Competition Law in Latin America


Book Description

In the past few years, Latin American countries have taken giant steps to reposition their competition authorities in the global antitrust arena, granting them much greater autonomy both domestically and internationally. This is an updated edition of the first book that offered an in-depth analysis of this complex scenario. The first part of the book includes more general chapters written by leading experts on a variety of relevant topics analyzed at a regional level such as the issues emerging with the digital economy and on the special field of the information and communications technology industry, as well as chapters on broad regional trends, on the working of competition law in countries with regulated markets and in the cluster of Central American countries, among others. At the heart of the presentation are nine chapters detailing the competition regimes of the most active national jurisdictions in the region—Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay. Written by practicing experts with considerable hands-on experience in their respective countries, each of these chapters provides a comprehensive description and explanation of the evolution, current state, and prospects for antitrust in the country. Topics addressed in the country analysis encompass the following and more: relevant institutions and legislation; cartel investigations; unilateral conduct policies; merger review; international coordination; enforcement; and remedies. Each chapter includes an analysis of relevant case law, allowing the reader to gauge the positions, views, and tendencies of each competition law regime. The contributors also pay attention to the specificities and idiosyncrasies that are so important for a correct understanding of the practical realities of competition policy and enforcement. With its wide-ranging and in-depth approach, this book provides an incomparable analysis of a challenging region poised to become increasingly important in the international recognition and enforcement of antitrust law. It is in this sense an essential guide for lawyers, economists, corporations, academics, and government officials interested in understanding where competition law is, and where it is going to, in Latin America.




Fighting Cross-Border Cartels


Book Description

This book is the first detailed treatment of the approaches taken to enforce competition laws against cross-border cartels (CBCs) from the perspective of young and small competition authorities (more than 70% of the total number of authorities worldwide). No other legal or inter-disciplinary scholarship exists in the market that deals with the issue of a taxonomy of CBCs combined with young/small competition authorities' problems. The book looks at the extent of the harms caused by CBCs and issues associated with tackling them at a transnational level. It explains why past solutions to problems with cooperation have failed and proposes novel ideas on how to improve cooperation and coordination in certain types of CBC investigations (transnational and regional CBCs). The proposals are based on primary-source information and observations made by the author as part of his work in the UN, and interviews with leading enforcers from young, small, old and large jurisdictions. Young/small competition authorities, competition lawyers and economists, scholars and students within the fields of competition law and international law, and those interested in international cooperation and coordination in the area of cartel enforcement in emerging markets will greatly benefit from this book. It is clearly structured and extensively referenced, providing a valuable guide to the topic.




Competition Law and Development


Book Description

The vast majority of the countries in the world are developing countries—there are only thirty-four OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries—and yet there is a serious dearth of attention to developing countries in the international and comparative law scholarship, which has been preoccupied with the United States and the European Union. Competition Law and Development investigates whether or not the competition law and policy transplanted from Europe and the United States can be successfully implemented in the developing world or whether the developing-world experience suggests a need for a different analytical framework. The political and economic environment of developing countries often differs significantly from that of developed countries in ways that may have serious implications for competition law enforcement. The need to devote greater attention to developing countries is also justified by the changing global economic reality in which developing countries—especially China, India, and Brazil—have emerged as economic powerhouses. Together with Russia, the so-called BRIC countries have accounted for thirty percent of global economic growth since the term was coined in 2001. In this sense, developing countries deserve more attention not because of any justifiable differences from developed countries in competition law enforcement, either in theoretical or practical terms, but because of their sheer economic heft. This book, the second in the Global Competition Law and Economics series, provides a number of viewpoints of what competition law and policy mean both in theory and practice in a development context.




Competition Law and Policy in Latin America


Book Description

This book offers an unparalleled analysis of the emerging law and economics of competition policy in Latin America. Nearly all Latin American countries now have competition laws and agencies to enforce them. Yet, these laws and agencies are relatively young. The relative youth of Latin American competition agencies and the institutional and political environment in which they operate limit the ability of agencies to effectively address anti-competitive conduct. Competition policy is a tool to overcome anti-market traditions in Latin America. Effective competition policy is critical to assisting in the growth of Latin American economies, their global competitiveness, and improving the welfare of domestic consumers. This book provides new region specific insights on how to better achieve these aims. This authoritative volume will be of particular interest to competition agencies, academics in law, economics and Latin American Studies, practitioners around the world in the areas of antitrust and competition policy, policymakers, and journalists.




