National Courts And The Standard Of Review In Competition Law And Economic Regulation

From a comparative perspective, this book deals with the question of the impact of European law, especially the Tetra Laval case-law, on the standard of review applied by national courts in the area of competition law and economic regulation. The book is a follow-up to the conference on 'Judicial review in competition law and economic regulation, ' held by the Europa Institute at Utrecht on May 23-24, 2008. It contains contributions by academics and practitioners from EU Member States and from European institutions. The book analyzes the differences and the similarities between the crucial concepts related to judicial review and the way judicial review functions in practice in different EU Member States. It examines the question as to whether a more common approach towards judicial review is needed, and if so, how this can be achieved

Mateus and Moreira present a formidable review of pressing issues in competition law and economics. Top officials, judges and experts from Europe and North America offer their insights into analytical issues, practical problems for companies, enforcers and complainants and on the state of trans-Atlantic divergence and convergence. The discussion on national champions and state aid is prescient. Throughout, the analysis is acute, cutting edge, and deep. Officials, counsel and scholars will draw from this fabulous book for years to come. Philip Marsden, British Institute of International and Comparative Law, London, UK Competition policy is at a crossroads on both sides of the Atlantic. In this insightful book, judges, enforcers and academics in law and economics look at the consensus built so far and clarify controversies surrounding the issue. There is broad consensus on the fight against cartels, with some countries criminalizing this type of agreement. However there is also wide debate on the questions of monopolization and abuse of dominant position, vividly highlighted by the recent Microsoft case. Furthermore, there are today diverging views on the interplay of business strategies and the control of market power on both a national and international scale. The book discusses the perennial issue in Europe of the conflicts between competition and industrial policies, once again bringing the theme of national champions to the fore. The contributing authors provide opinion on the efforts which have been made towards modernization in both the USA and the EU. Featuring new contributions by leading scholars and practitioners in antitrust, this book will be a great resource for antitrust enforcers, competition lawyers and practitioners and competition economists, as well as scholars and graduate students in antitrust and competition law.

The role of investment arbitration is a controversial issue, as it is increasingly seen as a system in which private arbitrators adjudicate on the public law decisions of states. This book provides an empirical study of the function of investment arbitration, how it is impacting on international law, and the ways in which it is in need of reform.

The rules regulating behaviour of market and competition authorities are equally important for the work of these authorities as regulation itself. This book discusses the behavioural elements involved when applying regulation, and evaluates the success and failures of the processes used against fundamental agency principles.

The efficacy of various political institutions is the subject of intense debate between proponents of broad legislative standards enforced through litigation and those who prefer regulation by administrative agencies. This book explores the trade-offs between litigation and regulation, the circumstances in which one approach may outperform the other, and the principles that affect the choice between addressing particular economic activities with one system or the other. Combining theoretical analysis with empirical investigation in a range of industries, including public health, financial markets, medical care, and workplace safety, Regulation versus Litigation sheds light on the costs and benefits of two important instruments of economic policy.

The role of the EU competition law rules in shaping the EU Internal Market can hardly be overstated. The EU substantive rules dealing with cartels, abuse of dominance and State aid have ensured, in the past decades, a much desired unity of the law applied in the diverse European markets. Yet, much of the success of the EU competition law provisions depends on its practical enforcement. The proliferation of competition law enforcement, especially since 2004, stands testimony in this respect. However, this has not come without challenges. In this context, this book aims to critically discuss certain key elements relating to the domestic enforcement of the said rules, in order to place the discussion of further boosting this enforcement exercise in the correct context. This book aims, in this respect, to find an answer to the following question: to what extent would boosting the domestic enforcement of the EU competition law rules aid the ambition of more forceful, better targeted and more resource-efficient EU competition law enforcement in the Internal Market? Topics such as the following are discussed in the contributions included in this book: the sufficiency of the enforcement toolbox of national competition authorities, the interaction between fundamental rights and competition law, and the duties of domestic bodies in this context.

The background to this collection of paper is formed by the changes in contremporary society. In modern-day western societies it is the thought that individualism trumps collectivisim. There is change from the paradigm of hierarchy to a paradigm of cooperation. This effects administrative law, which is traditionallly top-down, but is slowly accepting and incorporating mechanism of negotiation and bottom up involvement of stakeholders and concerned individuals. The contributors to his volume investigate, these changes in administrative law and provide an assessment as to whether and to what extent they are reflected in the way judicial review of governmental action is shaped. The analysis covers the EU and a number of EU jurisdictions (France, Germany, United Kingdom, the Netherland, Italy and Romania.) representing different administrative law traditions and being differently responsive to change. To provide an outside comparision, the US administrative system is also covered. Book jacket.

EU competition law plays a central role in the process of European integration both as a multifaceted tool for creating and policing the internal market as well as in organising national markets. Yet as a consequence of this role it is also subject to increasingly complex demands, a proliferation of (sectoral) regimes, and multiple objectives at both an EU and national level. This profligacy entails risks of fragmentation and divergence - which could jeopardise the proper functioning of the internal market. In this examination of EU competition law, Wolf Sauter discusses three main issues: (i) what degree of coherence exists in EU competition law; (ii) how this coherence can be explained, particularly in the broader context of integration by EU law; and (iii) how it contributes to the legitimacy and effectiveness of EU competition law. Specific focus is placed on antitrust, while mergers, state aid control, as well as the sectoral regimes for energy and electronic communications are also examined. In addition the book also charts the history and framework of these competition regimes that jointly constitute EU competition law, defining both its objectives and limitations.