Misuse of Market Power
Rationale and Reform

Compares Australia's new misuse of market power law with US and EU tests for monopolization and abuse of dominance.

Katharine Kemp (Author)

9781107184763, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 28 June 2018

268 pages, 1 table
23.5 x 15.6 x 1.6 cm, 0.51 kg

'Katharine's interventions in the debate leading up to the recent reforms to section 46 of Australia's Competition and Consumer Act were scholarly, insightful and influential. Her contributions also helped to moderate the tone of public commentary that occasionally became quite confused. In this book she has now brought her reasoned and careful approach to an excellent exposition of the issues in this most complex area of competition policy and law. Her fascinating description of the development of abuse of dominance and monopolization laws in England, Germany, Australia, Europe and the United States gives valuable historical context to her careful analysis of the arguments that have surrounded the framing and application of the laws that seek to keep the power of oligarchs and monopolists in check. Katharine's book will be a valuable resource for my ACCC colleagues, students, academics, legal practitioners, and I suspect, the Courts. It will be a key tool as we all seek to apply Australia's misuse of market power law in years to come. It is also an impressive addition to the international debate about the scope of laws and policies addressing anticompetitive action by dominant businesses.' Rod Sims, Chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission

Laws prohibiting unilateral anticompetitive conduct have been the subject of vigorous international debate for decades, as policymakers, antitrust scholars and agencies continue to disagree over how best to regulate the market conduct of a single firm with substantial market power. Katharine Kemp describes the controversy over Australia's misuse of market power laws in recent years, which mirrored the international debate in this sphere, and culminated in the fundamental reform of the misuse of market power prohibition under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) in 2017. Misuse of Market Power: Rationale and Reform explains Australia's new misuse of market power law, which adopts an 'effects-based test' for unilateral conduct, and makes a comparative analysis between Australian tests for unilateral anticompetitive conduct and tests from the US and the EU. This text also illuminates the frequently mentioned, but little understood, concept of 'purpose' and its role in framing unilateral conduct standards.

1. Introduction
2. Unilateral conduct laws: origins, objectives and theory
3. The history and objectives of unilateral conduct legislation in Australia
4. A comparative analysis of profit-focused tests for unilateral anticompetitive conduct
5. A comparative analysis of effects-based tests for unilateral anticompetitive conduct
6. The role of purpose in unilateral conduct standards.

Subject Areas: Financial law [LNP], Competition law / Antitrust law [LNCH], Company law [LNCD], Commercial law [LNCB], Company, commercial & competition law [LNC], Laws of Specific jurisdictions [LN], International law [LB], Law [L]