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A review on the criminalisation of cartel activity in South Africa and the implications thereof

Dissertation (LLM (Mercantile Law))--University of Pretoria, 2019.

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Other Authors: Van Heerden, C.M. (Corlia)
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: University of Pretoria 2020
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access_status_str Open Access
author2 Van Heerden, C.M. (Corlia)
author_browse Van Heerden, C.M. (Corlia)
author_facet Van Heerden, C.M. (Corlia)
collection Thesis
dc_rights_str_mv © 2019 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria.
description Dissertation (LLM (Mercantile Law))--University of Pretoria, 2019.
format Thesis
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institution University of Pretoria (South Africa)
language English
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license_str Other — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
publishDate 2020
publishDateRange 2020
publishDateSort 2020
publisher University of Pretoria
publisherStr University of Pretoria
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source_str UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
spelling oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/73212 A review on the criminalisation of cartel activity in South Africa and the implications thereof Van Heerden, C.M. (Corlia) RelebohileT@compcom.co.za Thabane, Relebohile Competition Law UCTD Dissertation (LLM (Mercantile Law))--University of Pretoria, 2019. On 1 May 2016, section 73A of the Competition Amendment Act, no 1 of 2009 (“the Amendment”) came into effect. The Amendment is a turning point for the prosecution of cartels in that it will hold directors and executives criminally and personally liable for contravening section 4(1)(b) of the Competition Act 89 of 1998 (“the Competition Act”). Section 4(1)(b) of the Competition Act prohibits firms in a horizontal relationship from agreeing to engage in price fixing, market allocation and collusive tendering. Cartels are considered the most egregious of conduct in competition law due to their effect on economies and ordinary people and consumers. The purpose of enactment of the Amendment is to serve as a deterrent tool against cartels. The imposition of administrative penalties against companies engaging in cartel conduct has proven to not be enough of a deterrent given the increasing number of cartels nationally and globally. The notion is that companies around the world are run by individuals and thus those individuals who knowingly engage in cartel conduct must be held accountable for their participation in such conduct. As a deterrent, individuals in executive positions will have to weigh the benefits of engaging in cartel conduct against the real risk of losing their personal freedom. The Amendment in its current form is criticised for firstly, potentially rendering the corporate leniency policy redundant and secondly, potentially infringing on individuals’ constitutional rights. The corporate leniency policy has been instrumental in the uncovering of cartels because it allows companies to self-report on their participation in cartel conduct in exchange for immunity against prosecution. Modifications to the Amendment are suggested to remedy problematic sections of the Amendment before they come into effect. Lessons can be taken from other jurisdictions such as the United States and the United Kingdom which criminalise cartel conduct. It will be necessary for the Competition Commission to consider individual immunity against criminal prosecution and to clearly outline the process of criminalisation in order to clear the uncertainty regarding constitutionality of the provisions of the Amendment. Mercantile Law LLM (Mercantile Law) Unrestricted 2020-02-11T13:02:38Z 2020-02-11T13:02:38Z 2020-04 2019 Dissertation * A2020 http://hdl.handle.net/2263/73212 en © 2019 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. application/pdf University of Pretoria
spellingShingle Competition Law
UCTD
A review on the criminalisation of cartel activity in South Africa and the implications thereof
title A review on the criminalisation of cartel activity in South Africa and the implications thereof
title_full A review on the criminalisation of cartel activity in South Africa and the implications thereof
title_fullStr A review on the criminalisation of cartel activity in South Africa and the implications thereof
title_full_unstemmed A review on the criminalisation of cartel activity in South Africa and the implications thereof
title_short A review on the criminalisation of cartel activity in South Africa and the implications thereof
title_sort review on the criminalisation of cartel activity in south africa and the implications thereof
topic Competition Law
UCTD
url http://hdl.handle.net/2263/73212