Suzuki Kenji    Department   Undergraduate School  , School of Global Japanese Studies    Position   Professor
Language	English
Publication Date	2005/09
Type	International Conference
Title	Independent Commission, Policy Networks, and Economic Reform: Japan’s Fair Trade Commission in Comparative Perspective
Contribution Type	Sole-authored
Journal	American Political Science Association 2005
Details	With an emphasis on the political aspect of competition policy, the study examines the relational status of the competition authority in the policy network, particularly referring to the case of the Fair Trade Commission of Japan (JFTC). The concept of legitimacy is employed as a key factor in the analysis. JFTC is neither court-based nor ministry-based, formally enjoying strong quasi-judicial power and much independence from other ministries. On the other hand, JFTC has far less legalized legitimacy than its otherwise similar counterpart in Korea, and thus needs more to earn substantial legitimacy to secure its status in the policy network. The reform case in the mid-1970s demonstrated the benefit of the non-ministry framework, but it also shows how difficult it is for JFTC to earn substantial legitimacy. The reform case in the mid-1990s reveals further weaknesses of the current form of governance, which seem to have made it less effective for JFTC to be legitimatized as a powerful entity.