The author examines whether and to what extent distinct or special processes can be identified in the establishment of independent antitrust authorities in West Germany, France, and at the European level. The strict measures taken by the state against cartels, which now seem self-evident, did not develop simultaneously or according to uniform patterns in these three legal systems. Instead, three exemplary approaches emerged from 1945 to 1989. The author relates the establishment of antitrust oversight to historical developments, reveals contradictions, and identifies additional factors that may have significantly contributed to the creation of free competition.