Japan Fair Trade Commission’s New Merger Review Guidelines

On May 31, 2004, the Fair Trade Commission of Japan (the "JFTC") published new "Guidelines on the Application of the Anti Monopoly Act to Reviewing Business Combination" (Kigyo Ketsugo Shinsa ni Kansuru Dokusenkinshiho no Unyou Shishin) ("New Guidelines"). The JFTC’s previous merger guidelines provided only a vague summary of the agency’s framework for review and a list of past cases, resulting in criticism that the guidelines did not provide sufficient guidance to firms planning mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures. The New Guidelines, in contrast, provide a detailed description of the JFTC’s analytical framework, which borrows heavily from the U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission’s Horizontal Merger Guidelines ("U.S. Merger Guidelines"). As a result, the New Guidelines provide more predictability to firms planning business combinations.