This book makes a significant and original contribution to the literature on the developing area of private enforcement of EU competition law. It delivers a significant, rigorous and comprehensive analysis of the transposition across a broad selection of Member States (MS) of a major EU Directive introduced with the aim of harmonising and facilitation competition law damages actions across the European Union.

This Cambridge Handbook, edited by Roger D. Blair and D. Daniel Sokol, brings together a group of world-renowned professors in the fields of law and economics to assess the theory and practice of antitrust, intellectual property, and high tech. With the increased globalization of antitrust, a better understanding of how law and economics shape this interface will help academics, policymakers, and practitioners to understand the existing state of academic literature, its limits, and its relevance to real-world antitrust. The book will be an essential resource for anyone seeking to understand academic and policy considerations shaping the world of antitrust, intellectual property, and high tech.

In its own words, the mission of the International Competition Network (the ICN) is to advocate the adoption of "superior standards and procedures in competition policy around the world, formulate proposals for procedural and substantive convergence, and seek to facilitate effective international cooperation to the benefit of member agencies, consumers and economies worldwide." ICN members include nearly all competition authorities (NCAs) from around the world (over 100 of them). Since its inception, the ICN has also sought to enrich its discussions and outputs through the inclusion of non-governmental advisors (NGAs), principally large multi-nationals and the legal and economic professions. The ICN is a transnational network, set up by its members, largely without wider state input. This book hypothesises that the ICN's formally neutral structures provide powerful influence mechanisms for strong NCAs and NGAs, over the weak; and 'competition experts' over wider state interests, discussing the legitimacy of this from a political and legal theory perspective, analysing the ICN's effectiveness and efficiency, and suggesting ways that the ICN can improve all three. This study has important implications for the ICN itself, particularly as it launches its 'Third Decade Project', billed as a full self-evaluation. However, the story told here is also relevant to states and the wider regulatory community, due to the widespread use of transnational networks.

In the early decades of European integration the enforcement of EU competition law was highly centralised. Virtually all enforcement actions under Articles 101 and 102 TFEU were initiated by the European Commission. More recently the enforcement of EU competition law has become less centralised - many would say even decentralised. In 2004, essentially in an effort to increase enforcement capacity in the wake of EU enlargement, the involvement of Member State competition authorities was significantly reinforced by national authorities being given power to pursue infringements of EU competition law largely on the basis of their domestic enforcement regimes. This combination of decentralisation and enforcement autonomy raises questions about the relationship between EU law and national law, as well as about the costs of enforcement. This new book links these questions by analysing how competences in the area of sanctions are distributed between EU and national law, and how this influences the costs of enforcement. The author's conclusions, which highlight the economic implications of the choices made by competition authorities, courts and legislators, will be of use to all the above in further developing EU competition policy. The PhD thesis on which this book is based was declared runner-up in the 2013 Concurrences Awards.

What drives popular support for state-enforced competition policy? What is it about antitrust law that garners approval from both the public and courts, to the point of demonizing large firms convicted of antitrust offenses? In this book Adi Ayal argues that the populist roots of antitrust are still with us, guiding sentiment towards a legal regime that has otherwise shifted towards economic analysis. Antitrust is very much about fairness and morality; this book assesses how modern policy has hijacked popular support - based on traditional conceptions of political and economic power - to combat market power in narrowly defined micro-markets. Beginning with history, but delving into moral and political philosophy, Professor Ayal shows how arguments concerning fairness in antitrust apply both to monopolists and their victims. Fairness thus requires a balancing test based on context and respecting the rights of all parties involved. While traditionally fairness arguments were used to justify intervention where economic analysis did not, this book assesses them from first principles, to show that pure efficiency analysis is flawed from a moral standpoint when the state intervenes. Protecting weak consumers from strong monopolists may carry rhetorical weight, but the reality of antitrust is that the state is much more powerful than almost all firms it regulates. Protecting the strong from the weak, especially when 'weak' consumers hold legal power and influence, might very well be a moral imperative. This book offers a philosophical account of the conundrum facing competition policy which challenges widely-held yet often implicit and unfounded beliefs.

Big Data and Big Analytics are a big deal today. Big Data is playing a pivotal role in many companies' strategic decision-making. Companies are striving to acquire a 'data advantage' over rivals. Data-driven mergers are increasing. These data-driven business strategies and mergers raise significant implications for privacy, consumer protection and competition law. At the same time, European and United States' competition authorities are beginning to consider the implications of a data-driven economy on competition policy. In 2015, the European Commission launched a competition inquiry into the e-commerce sector and issued a statement of objections in its Google investigation. The implications of Big Data on competition policy will likely be a part of the mix. Big Data and Competition Policy is the first work to offer a detailed description of the important new issue of Big Data and explains how it relates to competition laws and policy, both in the EU and US. The book helps bring the reader quickly up to speed on what is Big Data, its competitive implications, the competition authorities' approach to data-driven mergers and business strategies, and their current approach's strengths and weaknesses. Written by two recognized leading experts in competition law, this accessible work offers practical guidance and theoretical discussion of the potential benefits (including data-driven efficiencies) and concerns for the practitioner, policy maker, and academic alike.

