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U.S. merger policy and the 1992 Merger Guidelines

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Abstract

This article reviews the empirical evidence regarding the effects of mergers on corporate efficiency. In light of this evidence it then evaluates the effectiveness of U.S. merger policy as articulated in the 1992 Guidelines of the Department of Justice. It argues that the 1992 Guidelines and the U.S. Government's policies toward business more generally over the past 12 years have been characterized by a bias for bigness. It concludes that this bias will only be eliminated when government authorities in charge of merger policy recognize that many mergers lower economic efficiency and design and enforce their policies accordingly.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Economics, University of Maryland, 20742, College Park, MD, USA

    Dennis C. Mueller

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Mueller, D.C. U.S. merger policy and the 1992 Merger Guidelines. Rev Ind Organ 8, 151–162 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01034174

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