Lecture Week 7
Competton law: natonal courts and abuse of dominant positon (art. 102 TFEU)
National courts
Powers of the national courts
- Startng point:
o Artcle 101 and 102 TFEU havee direct efect
o Natonal courts are obliged to uniform applicaton of competton law
Administrative courts & EU
In European law there is a similar column to the natonal law. There is the possibility of
appeal and then higher appeal.
Civil courts
In priveate law, there is no equivealent in European law to the column of natonal law. If there
is a cartel or abuse of dominance, you havee to go to the natonal court, you cannot go to the
European courts. There was a gap in the law. The European Commission decided to make a
directvee on this topic. Civeil courts havee the power to award damages.
, - Civeil procedures in which competton law is raised
o There is the way of the shield.
Use competton law to defend yourself against the claim
This is always possible
o There is the way of the sword.
Use competton law to ‘atackk the other party
- Claims in natonal courts on the rise: many are setled
- New directvee on civeil claims: infuence on natonal procedures
Example: beer cartels in the Netherlands
Cafés to sure breweries. Cafés and restaurants claim damages resultng from beer cartel at
breweries. The breweries formed a cartel in the ‘90s resultng in a beerprice for the retailers
that was too high. The brewers havee earned about 400 million euro through the cartel.
The consumers want to sue the breweries, because they had losses because the prices were
too high. How are you going to provee your losses?
Example: ball-bearings cartel
- Ball-bearings manufacturers charged higher prices to car manufacturers
- This possibly has had infuence on retail price of cars
- You are a car-owner: can you claim damage?
o Regarding the price of a car, your damage is too small to be able to claim.
o Possibility of mass-claim. There are companies who gather multple claims
and, in this way, claim for multple people at the same tme, so the claim is big
enough for claiming.
Abuse of dominance
Prohibition on abuse of dominance
Background
- Competton is good & no competton is bad
o Big companies havee no real compettors
o Less incentvee for efcient producton
o Less incentvee for innoveaton
o Strong incentvee for high prices
o Leads to lower consumer welfare and a rigid market structure
- Companies can grow big through competton, by being the best -> this is good
- But big companies havee a special responsibility: no abuse of their dominant positon -
> abuse is bad
The prohibition
- Four elements
o It is prohibited for:
An undertaking or seveeral undertakings
Who hold(s) a dominant positon
To abuse this positon
Which afects interstate trade
Competton law: natonal courts and abuse of dominant positon (art. 102 TFEU)
National courts
Powers of the national courts
- Startng point:
o Artcle 101 and 102 TFEU havee direct efect
o Natonal courts are obliged to uniform applicaton of competton law
Administrative courts & EU
In European law there is a similar column to the natonal law. There is the possibility of
appeal and then higher appeal.
Civil courts
In priveate law, there is no equivealent in European law to the column of natonal law. If there
is a cartel or abuse of dominance, you havee to go to the natonal court, you cannot go to the
European courts. There was a gap in the law. The European Commission decided to make a
directvee on this topic. Civeil courts havee the power to award damages.
, - Civeil procedures in which competton law is raised
o There is the way of the shield.
Use competton law to defend yourself against the claim
This is always possible
o There is the way of the sword.
Use competton law to ‘atackk the other party
- Claims in natonal courts on the rise: many are setled
- New directvee on civeil claims: infuence on natonal procedures
Example: beer cartels in the Netherlands
Cafés to sure breweries. Cafés and restaurants claim damages resultng from beer cartel at
breweries. The breweries formed a cartel in the ‘90s resultng in a beerprice for the retailers
that was too high. The brewers havee earned about 400 million euro through the cartel.
The consumers want to sue the breweries, because they had losses because the prices were
too high. How are you going to provee your losses?
Example: ball-bearings cartel
- Ball-bearings manufacturers charged higher prices to car manufacturers
- This possibly has had infuence on retail price of cars
- You are a car-owner: can you claim damage?
o Regarding the price of a car, your damage is too small to be able to claim.
o Possibility of mass-claim. There are companies who gather multple claims
and, in this way, claim for multple people at the same tme, so the claim is big
enough for claiming.
Abuse of dominance
Prohibition on abuse of dominance
Background
- Competton is good & no competton is bad
o Big companies havee no real compettors
o Less incentvee for efcient producton
o Less incentvee for innoveaton
o Strong incentvee for high prices
o Leads to lower consumer welfare and a rigid market structure
- Companies can grow big through competton, by being the best -> this is good
- But big companies havee a special responsibility: no abuse of their dominant positon -
> abuse is bad
The prohibition
- Four elements
o It is prohibited for:
An undertaking or seveeral undertakings
Who hold(s) a dominant positon
To abuse this positon
Which afects interstate trade
