(a) It shall be unlawful for any person, either directly or indirectly, to discriminate in price between different purchasers of commodities of like grade and quality, where such commodities are sold for use, consumption, or resale in Puerto Rico, and where the effect of such discrimination may be substantially to lessen competition or tend to create a monopoly in any line of commerce in Puerto Rico, or to injure, destroy, or prevent competition with any person who either grants or knowingly receives the benefit of such discrimination, or with customers of either of them.
(b) It shall be unlawful for any person to pay or contract for the payment, or contribute to the payment of anything of value to or for the benefit of a customer of such person as compensation or in consideration for any services or facilities furnished by or through such customer in connection with the processing, handling, sale, or offering for sale of any products or commodities manufactured, sold, or offered for sale by such person, unless such payment or consideration is available on proportionally equal terms to all other customers competing in the distribution of such products or commodities in Puerto Rico.
(c) It shall be unlawful for any person to furnish, contract to furnish, or contribute to the furnishing of, any services or facilities to or for the benefit of a customer of such person in connection with the processing, handling, sale, or offering for sale of any commodity manufactured, sold, or offered for sale by such person unless such service or facility is available on proportionally equal terms to all customers competing in the distribution of such commodity in Puerto Rico.
(d) It shall be unlawful for any person to solicit or knowingly to induce or to receive a discrimination in price which is prohibited by the preceding subsection (a), or a payment which is prohibited by subsection (b), or a service or facility which is prohibited by subsection (c).
(e) In any action for violation of subsections (a), (b), (c) or (d) above, it shall be admissible as a defense, proof that the differential granted by the accused person make only due allowance for differences in the cost of manufacture, sale or delivery resulting from the differing methods or quantities in which such commodities are to such purchasers sold or delivered. Nothing provided in subsections (a), (b) and (c) shall prevent a seller to interpose as a defense the fact that his lower price or the furnishing of services or facilities to any purchaser was offered to meet an equally low price of a competitor, or the services or facilities furnished by a competitor, if the court affirmatively finds that there has been good faith in the transactions so effected by the seller and the same are not intended to, nor facilitate a violation or evasion of this section.
(f) It shall be unlawful to sell or execute any contract for the sale of goods at unreasonably low prices for the purpose of destroying competition or eliminating a competitor.
History —June 25, 1964, No. 77, p. 235, § 7.