Review of section 36 of the Commerce Act and other matters
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) is proposing changes to New Zealand’s law relating to the misuse of market power (section 36 of the Commerce Act), along with other minor changes to the treatment of intellectual property rights and covenants in the Commerce Act.
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About the targeted review
In 2015 MBIE released an issues paper on three main matters, one of which was whether section 36 of the Commerce Act was working effectively.
As a result of this review, MBIE decided to proceed with the publication of a discussion document titled Review of section 36 of the Commerce Act and other matters on 25 January 2019. This addressed three matters:
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options to strengthen New Zealand’s prohibition against the misuse of market power by aligning it with Australia and other developed economies
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whether to repeal sections of the Commerce Act that shield some intellectual property arrangements from competition law
- whether to make technical changes to the treatment of covenants under the Act.
Consultation closed on 1 April 2019, and a total of 29 submissions were received.