive practices, and the enforcement actions taken pursuant to those measures, shall be consistent with the principles of transparency, timeliness, non-discrimination, comprehensiveness and procedural fairness.

ARTICLE 1204
Exemptions

Either Party may exempt specific measures or sectors from this Chapter, provided that such exemptions are transparent and are undertaken on the grounds of public policy or public interest.

ARTICLE 1205
Cooperation and Exchange of Information

The Parties recognise the importance of cooperation and coordination in achieving effective enforcement outcomes under their respective competition laws. The Parties also recognise the importance of confidentiality in respect of these arrangements. Accordingly, the Parties shall cooperate, where appropriate, on issues of competition law enforcement, including through the exchange of information, notification, consultation, and coordination of enforcement matters that are cross-border in nature.

ARTICLE 1206
Consultations and Review

1. At the request of either Party, the Parties shall consult with a view to eliminating particular anti-competitive practices that affect trade or investment between the Parties.
2. Within three years of the entry into force of this Agreement, the Parties shall consult in order to review the scope and operation of this Chapter with a view to negotiating amendments to this Chapter that may be necessary to ensure the comprehensive protection in their respective territories of the legitimate commercial interests of businesses of the other Party.
3. In undertaking any consultations in accordance with Paragraph 2, the Parties shall also discuss the desirability of concluding arrangements for cooperation and mutual assistance in competition policy and enforcement, either as amendments to this Chapter or as separate arrangements between their respective competition authorities.
4. Any information or documents exchanged between the Parties in relation to any mutual consultation or review conducted pursuant to the provisions of this Chapter shall be kept confidential. Neither Party shall, except to comply with its domestic legal requirements, release or disclose such information or documents to any person without the written consent of the Party that provided such information or documents. Where the disclosure of such information or documents is necessary to comply with the domestic legal requirements of a Party, that Party shall notify the other Party before such disclosure is made.

ARTICLE 1207
Transparency

The Parties shall publish or otherwise make publicly available their laws promoting fair competition and their laws addressing anti-competitive practices.

ARTICLE 1208
General

1. Chapter 18 shall not apply to the provisions of this Chapter.
2. In the event of any inconsistency or conflict between any provision in this Chapter and any provision contained in any other Chapter of this Agreement, the latter shall prevail to the extent of such inconsistency or conflict.

CHAPTER 13
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
ARTICLE 1301
Objective

1. The objective of this Chapter is to increase the benefits from trade and investment through the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights.
2. "Intellectual property rights" refers to copyright and related rights, rights in trade marks, geographical indications, industrial designs, patents, and lay-out designs (topographies) of integrated circuits, rights in plant varieties, and rights in undisclosed information, as defined and described in the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights.

ARTICLE 1302
Observance of International Obligations

The Parties shall fully respect the provisions of the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights and any other multilateral agreement relating to intellectual property to which both are parties.

ARTICLE 1303
Measures to Prevent the Export of Goods that
Infringe Copyright or Trade Marks

Each Party, on receipt of information or complaints, shall take measures to prevent the export of goods that infringe copyright or trade marks, in accordance with its laws, regulations, or policies.

ARTICLE 1304
Cooperation on Enforcement

The Parties shall cooperate with a view to eliminating trade in goods infringing intellectual property rights, subject to their respective laws, regulations, or policies. Such cooperation may include:
(a) the notification of contact points for the enforcement of intellectual property rights;
(b) the exchange, between respective agencies responsible for the enforcement of intellectual property rights, of information concerning the infringement of intellectual property rights;
(c) policy dialogue on initiatives for the enforcement of intellectual property rights in multilateral and regional fora; and
(d) such other activities and initiatives for the enforcement of intellectual property rights as may be mutually determined by the Parties.

ARTICLE 1305
Other Cooperation

The Parties, through their competent agencies, shall:
(a) exchange information and material on programs pertaining to education in and awareness of intellectual property rights, and to commercialisation of intellectual property, to the extent permissible under their respective laws, regulations and policies; and
(b) encourage and facilitate the development of contacts and cooperation between their respective government agencies, educational institutions, organisations and other entities concerning the protection and development of intellectual property rights with a view to:
(i) improving and strengthening the intellectual property administrative systems in areas such as patents examination and trademarks registration;
(ii) stimulating the creation and development of intellectual property by persons of each Party, particularly individual inventors and creators as well as small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs); and
(iii) enhancing the capacity of and opportunity for the owners of intellectual property rights to obtain the maximum utilisation and commercial benefits from those rights.

CHAPTER 14
TRANSPARENT ADMINISTRATION OF
LAWS AND REGULATIONS
ARTICLE 1401
Definition

For the purposes of this Chapter, "administrative ruling of general application" means an administrative ruling or interpretation that applies to all persons and fact situations that fall within its ambit and that establishes a norm of conduct, but does not include:
(a) a determination or ruling made in an administrative or quasi-judicial proceeding that applies to a particular person, good, service or investment of the other Party in a specific case; or
(b) a ruling that adjudicates with respect to a particular act or practice.

ARTICLE 1402
Publication

1. Each Party shall ensure that its laws, regulations, and administrative rulings of general application pertaining to trade in goods, services and investment are promptly published or otherwise made available in such a manner as to enable interested persons from the other Party to become acquainted with them.
2. Each Party shall maintain an official journal or journals and publish any measures referred to in Paragraph 1 in such journals. Each Party shall publish such journals regularly and make copies of them readily available to the public.
3. A Party may comply with Paragraphs 1 and 2 by publication on the Internet.
4. When possible, a Party shall publish in advance any measure referred to in Paragraph 1 that it proposes to adopt and shall provide, where applicable, interested persons a reasonable opportunity to comment on such proposed measures.
5. Each Party shall endeavour promptly to provide information and to respond to questions from the other Party pertaining to any measure referred to in Paragraph 1.

ARTICLE 1403
Contact Point

1. Each Party shall designate a contact point to facilitate communications between the Parties on any matter covered by this Agreement.
2. Upon request, the contact point shall identify the office responsible for the matter and assist, as necessary, in facilitating communication with the requesting Party.

ARTICLE 1404
Administrative Proceedings

Each Party shall ensure in its administrative proceedings applying to any measure referred to in Article 1402 that:
(a) wherever possible, persons of the other Party who are directly affected by a proceeding are provided reasonable notice, in accordance with domestic procedures, when a proceeding is initiated, including a description of the nature of the proceeding, a statement of the legal authority under which the proceeding is initiated and a general description of the issues in question;
(b) such persons are afforded a reasonable opportunity to present facts and arguments in support of their positions before any final administrative action, when time, the nature of the proceeding and the public interest permit; and
(c) its procedures are in accordance with domestic law.

ARTICLE 1405
Review and Appeal

A Party shall ensure that, where warranted, appropriate domestic procedures are in place to enable prompt review and correction of final administrative actions, other than those taken for prudential reasons, regarding matters covered by this Chapter, that:
(a) provide for tribunals or panels that are impartial and independent of any office or authority entrusted with administrative enforcement and have no substantial interest in the outcome of the matter;
(b) provide parties to any proceeding with a reasonable opportunity to present their respective positions;
(c) provide parties to any proceeding with a decision based on the evidence and submissions of record, or, where required by domestic law, the record compiled by the administrative authority; and
(d) ensure, subject to appeal or further review under domestic law, that such decisions are implemented by, and govern the practice of, the offices or authorities regarding the administrative action at issue.

Part 11