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- The ABA material being referenced is a published record of a comment submission
- The COMESA Commission is described as a regional enforcement body under COMESA rules
- The published descriptions show the submission related to proposed guidelines under the 2004 regulations
- This topic is about an international regulatory framework rather than U.S. federal or state law
- Sources
Key Facts
- Federal and state: The ABA Antitrust Law Section’s 2013 resource list includes a joint submission responding to the COMESA Competition Commission’s request for comments on proposed draft guidelines to the COMESA Competition Regulations, 2004.
- Federal and state: The ABA list identifies the submitting groups as the ABA Sections of Antitrust Law and International Law.
- Federal and state: The ABA list presents the submission as two documents labeled “Cover Letter” and “Comments.”
- Federal and state: The COMESA Competition and Consumer Commission describes itself as a regional body established under Article 6 of the COMESA Competition Regulations.
- Federal and state: The Commission states that it became operational on 14 January 2013 and is based in Lilongwe, Malawi.
- Federal and state: The Commission states that the COMESA Council of Ministers promulgated the COMESA Competition Regulations of 2004 under Article 55(3) of the COMESA Treaty.
- Federal and state: The Commission lists functions that include monitoring and investigating anti-competitive practices and mediating disputes between member states concerning anti-competitive conduct.
- Federal and state: COMESA’s institutions overview describes the Commission as responsible for, among other things, controlling mergers and other forms of acquisitions in the Common Market.
The ABA material being referenced is a published record of a comment submission
On the American Bar Association’s antitrust resources page for 2013 comments, reports, and briefs, one entry is titled as a joint response to the COMESA Competition Commission’s request for comments on proposed draft guidelines connected to the COMESA Competition Regulations, 2004.
That ABA entry identifies the participating ABA groups as the Sections of Antitrust Law and International Law, and it also shows the submission in two parts that are labeled as a cover letter and a comments document.
The COMESA Commission is described as a regional enforcement body under COMESA rules
According to the COMESA Competition and Consumer Commission’s “Who we are” page, the Commission is a regional body established under Article 6 of the regulations made under the Treaty establishing COMESA, and it describes its mandate in terms of enforcing those regulations and promoting competition within the Common Market.
That same COMESA page states that the Commission became operational on 14 January 2013 and is based in Lilongwe, Malawi.
The published descriptions show the submission related to proposed guidelines under the 2004 regulations
The ABA entry frames the submission as comments on proposed draft guidelines “to the COMESA Competition Regulations, 2004,” which signals that the subject matter involved guidance linked to that existing set of COMESA competition regulations rather than a court ruling or an individual enforcement decision.
Separately, COMESA’s description of its institutions explains that the COMESA Competition Commission was established under the COMESA Competition Regulations and discusses functions that include merger control and investigations related to anti-competitive business practices.
This topic is about an international regulatory framework rather than U.S. federal or state law
The sources tied to this ABA entry focus on COMESA institutions and COMESA competition regulations, which are not part of the United States’ federal or state legal systems.
In practical terms, this means the referenced “request for comments” and “draft guidelines” are best understood as part of a COMESA regulatory process, with the ABA materials presented as a professional-organization submission listed in the ABA’s published antitrust resources.
