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 and Prof. Nicolas Petit.
The Workshop is externally funded with the help of leading law firms and economic consultancies. In recent years, the themes discussed included competition law and industrial policy, digital platforms, competition impact assessments, disruptive innovation and its implications, institutional reform of competition agencies, effective and legitimate enforcement of competition law, the interplay between competition law and other public policies, and the private enforcement of EU competition law.
Background information
EUI Law Professor Claus-Dieter Ehlermann directed the Workshop for 14 years, with the assistance of Isabela Atanasiu (2000-2006) and Mel Marquis (2003-2009). The Workshop has since been directed by Sir Philip Lowe (2010-present), Prof. Mel Marquis (2011-2019), Prof. Giorgio Monti (2013-2019), and Prof. Nicolas Petit (2020-present).
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.
The participants of the Workshop include top-level market regulators, academics, economists and legal practitioners. In an informal, intimate and non-commercial environment, they discuss the selected annual topic. Before the event, participants submit written contributions that serve as a platform for in-depth discussion.
Tribute to Law Professor Claus-Dieter Ehlermann
"Claus deserves at least a statue at the EUI,” was the sentiment expressed by a sponsor of the EU Competition Law and Policy Workshop.
The EUI competition community indeed owes much to Professor Claus-Dieter Ehlermann, the founding father of the Workshop. As both an academic and a practitioner, he understood the key role of constructive, close, and cordial discussions between policy leaders, enforcers, lawyers and economists.
Professor Ehlermann sought to facilitate these discussions by creating a forum for intimate roundtables. As a sponsor recalls, “he spoke of creating an event which would rival – in Europe – Barry Hawk’s superb series at the Fordham Institute in New York.” A premium was placed on frankness and privacy, with the number of participants rarely counting more than 25. The EUI – tucked away in the Tuscan hills – proved the perfect place and has hosted the Workshop since its inaugural edition in 1996.
Professor Ehlermann’s career has been a distinguished and varied one. He has held different prominent positions within the European Commission. Professor Ehlermann had a decisive influence on the evolution of EU law as Director-General of the Legal Service and went on to shape competition policy as Director-General of the Directorate-General for Competition. Professor Ehlermann is also widely considered to be a leading authority on international economic law. He has assisted governments and intervened as an arbitrator before the dispute settlement body of the World Trade Organization. He is also a renowned former member of the WTO Appellate Body. After a remarkable public service career, Professor Ehlermann joined WilmerHale as senior counsel in 2002, representing and advising numerous European and American firms in European law related matters.
In parallel, Professor Ehlermann has also pursued a thriving academic career, teaching all over Europe – Brussels, Bruges, Hamburg – as well as overseas – New York, Michigan – on topics such as competition law and policy, industrial policy and European law. Throughout his career, he has authored more than 200 publications, many of which have left a lasting mark on European law.
It was right after his mandate at the Directorate-General for Competition that Professor Ehlermann became Chair of Economic Law at the EUI in Florence, where he started the Competition Law and Policy Workshop. The resulting annual event was one of a kind and has had an influence on how the shaping of EU competition law since the mid-1990s. As participants acknowledge when looking back, “the Workshop was a remarkable inspiration which at key junctures actually produced results – Regulation 1/2003 and a modernized approach to Article 102.” Decades later, the EUI, and the workshop sponsors, want to thank Professor Ehlermann for turning his vision of a discussion forum for competition law into a reality – a reality which is still alive today.
Check out the Workshop Sponsors
Check out the Workshop Sponsors
Current Programme Directors:
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![Portrait picture of Sir Philip Lowe]()
Sir Philip Lowe
Partner at Oxera
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![Portrait picture of Nicolas Petit]()
Nicolas Petit
Head of Department
Full-time Professor
Director of Research
Department of Law