The Market Economy Investor Test In Eu State Aid Law Applicability And Application

For upwards of thirty years EU and EFTA courts have been using a test for applying the Market Economy Investor Principle (MEIP) 10 determine whether a state intervention amounts 10 granting of an economic advantage 10 a recipient undertaking. If the stale wishes 10 set as a commercial operator, it must comply with the MEIP. Unsurprisingly, the test remains a difficult and controversial legal instrument, and its very existence and credibility have been questioned. This book unravels the nation of the MEIP, analysing its applicability in order 10 clarify doubts and misinterpretations. Such an understanding is crucial because of the negative consequences of the test's misapplication, and also because the ongoing process of opening markets for more competition blurs the distinction between the public and private sectors. The analysis addresses such questions as the following; - What characterizes a 'prudent' investor? - When is it justified to consider a given public investor 'rational' or 'reasonable'? - How should too 'economic' or 'commercial soundness' of state interventions be understood? - What rate of return is required under the MEIP and how is it calculated? - When should the profitability analysis be undertaken and why? The author examines both the theory behind too principle and its practical application, with detailed attention to case law and the Commission's guidelines explaining the test's mechanism. Soo considers the various critiques of the test and concludes with proposals for change. Practitioners, policymakers, and academics will appreciate the great clarification offered of too MEIP - the character of an economic advantage under the MEIP and in aid scenarios, how to determine whether the MEIP is applicable 10 a given state measure, and how 10 apply the test according 10 its various subtypes and to atypical or complex interventions. They will find that too book's systematic analysis goes a long way to ensuring a credible and reliable assessment of the applicability of state aid under Article 107(1) TFEU.

The elements of infrastructure – roads, transportation, electricity, water, communications, schools, hospitals – are so ingrained in the fabric of daily life that few people give a second thought to who provides them, and how. Yet, they are controlled by an extensive and complex regulatory system. Moreover, the EU’s State aid modernization plan has made infrastructure a crucial aspect of competition law. How did EU State aid law turn into regulation on whether a city can build a new airport, or how it may operate a school? And what do the rules actually mean for infrastructure funding? These are the questions this book, the first comprehensive guide to EU State aid law in this key sector and a major contribution to the debate on the topic, seeks to answer. In its thorough review of the legal literature as well as relevant legislation and case law, this book covers such aspects of the infrastructure-State aid nexus as the following: – role of infrastructure in competition law; – infrastructure funding as aid and its compatibility with the internal market; – impact on land development and other ongoing activities; – sector-specific impact of State aid regulation on the design of infrastructure projects; – risk management; and – newer infrastructure sectors such as sports and cultural and healthcare projects. At many points in the presentation, the case-by-case analysis provides individual appraisals. In addition to focusing on the complex rules and how they have been interpreted in the decisional practice of the Commission and in the EU case law, this book provides deeply informed proposals for reform. This is a key work in a field of EU law that has developed and changed dramatically in recent years. It is sure to be of immeasurable value to practitioners and jurists in State aid law, competition law, and public procurement, as well as market actors (aid beneficiaries and competitors), policymakers, government officials, and business persons in these fields.

High profile cases before the European Commission and the EU courts have intensified scrutiny of the link between State aid law and the taxation of multinational enterprises. Certain decisions have raised questions about fiscal sovereignty and the interpretation of the rules on State aid – in particular the notion of selectivity, which have not been addressed in detail by existing research. The combination of the evolution of the notion of selectivity in State aid law, on the one hand, and the need to adapt the rules for the taxation of the profits of multinational enterprises to the modern economy, on the other hand, makes it necessary to assess whether existing as well as alternative rules for the allocation of the corporate tax base might entail a selective treatment. This book responds to the need of research in the area of State aid law applied to the taxation of the income of multinational enterprises, focusing on the crucial concept of selectivity. The analysis proceeds with a detailed investigation of the theoretical issues that arise when applying the selectivity test in State aid law to three methods for the allocation of the corporate tax base between the members of multinational enterprises: – the arm’s length principle; – transfer pricing safe harbours; and – systems of formula apportionment. This research project is conducted at a theoretical level, without considering national provisions or particular tax treaties. The author suggests an analytical framework on the application of the selectivity test to the three allocation methods. It is concluded that these methods are likely to have certain selective features, with varying possibilities to be justified by the inner logic of a corporate income tax system. It is also demonstrated that selectivity occurs for different reasons, due to the different rationales of the three allocation methods. This book is intended at contributing to the academic literature on the impact of State aid law on the principles for the taxation of the income of multinational enterprises. The outcome of this research project is also relevant for lawmakers who need to reconcile the imperatives of State aid law with the design of rules that match their tax policies, as well as for judges or lawyers who apply the rules on State aid to tax provisions.

