Dorsey attorney James Nichols reviewed for the Minnesota State Bar Association (MSBA) a November 14, 2007 presentation to the Antitrust Section of the MSBA by Professor Robert Kudrle of the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs and the University of Minnesota Law School. Kudrle recently completed a cross-border study of antitrust law and practice in Europe, the U.S., Canada, and East Asia.
Nichols noted that Kudrle's research revealed that while competition laws in Europe, North America and Japan are similar, the patterns of enforcement can differ widely. European antitrust law, for instance, tends to view the protection of rivalry among firms as an important goal of antitrust, while American antitrust law has focused in recent decades on improving consumer welfare. Nonetheless, Kudrle strongly advocates a policy of voluntary convergence of antitrust enforcement among states, a process he predicts will focus on American law developments.
Read Nichols' full analysis of Professor Kudrle's remarks (PDF link)
"Professor Kudrle Addresses the MSBA Antitrust Section" was posted on the Antitrust Section of the Minnesota State Bar Association Website, December 3, 2007. (See, http://www2.mnbar.org/sections/antitrust/Kudrle%20Article.pdf)