Konkurrenslagen och konkurrensbegränsande offentliga regleringar

Sammanfattning: The dissertation addresses the problem of how conflicts between the Swedish Competition Act (SFS 1993:20) and anti-competitive state regulations are to be solved. The study focuses on the legal situation in Sweden after 1993, when a new competition law was enacted and after the Swedish Membership of the European Union 1995. A comparative survey of how similar conflicts are solved in American Law, EU Law and Danish Law is made. The rationale behind the reform of the competition legislation in Sweden was the consideration that competition did not work well enough on Swedish markets. One important reason for this was thought to be the existence of regulations with a negative impact on competition. The solution of the problem was thought to reside in the adjustment of the Swedish competition legislation to the rules of the European Community (EC). After this substantial legal reform, a change in how anti-competitive regulations are dealt with could be expected. This study shows, however, that there has been practically no change at all. When conflicts between the Competition Act and anti-competitive regulations do occur, the Swedish Competition Authority evaluates the applicability of the regulation to see if a conflict really is at hand. In this legal process it is suggested that the regulation and not the Competition Act should be interpreted narrowly. This study shows that such a restrictive approach can be justified when taking the relevant sources of law into account. In cases where a disturbance to competition is the direct and necessary consequence of a clear regulation – with due considerations to EC Law – the regulation prevails. When these conditions are not at hand, it can be justified to give priority to the Competition Act.