Argos, Littlewoods and JJB Ltd v OFT, 2006 EWCA Civ 1318
Citation: Argos, Littlewoods and JJB Ltd v OFT, 2006 EWCA Civ 1318
Rule of thumb:Are organisations in a sector allowed to get together & decide what they will all charge for a product or service? No, this is a classic ‘cartel’, and this is an illegal price-fixing agreement in breach of competition law.
Judgment:
Organisations who are in the same industry are not allowed to get together and agree a minimum price that they will charge for goods or services – this is an illegal cartel, ‘It also seems to us that the Tribunal was right to hold that this sequence of events amounted to a concerted practice to which JJB was a party, as well as Umbro and Sports Soccer, whereby the 2 retailers coordinated their conduct on the market in such a way as, knowingly, to substitute practical co-operation between them for the risks of competition, which had the object or effect of preventing, restricting or distorting competition and in particular of fixing the retail sale price of England replica football shirts in the period before and during Euro 2000, and therefore constituted a breach of the chapter 1 prohibition’, (paragraph 103).
Warning: This is not professional legal advice. This is not professional legal education advice. Please obtain professional guidance before embarking on any legal course of action. This is just an interpretation of a Judgment by persons of legal insight & varying levels of legal specialism, experience & expertise. Please read the Judgment yourself and form your own interpretation of it with professional assistance.