Celler-Kefauver Act,

Definition of Celler-Kefauver Act:

1. The Celler-Kefauver Act is one of several U.S. laws designed to prevent certain mergers and acquisitions which would lead to the creation of a monopoly or otherwise significantly reduce competition. The Celler-Kefauver Act was passed in 1950 to create additional restrictions in addition to the Clayton and Sherman Antitrust Act.

2. The former antitrust legislation provided controls on certain mergers and acquisitions, but only in the case of buying outstanding stock. Antitrust rules could thus be largely circumvented by only buying the assets of the target corporation. The Celler-Kefauver Act prevents this work-around measure thus strengthening anti-trust rules in the United States.

3. Anti-trust legislation enacted in 1950 which prohibits companies from merging with vertical partners, such as suppliers and distributors, if it can be demonstrated that the merger would impede competition. The act amended previous ant-trust legislation (Clayton Act) which prohibited certain horizontal mergers.