The objective(s) of Article 102 TFEU, what exactly makes a practice abusive and the standard of harm under Article 102 TFEU have not yet been settled. This lack of clarity creates uncertainty for businesses and raises an important question of legitimacy. This book inquires into the possible objectives of Article 102 TFEU and proposes a modern approach to interpreting 'abuse'. In doing so, it establishes an overarching concept of 'abuse' that conforms to the historical roots of the provision, to the text of the provision itself and to modern economic thinking on unilateral conduct. This book therefore inquires into what Article 102 TFEU is about, what it can be about and what it should be about. The book demonstrates that the separation of exploitative abuse from exclusionary abuse is artificial and unsound. It examines the roots of Article 102 TFEU and the historical context of the adoption of the Treaty, the case law, policy and literature on exploitative abuses and, where relevant, on exclusionary abuses. The book investigates potential objectives, such as fairness and welfare, as well as potential conflict between such objectives. Finally, it critically assesses the European Commission's modernisation of Article 102 TFEU, before proposing a reformed approach to 'abuse' which is centred on three necessary and sufficient conditions: exploitation, exclusion and a lack of an increase in efficiency.

This EU Digest 2013 is a selection of 51 essays on European competition case laws from the 27 European Union member States and neighboring States. Each essay consists in a synthesis of the leading cases from 2012 and beyond. These essays are organized in two parts. Part I deals with Competition Provisions (Cartels, Dominance, Merger, State aid...) whereas Part II deals with Business Sectors (Automobile, Broadcasting, Healthcare, IT & Telecommunications, Sports...). The purpose of this Digest is to provide a snapshot of the areas of convergence and remaining diversity of competition law in Europe. As noted by Fr d ric Jenny in his Foreword below, while this book is not based on a comprehensive study of all national case laws, no such study is needed to identify the main trends in this area. This EU Digest highlights both convergence and divergence in various areas and sectors of European competition law, making it easy for both practitioners and academics to draw comparison between jurisdictions in various areas and sectors of European competition law.

This edition of the U. S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division Manual is the latest version of the day-to-day resource used by attorneys, economists, and other professionals of the Division to enforce this country's antitrust laws. This Fourth Edition incorporates changes in the statutes, guidelines, rules and other documents that govern the Division and reflect the Division's current practices and procedures. The Manual is an important resource for everyone at the Division, from seasoned attorneys with many years of practice to new paralegals fresh out of college. It answers many questions that can arise when conducting investigations or litigating cases.

This book gives comprehensive coverage of EU distribution law and the law relating to vertical agreements. Now in its second edition, it is the only book to provide a detailed and practice oriented analysis of the entire scope of vertical agreements under the new legislative framework. Written by two authors who assisted the Commission in its drafting and reviewing of the Regulation, the book gives invaluable practical commentary on the new general block exemption (Regulation 330/2010), the new Motor Vehicle Block Exemption regulation (Regulation 461/2010), and the accompanying new Vertical Guidelines, as well as on agreements which are not covered by a block exemption.
The authors consider issues directly relevant in the commercial world, answering questions such as: Under what conditions may a supplier impose territorial restrictions on his dealer network?: Is it possible to impose maximum retail prices?: Are customer restrictions permissible in a selective distribution system?: Can a supplier assume an exclusive supply obligation?: Is an exclusive supply-back obligation included in a subcontracting arrangement enforceable?
The authors draw on their experience in this area of competition law to address the more complex issues relating to vertical restraints. They offer practical solutions to commercial problems and provide an indispensable tool for all practitioners in this field.

For over one hundred years, the antitrust consent decree has been a major weapon in the federal enforcement of antitrust laws. In Antitrust Consent Decrees in Theory and Practice, Richard A. Epstein undertakes the first systematic study of their use and effectiveness from both a historical and analytical perspective. Epstein observes how differences in antitrust philosophy can shape the kinds of comprehensive settlements that the government will seek and the courts will grant. Epstein takes issue with aggressive antitrust enforcement strategies that seek to use government power to fundamentally alter industry structures or the business practices of regulated firms, in some instances leading to their breakup. To explain the perils of that approach, Epstein carefully examines the history of consent decree litigation, culminating in detailed studies of the AT&T breakup and the government antitrust actions against Microsoft. Applying modern theories of antitrust analysis, Epstein's central thesis is that bold antitrust remedies that are not tightly tied to a defensible theory of wrongful conduct often prove counterproductive. Such measures typically force firms to adopt business practices and structural reorganizations that substantially impede their ability to compete effectively in the marketplace. The disparate fates of AT&T and Microsoft are the result of a major and fruitful shift in thinking about the use and limits on the antitrust laws in a wide variety of industrial contexts. Antitrust Consent Decrees in Theory and Practice will be of interest to any reader who is concerned with the larger implications of the government regulation of law and business. Epstein brings nearly forty years of personal knowledge and experience to this matter. Written in a clear and nontechnical style, this book should prove an invaluable resource to any student of regulation and economic policy, as well as lawyers and policymakers concerned with antitrust litigation.