Competition and Regulatory
Regardless of the sector, companies must almost always compete in markets that are subject to government control and regulation. Although the objective of such regulation is primarily to achieve efficiency, quite frequently it can result in regulations that distort markets, constrain the growth of industries and/or impose unnecessary barriers to trade. A further dimension to regulatory control is that often regulations are not effectively enforced due to a shortage of adequately trained personnel and/or appropriate infrastructure and funding.
Competition has proved to be an important policy tool for efficiency and innovation in markets. For example, state intervention is often needed to restore fair competition from the effects of restrictive agreements or an abuse of dominance, or to prevent the formation of cartels as a result of mergers and other commercial arrangements.
Equinoccio has extensive global experience in assisting clients to resolve market issues within existing or pending regulatory environments. It has also provided services to clients with the objective of amending or repealing regulations in cases where they clearly impose unnecessary barriers to trade. It has also proposed amendments to legal requirements in order to make regulatory intervention easier for authorities to apply and services to develop self-regulation schemes in the services industry.