This revised and updated Research Handbook on European State Aid Law brings together established academics and practitioners to provide a wide-ranging coverage of the field. Incorporating political science, economics and the law in its analysis, it provides a strong overview of the salient issues in State aid law and policy.

This incisive book provides key interdisciplinary perspectives on the current challenges faced by EU policymakers in framing and implementing a coherent European industrial policy, employing specific case studies from the digital, automotive, steel and defence industries as well as concrete examples of EU policies.

Private Enforcement of European Competition and State Aid Law Current Challenges and the Way Forward Edited by: Ferdinand Wollenschläger, Wolfgang Wurmnest & Thomas M.J. Möllers The overlapping European Union (EU) regimes of competition law and State aid law both provide mechanisms allowing private plaintiffs to claim compensation for losses or damages. It is thus of significant practical value to provide, as this book does, analysis and guidance on achieving enforcement of such claims, written by renowned authorities in the two fields. The book examines the two areas of law both from an EU perspective and from the perspectives of private enforcement in France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom. In country reports for these major jurisdictions, as well as in more general and comparative chapters, the authors focus on such issues as the following: impediments to private enforcement; which entity is liable for damages; binding effect of decisions of competition authorities; limitation of actions; collective actions and pooling of claims; enforcement of the standstill obligation (Article 108(3) TFEU); remedies and information deficits; cooperation and coordination between national courts and the European Commission; transposition of the so-called Damages Directive (Directive 2014/104/EU) by the EU Member States; extent to which the strengthening of private enforcement of competition law has a spillover effect on State aid law; and prospects for harmonisation of State aid law. A concluding section identifies enforcement deficits and proposes ways to improve the existing legal framework. As an in-depth assessment of key obstacles and best practices in private enforcement actions, this highly informative and practical volume facilitates choice of the best forum for competition and State aid law cases. Academics and practitioners engaged with this important area of European law will appreciate the authors’ awareness of the economic need and legal particularities which could generate an effective European system of private enforcement of legitimate claims under EU competition and State aid law.

Many states – including European Union (EU) Member States – subsidise energy producers in order to guarantee the uninterrupted availability of affordable electricity. This book presents the first in-depth examination of how these so-called capacity mechanisms are addressed in EU law and how they affect the functioning of the EU energy markets. Focusing on the existing legal framework as well as the new provisions of the Clean Energy for All Europeans package for capacity mechanisms, the author addresses and analyses such aspects as the following: the structure and functioning of the EU electricity markets; EU’s competence to address security of supply and Member States’ margin of discretion; sector-specific rules for security of supply; legal conditions for subsidising generation adequacy; capacity remuneration under the EU State aid regime; free movement rules that address generation adequacy measures; balancing different interests of EU energy law in the context of generation adequacy; and the requirement of proportionality in State intervention to ensure generation adequacy. The analysis draws on relevant sources of EU law (treaties, regulations and directives) as well as the case law of the European Court of Justice and the General Court, together with soft law instruments such as Commission guidelines. Scholarly sources include not only legal literature but also work on energy policy, energy engineering and energy economics. As a detailed analysis of how capacity mechanisms address issues arising in the context of the enegy transition – and how the system of EU law applicable to capacity mechanisms should be interpreted to further the objectives of EU energy law – the book will help policymakers and legislators in Member States to understand the changing legal setting for capacity mechanisms. Lawyers, academics and other professionals who deal with EU electricity markets in the EU and beyond are sure to welcome its detailed description and analysis.

If an EU industrial policy can be said to exist, its contours may be found in the complex and evolving concept of State aid. Because approaching any State aid issue can be fraught with multiple and sometimes conflicting interpretations, an in-depth analysis of the rationales, initiatives, and regulations that constitute the State aid system is much needed. In response to this need, this book provides a fine-grained clarifying context through which recent reforms, policy shifts, and judicial decisions concerning State aid can be understood and applied to specific situations. Focusing on the impacts of landmark cases and policy developments leading up to a deeply informed critique of the current State Aid Modernisation Programme, the authors cover such issues and topics as the following: – linkages to other established and evolving EU common policies and common strategies; – effect of EU State aid rules in the expanding geopolitical regions of EU influence; – interaction with the WTO Subsidies and Countervailing Measures Agreement; – the problem of a ‘subsidies culture’; – how the European Commission’s notion of ‘bad’ State aid has evolved; – effect of EU policy imperatives (e.g., environmental goals) which implicitly argue for increased subsidisation; – nexus with EU tax harmonisation; – competition among undertakings versus competition among Member State policies; and – nature of the quasi-devolution of regulatory responsibilities to EU Member States. This book is a crucially important source of both theoretical enlightenment and practical wisdom that will greatly enhance confident progress through any legal matter involving EU State aid rules. It will prove of immeasurable value to practitioners, in-house counsel, policymakers, and academics for many years to come.