Financial Crime and Corruption by Samuel Vaknin
4. The establishment of an international authority to
340 words | Chapter 49
settle disputes between parties over antitrust
issues.
The 29 (well-off) members of the Organization for
Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) formed
rules governing the harmonization and coordination of
international antitrust/competition regulation among its
member nations ("The Revised Recommendation of the
OECD Council Concerning Cooperation between Member
Countries on Restrictive Business Practices Affecting
International Trade," OECD Doc. No. C(86)44 (Final)
(June 5, 1986), also in 25 International Legal Materials
1629 (1986). A revised version was reissued. According
to it, " .Enterprises should refrain from abuses of a
dominant market position; permit purchasers, distributors,
and suppliers to freely conduct their businesses; refrain
from cartels or restrictive agreements; and consult and
cooperate with competent authorities of interested
countries".
An agency in one of the member countries tackling an
antitrust case, usually notifies another member country
whenever an antitrust enforcement action may affect
important interests of that country or its nationals (see:
OECD Recommendations on Predatory Pricing, 1989).
The United States has bilateral antitrust agreements with
Australia, Canada, and Germany, which was followed by
a bilateral agreement with the EU in 1991. These provide
for coordinated antitrust investigations and prosecutions.
The United States thus reduced the legal and political
obstacles which faced its extraterritorial prosecutions and
enforcement. The agreements require one party to notify
the other of imminent antitrust actions, to share relevant
information, and to consult on potential policy changes.
The EU-U.S. Agreement contains a "comity" principle
under which each side promises to take into consideration
the other's interests when considering antitrust
prosecutions. A similar principle is at the basis of Chapter
15 of the North American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA) - cooperation on antitrust matters.
The United Nations Conference on Restrictive Business
Practices adopted a code of conduct in 1979/1980 that was
later integrated as a U.N. General Assembly Resolution
[U.N. Doc. TD/RBP/10 (1980)]: "The Set of
Multilaterally Agreed Equitable Principles and Rules".
According to its provisions, "independent enterprises
should refrain from certain practices when they would
limit access to markets or otherwise unduly restrain
competition".
The following business practices are prohibited:
Reading Tips
Use arrow keys to navigate
Press 'N' for next chapter
Press 'P' for previous chapter