Question

Ballard Corporation, a U.S. company, does business overseas. In France, which is a member of the European Union (EU), Ballard Corporation works with a French competitor to divide the markets within France to maximize sales for both companies. Ballard Corporation may:

a. face charges of violating only the U.S. antitrust laws because it is a U.S. corporation.
b. face charges of violating only the EU antitrust laws because it is doing business in the EU.
c. not face charges of violating either the U.S. antitrust laws or the EU antitrust laws because the United States has no jurisdiction over activities overseas, and the EU has no jurisdiction over U.S. companies.
d. face charges of violating both U.S. antitrust laws and EU antitrust laws.

Answer 1

Ballard Corporation may d. face charges of violating both U.S. and EU antitrust laws due to their market division and pricing agreement with a French competitor, as both jurisdictions prohibit such anti-competitive behavior.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Ballard Corporation, while conducting business in France, a member of the European Union (EU), and collaborating with a French competitor to divide markets for maximizing sales, may face charges of violating both U.S. antitrust laws and EU antitrust laws. This is because the United States, as well as the European Union, deems agreements among firms to divide markets and set prices as illegal, considering it anti-competitive behavior and a violation of antitrust law.

Both the Antitrust Division of the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission are responsible for preventing collusion in the United States. Similarly, EU competition law prohibits such practices as well. The historical case of the international cartel of vitamin manufacturers, which included firms like Hoffman-La Roche, BASF, and Rhone-Poulenc, serves as a precedent for such legal actions where they faced hefty fines and executive jail time for colluding to fix prices and divide markets.