About

When Karin Stakkestad Laastad became legal director for the Norwegian Competition Authority in August 2012, it was on an acting basis to be held until the end of that year. Testament to her skill in successfully enforcing competition law throughout the country, she is still in the position five years later. As the closest legal adviser to the organisation’s director, she leads a team of lawyers who conduct quality assurance and regulatory work. In a lengthy recent case that went to the Norway’s Supreme Court, the Konkurransetilsynet won a case against two taxi companies over bid-rigging allegations in a tender competition for patient transport to Oslo University Hospital. In 2015 the Competition Authority won an appeal case concerning unlawful cooperation in the asphalt industry. The case was concluded with the off ending party having to pay a fee of NOK 150m, the largest ever imposed by Konkurransetilsynet. After achieving this resolution Laastad is quoted as saying ‘we are pleased with the judgment, which we perceive as thorough and good. The Competition Authority gets full impact, and this underlines the importance of effective enforcement of competition rules’.