The Soul of Competition Law (A Comparative Study on Objectives of Competition Law)

Competition law is conceived as one of the most important factors in the success of free market economic systems. The idea is that if free competition exists among activists at production and distribution of goods and services, economic efficiency and ultimately total welfare will increase. While this new branch of law has long provoked fascinating interdisciplinary discussions among economists and lawyers, the legal system of Iran has recently taken the first step in this field. So it is required that from now that the underlying premises and principles of this area of law are properly discussed and examined to pave the way for deeper future researches. Certainly one of the most important and basic questions about any new regulations which it is of a determinant role in interpreting their provisions, is goals which those regulations seek to achieve. Lawyers and legal systems have no consensus on objectives of competition law. Generally, multiple goals for the said regulations are conceivable that sometimes run at odds with each in execution stage. The following article, relying on Iran legal system is to explain the objectives of competition law. It shows that the “Soul” of competition law is the preservation of competition to promote efficiencies for consumers.