Targeted review of the Commerce Act 1986 In one of our last newsletters for 2015 we discussed the publication of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s (MBIE) Targeted Review of the Commerce Act 1986 – Issues Paper (Issues Paper). The Issues Paper essentially focuses on whether NZ’s misuse of market power test (section 36) …
In a surprise announcement, Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Paul Goldsmith has confirmed that criminal sanctions for cartel conduct will be dropped from the Commerce (Cartels and Other Matters) Amendment Bill (Cartels Bill), which has been making its way through the parliamentary process for over 4 years.
The Commerce Commission (NZCC) has had another busy year, particularly in the areas of consumer protection (including advocacy), cartels and regulated industries. NZCC Chair, Dr Mark Berry, recently spoke at stakeholder briefings in Auckland and Wellington about the NZCC’s activities and achievements during the last financial year, and the NZCC’s plans for the future.
This week the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) published an issues paper, “Targeted Review of the Commerce Act 1986” (Issues Paper). The Issues Paper essentially focuses on whether NZ’s misuse of market power test and alternative enforcement mechanisms work, and whether NZ needs formal powers specifically aimed at analysing competition across markets. Legal …
Last month the Commerce Commission (Commission) issued a formal warning to Consolidated Alloys (N.Z.) Limited (Consolidated Alloys) for including an “anti-competitive clause” in a negotiated settlement with its competitor Edging Systems (NZ) Limited (Edging Systems). The clause was included in a settlement agreement to resolve a commercial dispute involving Edging Systems’ alleged breach of Consolidated …
Harvey Norman – when is a price the right price? Australasian retailer Harvey Norman launched its “New Zealand’s Biggest Retail Sale” promotion last week. However due to a technical computer glitch some goods, including lounge suites, were mistakenly advertised online for less than $100 when their intended price was significantly more. According to media reports, …
We raise this question due to a provocative observation of Dr Kaj Storbacka during a presentation by Dr Storbacka and Dr Suvi Nenonen* “The Importance of Market Innovations for New Zealand” at a Law and Economics Association of New Zealand seminar on 27 August. Dr Storbacka noted that during his extensive management consulting and academic …
On 6 August the Commerce Commission published its Statement of Preliminary Issues (SOPI) for Z Energy Limited’s application to acquire Chevron New Zealand. SOPIs are published for the vast majority of clearance applications and are intended to “outline the key competition issues [that the Commission] currently consider[s] to be important in deciding whether or not …
The ACCC has today announced that it has been unsuccessful in two high profile appeals relating to Flight Centre & ANZ – both of which deal with issues of “agency” in the competition/antitrust context. The end result of these two appeals goes some way to reconciling what were two seemingly conflicting judgments. Read more about …
Nicko Waymouth, Senior Associate at Matthews Law, has been nominated by in-house counsel and his peers to appear in the inaugural edition of the Legal Media Group (LMG) Rising Stars 2015 guide – an international publication that identifies the brightest young talent in 28 practice areas of law. LMG also publishes other well-known international legal …