Competition Bureau releases Merger Review Performance Report
On May 31, 2010, the Competition Bureau released its Merger Review Performance Report which provides an update on the performance of the Bureau's Mergers Branch.
For the Bureau’s year of April 1, 2009 - March 31, 2010, the Bureau commenced a total of 216 merger reviews. Reviews were commenced after receiving merger notifications under Part IX of the Competition Act or requests for advance ruling certificates under s. 102 of the Competition Act or for other reasons. Merger review numbers were slightly less than previous years. The Bureau commenced 239 merger reviews in the 2008 – 2009 year and 337 merger reviews in the 2007 – 2008 year (the highest number since at least the 2003 – 2004 year).
The Bureau also reported on the breakdown of complexity designations. In the 2009 – 2010 year the Bureau classified 173 transactions (84%) as non-complex (subject to a non-binding maximum 2 week review period), 27 transactions (13%) as complex (subject to a non-binding maximum 10 week review period), and 6 transactions (3%) as very complex (subject to a non-binding maximum 5 month review period). These results were generally in line with previous years. From 2003 to 2010, approximately 88% of merger reviews were classified as non-complex, 10% as complex and 2% as very complex.
The Bureau reported that in the 2008 – 2009 year it completed its merger reviews within the designated review period 93% of the time for non-complex transactions, 89% of the time for complex transactions and 83% of the time for very complex transactions. Thus, while exceptions do exist, overall the Bureau completes its merger reviews within the applicable review period in a high percentage of cases.
It is important to keep in mind that review periods are based on non-binding review periods set out in the Bureau’s Fee and Service Standards Handbook. These are wholly distinct from the statutory waiting periods set out in Part IX of the Competition Act.
