EU Competition Law and Policy Workshop
The Workshop was established in 1996 by EUI Law Professors Claus-Dieter Ehlermann and Giuliano Amato. For the next decade and a half, Prof. Ehlermann developed the programme into one of the world’s premier competition law events. The current Directors of the Workshop are Sir Philip Lowe, Prof. Mel Marquis and Prof. Giorgio Monti.
The Workshop is externally funded with the help of a number of leading law firms and economic consultancies (see link below for a list of sponsors with contact information). The themes discussed by the Workshop in recent years include: disruptive innovation and its implications for competition policy; institutional reform of competition agencies with a view to increasing their impact; effective and legitimate enforcement of competition law; the interplay between competition law and other public policies; and the enforcement of EU competition law through private claims in the courts of the Member States.
For further background information, see ‘General Information’ below.
Current and recent work
22nd Annual EU Competition Law and Policy Workshop: Disruptive Innovation and Implications for Competition Policy
In the 22nd edition of the Workshop we consider the implications of disruptive innovation and disruptive business models from a number of competition policy perspectives. It is common ground in jurisdictions worldwide that competition policy aims partly at promoting and maintaining conditions conducive to innovation. But in relation to disruptive innovation, it is necessary to examine which aspects of competition policy—including in particular abuse of dominance and merger control policies—require re-thinking. For example, if one accepts that old established principles with regard to market definition, market power and static analysis should be revised or qualified, what should be the nature of those revisions and qualifications? The Workshop also considers how the increasing importance of new phenomena such as digital platforms and ‘big data’ affects competition analysis. And we reflect on how disruptive innovation and the need for expeditious enforcement challenge the toolkit of remedies available to competition authorities. The implications of disruptive innovation for international competition law cooperation and for regulatory policy and competition policy advocacy constitute another focus of inquiry.
Workshop participants for 2017 include: Rafael Allendesalazar, Dr Alf-Henrik Bischke, Simon Bishop, Dr Cristina Caffarra, Dr Lorenzo Coppi, Prof. Alexandre De Streel, Sean Ennis, Prof. Allan Fels, Judge Ian Forrester, Dr Damien Gerard, Prof. Alberto Heimler, Prof. Wolfgang Kerber, Dr Assimakis Komninos, Prof. Bill Kovacic, Dr Gregor Langus, Prof. Ioannis Lianos, Prof. Massimo Motta, President Andreas Mundt, John Ratliff, Prof. Fiona Scott-Morton, Prof. Mario Siragusa, Prof. Maurice Stucke, Jim Venit and Sven Vǒlcker.
21st Annual EU Competition Law and Policy Workshop: Stronger NCAs – Procedures, Powers, Prospects
In this edition of the Workshop we discussed the ongoing policy and legislative process aimed at reinforcing the powers, regulatory instruments and institutional features of the national competition authorities (NCAs) of the European Union. Prior to the eventual publication in March 2017 of a formal legislative proposal by the European Commission, the Workshop considered a number of dimensions that might be addressed in a package of hard and soft law. Focusing on particular Member States, the Workshop discussed national procedures, the enforcement powers and investigative and sanctioning tools of NCAs, the NCAs’ resources and their degree of independence from government influence. The Workshop debated, among other things, how the reform should take shape in terms of its scope, instruments and content. Comparative reflections were also provided by scholars travelling from beyond Europe.
Workshop participants for 2016 included: Rafael Allendesalazar, Dr Alf-Henrik Bischke, Simon Bishop, Dr Cristina Caffarra, Chairman David Currie, Prof. Allan Fels, Judge Ian Forrester, Dr António Gomes, Prof. Alberto Heimler, Prof. Fred Jenny, President Šarūnas Keserauskas, Nicholas Khan, Lars Kjølbye, Dr Assimakis Komninos, Prof. Bill Kovacic, Dr Małgorzata Krasnodębska-Tomkiel, Samantha Mobley, President Andreas Mundt, President Giovanni Pitruzzella, John Ratliff, Prof. Mario Siragusa, Prof. Jacques Steenbergen, Dr András Toth, Jim Venit, Dr Florian Wagner-von Papp and Antoine Winckler.
Programme Directors
Sir Philip Lowe, former Director General, European Commission
Sir Philip is a Senior Advisor at FTI Consulting. He retired from the European Commission in 2015 after 42 years of service. Sir Philip served as Director General of DG Energy from 2010 to 2015, as Director General of DG Competition from 2002 to 2010, and as Director General of DG Development from 1997 to 2002. He also held the posts of Chef de Cabinet and of Director in the fields of regional development, agriculture, transport and administration.
Mel Marquis, Part-time Professor of Law, European University Institute
Prof. Marquis has been a member of the EUI’s Law Department since 2011. He has taught law at many universities, including, among others, the University of Melbourne Law School, the Central University of Finance and Economics in Beijing, Renmin University in Beijing and Doshisha University in Kyoto. He has practiced law in Belgium and the United States. He has also served as Non-Governmental Advisor of the International Competition Network, and as an external legal advisor to the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Giorgio Monti, Professor of Law, European University Institute
Prof. Monti has been the EUI’s Chair in Competition Law since 2010, and is currently the Head of the Law Department. He has also been the EUI’s Director of Graduate Studies. Before joining the EUI, Prof. Monti taught law at the University of Leicester (1993-2001) and at the London School of Economics (2001-2010). While his main research focus is in the field of competition law, he has worked in diverse fields such as feminist legal studies, commercial law and comparative tort law.
The EU Competition Law and Policy Workshop was established in 1996 by EUI Law Professors Claus-Dieter Ehlermann and Giuliano Amato. Prof. Ehlermann directed the programme for 14 years, with the assistance of Isabela Atanasiu (2000-2006) and Mel Marquis (2003-2009). The current Directors are Sir Philip Lowe, Prof. Mel Marquis and Prof. Giorgio Monti.
The Workshop’s fundamental aim is to conduct a critical evaluation of competition-related issues – from European, national, comparative, and economic perspectives – with a view to enhancing the quality of law and policy in the field of competition law.
We pursue this aim along ‘horizontal’ and ‘vertical’ dimensions. Horizontally, the Workshop maps the wide range of legal and economic issues relevant to this field, generally by analysing discrete subjects each year. Vertically, participants try to promote an exceptionally rich and nuanced understanding of those subjects in order to advance the state of the art.
The participants of the Workshop include top-level market regulators, academics, economists and legal practitioners. In an informal and non-commercial environment, they discuss the selected annual topic. Before the event, the participants submit written contributions that serve as a platform for in-depth discussion at the EUI.
Page last updated on 05 September 2018