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Definition

The Competition Tribunal is established in terms of section 26 of the Competition Act (89 of 1998) to hear and decide on competition cases prepared by the Competition Commission. These are of two types - mergers and acquisitions where the tribunal decides on whether a merger of acquisition can go ahead and under what conditions and on practices which are illegal in terms of the Act such as price fixing and collusion. Decisions made by the Competition Tribunal can be appealed to the Competition Appeal Court. Since 1994, there have been many cases brought to the Tribunal by the Competition Commission such as the price fixing case in the construction industry which eventually resulted in the industry paying fines of R1,4bn. The largest single settlement was with Arcellor Mittal for R1,5bn. The objective of the Act is to ensure a high degree of competition in the economy so as to reduce monopolistic practices and keep the prices of goods down through adequate competition.

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