Private Enforcement of EC Competition Law

Among the topics and issues raised and discussed here are the following:

the 2001 Courage judgment of the European Court of Justice, in which the court
decided that everyone who suffers losses from a violation of arts. 81 or 82 EC
is entitled to compensation;

relevance of the case law that contributes to general principles of European
tort law;

comparative analysis from the more comprehensive experience of national laws
in the United States, Germany, France, and Italy;

calculation of damages;

passing-on of losses sustained in an upstream market to customers in a
downstream market;

procedural devices which may help to overcome the lack of implementation;

duties of disclosure and the burden of proof;

collective actions that may help to overcome the rational abstention of
individuals;

pitfalls of leniency programmes implemented by national competition
authorities; and

issues of jurisdiction and choice of law.

The lively debates that followed the presentations at the conference are also
recorded here.

Although more discussion will be needed before a viable legal framework in
this area begins to emerge, these ground-breaking contributions by lawyers of
various disciplines, jurists, economists, academics, and European policymakers
take a giant step forward. For lawyers, academics, and officials engaged with
this important area of international law, this book clearly improves our
understanding of the economic need and legal particularities which could
generate an effective European system of private antitrust litigation.