Merger Control in Latin America


Book Description

Following significant reforms over the last 20 years, merger control regimes in Latin America now constitute around 20% of merger regimes worldwide. In regard to global transactions that may trigger the notification thresholds in many of these jurisdictions, it became necessary that an up-to-date book analyzing current legislation and case law be available for practitioners. This book compiles for the first time the applicable law governing merger control in Latin America. More than 30 distinguished authors, from both private and enforcement backgrounds, cover 17 jurisdictions and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). For each jurisdiction, the reader will find a presentation of the merger control system, a description of the applicable procedures, and an analysis of the most relevant case law on the subject. In addition, the editors, Paulo Burnier da Silveira and Pamela Sittenfeld, provide an overview of the merger regimes in Latin America, as well as a synthesis of the particularities of the regimes addressed in the book.




The Goals of Competition Law


Book Description

What are the normative foundations of competition law? That is the question at the heart of this book. Leading scholars consider whether this branch of law serves just one or more than one goal, and if it serves to protect unfettered competition as such, how this goal relates to other objectives such as the promotion of economic welfare. The book brings together contributions on the relevance of different welfare standards, on the concept of 'freedom to compete' and on distributional fairness as a goal of competition law. Moreover, it discusses the relationship to other legal goals such as mar.




Competition Law and Policy in Latin America


Book Description

The Latin American countries, both individually and as a community, are poised to become increasingly important in the international recognition and enforcement of competition law. Recent policy developments in the region are particularly instructive on cross-border mergers and international cartel investigations. Although this book’s focus is on Latin America, its in-depth exploration of areas such as information exchange among competition authorities, compliance, settlements and remedies are of great value and interest to competition lawyers and policymakers worldwide. Including numerous recent cases and best practice indicators, the contributors ̄ competition authority officials, practitioners, academics and economists ̄ cover such topics and issues as the following: • antitrust compliance programs; • competition advocacy; • bid rigging in public procurement; • predatory pricing; • use of indirect evidence in investigations; • shareholders’ damages claims; • relation between antitrust and intellectual property; and • merger control. There are country-specific chapters on particular developments in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico and Paraguay. Highlighting the importance of international competition regulatory cooperation, this insightful book offers both practical guidance and food for thought to lawyers at national competition authorities, corporate counsel, and other competition law practitioners and academics.




Competition Law and Antitrust


Book Description

Competition, or Antitrust, law is now a global phenomenon. It operates in more than 100 countries and the relationships among competition law systems are often complex and opaque. Competition law is also new to many countries, which creates uncertainty about how decisions will be made in these jurisdictions. This makes it critically important to understand both the similarities and differences among the systems and the relationships between them. A succinct introduction, this title breaks down the complicated and foreboding topic of competition law. Divided into four parts, this book covers the elements of competition laws, its decisions, targets, and globalization and the future of competition law. It also provides global context by looking at competition law in the US, Europe, and growing markets like Asia and Latin America. This title covers the most pressing issues of competition law in an informative and concise way. Drawing on his lifetime of global experience and research, David J. Gerber's Competition Law and Antitrust is an essential tool for anyone interested in competition or antitrust law.




Challenges to Assumptions in Competition Law


Book Description

This timely book addresses the contemporary complexities within competition law, questioning whether the founding principles of competition law still hold true today. It explores three main present-day challenges for competition law: the impact of the digital economy and innovative sectors, the challenges facing emerging countries, and current institutional issues.




Market Entry and Competition Law in Latin America


Book Description

This book explores the relationship between market entry analysis in competition law and the study of the determinants of aggregate investment. Macroeconomic and social characteristics, such as widespread corruption, political instability, and low levels of education are associated with lower investment rates. Progress on these indicators on the other hand is also strongly associated with sustained growth and higher investment rates. This book analyzes the interaction between these macro variables and the market-specific analysis typical in antitrust cases. Against this background, representative decisions of four Latin American competition authorities – México, El Salvador, Colombia, and Chile – on unilateral conduct are analyzed, focusing on market power assessment. The analysis shows that there is little to no explicit or implicit consideration of the impact of the macroeconomic environment on market dynamism and therefore on market power. This book also explores the influence that EU and US competition law have in the standards to prove ease of market entry developed by the Latin American authorities. Although most of the Latin American authorities share a lack of reliance on market forces, which is characteristic of EU competition law, this book argues that market entry analysis still needs to be adjusted to fit the socio-economic context that affects investment within the country and the degree to which each particular market is affected. Finally, the book proposes a framework on how the macro characteristics covered can be incorporated into competition law enforcement.