A practical guide to national competition rules across Europe

Abstract:

Competition law is considered by many to be the fastest growing area of European law. That growth is unlikely to lessen following the Council Regulation (EC) No. 1/2003 which came into force on 1 May 2004 giving power to EU Member States’ national competition authorities to implement European competition rules, as embodied in Articles 81 and 82 of the EC Treaty.

To paraphrase one notable marketing slogan, ‘this book does what it says on the cover’. It aims to give practical guidance on the two fundamental tools that competition practitioners will need when advising clients in the future:
- the current competition regimes of each EU Member State
- the civil procedures affecting enforcement of competition damage claims in each Member State.

The work includes country chapters covering the original fifteen EU Member States as well as Norway and Switzerland. In addition there is a chapter which explains in general terms the competition regimes of the new EU Member States which will in due course each have their own individual chapters. Each country chapter examines the competition rules and procedures that exist in each Member State. Where applicable, there is an overview of the civil procedure rules that are in place in a Member State and an analysis of how such rules will be applicable to any potential damage claims arising from breaches of the competition rules.

Competition rules and civil procedures across EU Member States have both similarities and differences, and these have been summarised in two tables in Appendices 1 and 2 at the end of the book. Appendix 3 provides a list of the contact details of all competition authorities across Europe.

The work will interest mainly practitioners in competition law but also scholars and students, policy researchers and policy makers engaged in this field.