Die Berücksichtigung außerwettbewerblicher Interessen in der Fusionskontrolle

The ministerial authorisation under Section 42 GWB has always been a controversial legal instrument, which permits an intended merger despite competitive restraints in exceptional cases. The underlying precondition requires these restraints to be offset by the macroeconomic advantages of the merger or by overarching public interests.
The study is a profound review of the ministerial authorisation with a main focus on the new provisions implemented in the context of the 9th amendment to the GWB. Object of investigation is the question of whether the legal instrument needs an extensive reform or if selective changes are more expedient. For this purpose, proposals for amendments from politics and research are examined.
The results show that, despite existing dangers, there is still a need for the exceptional consideration of non-competitive interests in merger control and that the ministerial authorisation is a necessary corrective to the pure doctrine of competition.