Key Point
- Courts could get greater power to address
anti-competitive "understandings" under section 45 of the
TPA.
On 8 January 2009, the Commonwealth Treasury announced that it was seeking submissions from
interested parties concerning the meaning of
"understanding" in section 45 of the Trade Practices Act,
and the way in which the existence of an understanding can be
proved.
Section 45 prohibits a corporation from making or giving effect
to a provision of a contract, arrangement or understanding if that
provision constitutes an exclusionary provision, or if it has the
purpose or likely effect of substantially lessening
competition.
Why is this important?
Any changes that are made to the TPA will probably make it
easier for the ACCC to prove the existence of cartel arrangements
in Australian markets, and therefore to take enforcement
action.
