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California Law Revision Commission

-- Last revised 10/7/24 --

Antitrust Law - Study B-750

    In 2022, the Legislature authorized the Commission to study the following issues:

(1) Whether the law should be revised to outlaw monopolies by single companies as outlawed by Section 2 of the Sherman Act, as proposed in New York State’s “Twenty-First Century Anti-Trust Act” and in the “Competition and Antitrust Law Enforcement Reform Act of 2021” introduced in the United States Senate, or as outlawed in other jurisdictions.

(2) Whether the law should be revised in the context of technology companies so that analysis of antitrust injury in that setting reflects competitive benefits such as innovation and permitting the personal freedom of individuals to start their own businesses and not solely whether such monopolies act to raise prices.

(3) Whether the law should be revised in any other fashion such as approvals for mergers and acquisitions and any limitation of existing statutory exemptions to the state’s antitrust laws to promote and ensure the tangible and intangible benefits of free market competition for Californians ... (2022 Cal. Stat. res. ch. 147.)

    Materials related to the Commission’s work on that topic will be collected on this page.

    If you have questions or comments on this study, send an e-mail to Sharon Reilly at sreilly@clrc.ca.gov.

Expert Reports:

    The California Law Revision Commission has recruited experts to assist the Commission in its study of Antitrust Law. The scope of the work of the experts is described in Memorandum 2023-16 and Memorandum 2024-32. Those experts were formed into eight working groups and their reports are as follows:
Group 1. Single Firm Conduct
Group 2. Mergers and Acquisitions
Group 3. Concerted Action
Group 4. Consumer Welfare Standard
Group 5. Technology Platforms
Group 6. Enforcement and Exemptions
Group 7. Concentration in California
Group 8. Artificial Intelligence

    The reports will be considered by the Commission over the course of several meetings, as indicated below. In advance of each meeting, the staff will prepare and circulate memoranda with the relevant expert reports attached. It is possible that working groups may wish to submit additional materials as the study continues. Any additional materials will be provided to the Commission and made available to the public.

    Please note that the following schedule of when the expert reports will be on Commission meeting agendas:

  • May 2, 2024: Single Firm Conduct & Concentration in California.
  • June 20, 2024: Mergers and Acquisitions & Technology Platforms.
  • August 15, 2024: Concerted Action, Consumer Welfare Standard, & Enforcement and Exemptions.
  • October 10, 2024: Artificial Intelligence.
    The staff is extremely grateful for the invaluable assistance that these experts have provided. The reports that they prepared for the Commission will establish a critical foundation for the Commission’s deliberations.

    The Commission encourages the public to submit written comments, which will be provided to the Commissioners for their consideration. Public comments may be submitted to sreilly@clrc.ca.gov. The public may also make oral comments at Commission meetings, which may be made in-person or via Zoom. The staff encourages oral comments on a specific topic to be made at the meeting where the report on that topic will be considered.

Public Comment:

    Any written comment submitted to the Commission will be attached to a staff memorandum. All staff memoranda on Antitrust Law are posted on this study page. Notice of each memorandum is provided to Commissioners and stakeholders on the Commission’s electronic distribution list.
    For ease of reference, the staff has prepared an index of the public comments received in the Commission’s study of Antitrust Law. For each comment, the index provides a link to the staff memorandum to which the comment was attached.

Related Material

Meeting Minutes

Top | CLRC Homepage

Staff Memoranda

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