The Canadian Federal Court of Appeal dismisses the Competition Authority’s appeal and clears a merger in the telecommunications sector subject to conditions (Rogers / Shaw)

Introduction Tuesday 24 January 2023 was not a good day for Canada’s Competition Commissioner (‘the Commissioner’) and the Competition Bureau (‘the Bureau’), which assists the Commissioner in the administration and enforcement of the Competition Act (‘the Act’). [1] This day marked the Federal Court of Appeal’s (‘the court’) dismissal of the Commissioner’s appeal [2] of a Competition Tribunal (’the Tribunal’) merger decision, [3] paving the way for a $26 billion acquisition [4] of Shaw Communications Inc. (‘Shaw’) by Rogers Communications Inc. (‘Rogers’). Rogers and Shaw are Canada’s two largest cable networks. The court decision With the court’s decision, a two-year protracted legal battle finally nears conclusion. [5] Before the Tribunal hearing (but after the Commissioner’s