Many competition laws provide for claims regarding damages by those who have suffered injury from an infringement to the competition law. For example, those who have had to pay higher prices as a result of cartel violations, have the possibility to claim for damages, as restitution of the amounts for which they have been spoliated.
Source: UNCTAD
Despite best efforts of the European legislator as well as the CJEU, from a claimant’s perspective, private enforcement litigation before German Courts in the trucks cartel [Link] must be an aggravating experience. Although the European Commission fined the members of the cartel extensively, an ‘all-out’-approach of the cartelists and apparently flustered lower courts result in…
Ever since the 2001 Courage judgment, private actions for damages are on the rise. The Commission wanted to quickly follow with a legislative act including minimum standards for private enforcement across the EU. In the end, it took a while. In 2005, the authority published a Green Paper, in 2008 a substantially amended White Paper….
Introduction On 23 September 2020 a former director of one of the North Sea shrimps cartelists was held personally liable for damage of over € 13 million by the Dutch District Court of Noord-Nederland (“Court”). According to the Court, the director’s personal involvement in the cartel qualified as improperly fulfilling his duties as a director. This…
The England and Wales Court of Appeal has overturned the Decision of the United Kingdom Competition Appeals Tribunal (CAT) in the collective proceedings Walter Merricks v MasterCard, where final consumers are represented by Merricks. This is an important decision because it ensures that financial damages are recoverable when a firm’s anti-competitive practices affect millions of…
In its preliminary ruling in Skanska Industrial Solutions and Others[1], the Court of Justice has ruled on the fundamental question of who is liable to pay compensation in an action for damages for breach of Article 101 TFEU. Is the answer to be found in EU law or national law? Can the person liable to…
In July 2005, Germany adopted a new law providing that the limitation period for damage claims is suspended during the investigation of a competition authority (“Suspension Provision”). Ever since, it was unclear whether the Suspension Provision applies only to infringements committed after the new provision came into force, or whether it has retroactive effect. In…
The Senate has approved with minor amendments the Antitrust Bill (the “Bill”) that had been approved by the Chamber of Deputies. The Senate introduced minor amendments to a few articles of the Bill, though none of them are substantial. The amended Bill will now be considered by the Chamber of Deputies and approval is likely…
Following a considerable delay and a threat by the European Commission to initiate infringement proceedings, Bulgaria finally implemented in its national law the provisions of the European Directive 2014/104/EU on Antitrust Damages Actions dated 26 November 2014 (the “Private Damages Directive”). On 3 January 2018 in the Bulgarian State Gazette was promulgated the Act for…
On 18 May 2017, the Belgian Parliament transposed the EU Damages Directive (the “Directive“) into national law by way of the Act on Damage Claims for Breaches of Competition Law (the “Act“), which was published on 12 June 2017 in the Belgian Official Gazette and came into force on 22 June 2017. The Act inserts…
Following the Parliament’s approval in early March, the Federal States Council, Germany’s second legislative chamber, has approved the most recent reform to German competition law on March 31, 2017. The new law will enter into force upon publication in the German official journal, presumably end of April/beginning of May. The reform was triggered by the…
