Morality in Competition Law: The Culture of Honesty and Trust in Consumer Protection

Abstract

Recent works in legal scholarship have shifted the focus of competition law to the economic analysis of law. Yet today we face the revival of the fairness concerns in competition polices. This article concerns itself with the nature of the interdependent relationship between competition law and consumer protection law as ancillary to the necessary relationship between law and morality. Hereby it aims to revisit their raison d’être to discuss that fairness and equity do not lack economic foundations. For an efficient market structure, private property and good faith in contractual relations are essential. This article aims to scrutinise the latter, while showing its objective criteria: Honesty, trust and reasonableness, as the moral essence of competition and consumer protection laws. These criteria provide efficient means to address moral aspects of fairness in competition law as it is best illustrated within its relation to consumer protection without compromising their economic foundations. Keywords: competition law, consumer protection, fairness, good faith, honesty, trust