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Transformative Competition Law Adjudication: A Dworkinian Perspective

Liat Ariella Davis

European Law Journal2026https://doi.org/10.1111/eulj.70018article
ABDC B
Weight
0.50

Abstract

This article argues that the proliferation of goals in competition law—from efficiency and consumer welfare to inclusion, transformation and sustainability—cannot be coherently pursued without a guiding normative framework. Using South Africa as a case study, it shows how ambitious statutory objectives, left without such a framework, have produced fragmented jurisprudence: Some decisions retreat to economic orthodoxy, others invoke public interest without principled integration. Drawing on Ronald Dworkin's theory of constructive interpretation, it contends that competition law, like all law, must be interpreted in its best moral light, situated within the constitutional order that gives it purpose. Without this normative anchor, expanded mandates risk incoherence as global regimes seek to move beyond the narrow confines of consumer welfare.

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https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/eulj.70018

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@article{liat2026,
  title        = {{Transformative Competition Law Adjudication: A Dworkinian Perspective}},
  author       = {Liat Ariella Davis},
  journal      = {European Law Journal},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/eulj.70018},
}

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Transformative Competition Law Adjudication: A Dworkinian Perspective

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Evidence weight

0.50

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20
M · momentum0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

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