Open AccessTHE LACK OF AN APPROPRIATE CAUSATION FRAMEWORK IN COMPETITION LAW PROCEEDINGS UNDER THE COMPETITION ACT, 1998
Author(s) -
Phumudzo S. Munyai
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
obiter (port elizabeth. online)/obiter (port elizabeth)
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2709-555X
pISSN - 1682-5853
DOI - 10.17159/obiter.v38i3.11420
Subject(s) - causation , competition law , tort , law and economics , dominance (genetics) , argument (complex analysis) , competition (biology) , position (finance) , economics , common law , liability , law , business , political science , market economy , finance , ecology , biochemistry , chemistry , biology , gene , monopoly
Causation is one of the most under-utilised principles in public competition law. This increases the risk that defendants in competition proceedings, in particular, dominant firms in exclusionary abuse of dominance cases, may be found liable for market distortions that cannot satisfactorily be linked to their conduct. Having regard to the substantial financial penalties often levied against dominant firms found to have abused their dominant position, the central argument of this paper is that causation must be recognised and dealt with in competition proceedings as a fundamental legal principle that is central to competition liability. To this end, the paper proposes that the common-law principle of causation developed in tort law or delict can be utilised in developing an appropriate causation framework for public competition law.