Antitrust Law and Economic Analysis: The Swedish Approach

Antitrust regimes are mixtures of law, economics and administrative action instituted to protect complex economic processes. Currently in the United States there is widespread confusion and doubt about the goals, values, structures and processes of antitrust law. This Article presents a comparative study of United States and Swedish antitrust law in an attempt to shed some light on the current confusion. Sweden offers a valuable comparison because it utilizes its antitrust law to achieve the same basic goals that are pursued under United States antitrust law, but it does so in a significantly different manner.

Swedish antitrust law, in contrast to United States antitrust law, explicitly recognizes the complex interrelationships between legal, administrative and economic analyses in an integrated antitrust "system." This Article will first describe and analyze the Swedish antitrust system. The Article will then utilize a comparative perspective to provide insight into the current controversy surrounding United States antitrust law.