Competition Tribunal

1
Competition Tribunal

• Parliamentary Portfolio Committee Trade
  Industry
• 15 October 2002
• David Lewis, Chairperson

2
Competition Act of 1998

• The Competition Act regulates
• Anti-competitive practices (Ch. 2)
• Horizontal
• Vertical
• Abuse of dominance
• Exemptions
• Mergers acquisitions (Ch. 3)
• Small
• Intermediate and
• Large mergers

3
The Competition Authorities
F I RMS/ COMPLA I NANTS
 
Appeal and review of Tribunal decisions
Appeal Court
Appeal of Commission decision on exemptions and
intermediate merger Direct complaint when
Commission has non-referred Application for
interim relief
Tribunal
Appeal of Tribunal decisions

Referral of complaints and large mergers
Commission
Complaint Merger notification Exemption
application
4
Tribunal Mandate

• Independent and impartial body which adjudicates
• Alleged restrictive practices, referred by
• Competition Commission and/or
• Private complainants
• Large mergers
• Appeals on decisions of the Competition
  Commission, w.r.t.
• intermediate mergers
• exemptions

5
Mergers I

• Period 2000/2
• 77 Large mergers decided
• 67 unconditionally approved
• 7 approved with conditions,
• 3 prohibited

6
Mergers II

• Turnaround time of Tribunal orders
• 53 of 77 Large Mergers orders (69) issued on day
  of hearing
• only 4 more than 1 week

7
Mergers III

• Merger types
• Horizontal
• Vertical and
• Conglomerate

8
Mergers IV

• Substantial lessening of competition
• JD Group Ellerine merger
• Tongaat Hulett Transvaal Suiker Beperk merger
• Schumann Sasol - Prices Daelite
• Mondi - Kohler Cores Tubes
• Astral - Natchicks
• Unilever - Unifoods
• Naspers - Educor

9
Mergers V

• Public interest considerations
• Black Economic Empowerment
• Shell - Tepco Petroleum merger
• Regional impact
• Iscor - Saldhana Steel merger
• Employment
• Unilever Unifoods merger

10
Restrictive Practices I

• Period 2000/2
• Complaints, total 29 cases
• 7 decided, 3 withdrawn,
• 19 pending (due to interlocutory proceedings,
  technicalities, appeals)
• Competition Commission referrals 17,
• Direct referrals 12
• Interim relief, total 20 cases
• 4 dismissed, 2 granted
• 10 withdrawn, 4 pending

11
Restrictive practices II

• Horizontal
• Botash vs Ansac
• Vertical
• CC vs Federal Mogul Aftermarket
• Abuse
• CC vs Patensie Sitrus
• Nat. Ass. of Pharmaceutical wholesalers et al vs
  Glaxo Wellcome
• CC vs Seven Eleven Corporation
• SA Fruit Terminals vs Portnet, Cape Span et al

12
Challenges

• Efficiency of hearings
• Quality of adjudication
• Communication of decisions