Antitrust Law Enforcement: Antitrust Division
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Description
The 41st president and 101st Congress must resuscitate antitrust. Minimalist antitrust enforcement, especially in the area of mergers, is the legacy of the Reagan Administration. Not only have there been few actual challenges to mergers, but lax enforcement policy has also emboldened business firms to propose mergers of a size which would not have been entertained seriously a decade ago. These mergers will adversely affect our economy in many areas, from airlines to supermarkets, from the oil industry to computers. Reagan antitrust enforcers have also refused to enforce the law which prohibits resale price-fixing, thereby increasing the prices that consumers must pay. Although vigorously prosecuting small-scale bid rigging conspiracies, Reagan antitrust enforcers have not looked for illegal cartel behavior in major industries or for foreign cartels seeking to dominate United States markets. It will not be enough, however, simply to revive antitrust. Antitrust enforcement in the next administration must recognize the impact of foreign competition and trade policy. Antitrust must be coordinated with trade policy to assist strategic industries while still maintaining the spur to innovation that only competition can provide. Specific proposals recommended to the 41st president and Congress include: * Immediate revision of the current Department of Justice Merger Guidelines. * Review of recent mergers to determine whether any have resulted in a substantial lessening of competition, thereby rendering them appropriate for court challenge. * Working in coordination with the State Attorneys General, who have been increasingly active in antitrust enforcement throughout the country. * Immediate withdrawal of the current Department of Justice Vertical Restraint Guidelines and Guidelines for International Transactions. * Investigation and prosecution of resale price-fixing. * Investigation and prosecution of international cartels aimed at United States markets.
Source Publication
America's Transition: Blueprints for the 1990s
Source Editors/Authors
Mark Green, Mark Pinsky
Publication Date
1989
Recommended Citation
First, Harry and Fox, Eleanor M., "Antitrust Law Enforcement: Antitrust Division" (1989). Faculty Chapters. 624.
https://gretchen.law.nyu.edu/fac-chapt/624
