This paper aims at highlighting the Commission's approach towards the relation between sector specific regulation and general competition law, especially concerning energy markets and the road to Internal Market objective.We firstly present Trinko case, in order to focus on two crucial and...

This paper examines the controlling role of European competition law in the energy market restructuring in EU after the gradual liberalisation process of previous years and defines the application of European competition law to this framework of restructuring. The particular focus of this paper...

These two papers look at recent decisions and controversies surrounding the counterfactual test under s 36 of the New Zealand Commerce Act 1986, and s46 of the Australian Competition and Consumer Act 2010 respectively. In 2010 the New Zealand Supreme Court in 0867 affirmed the counterfactual as...

The debate on the regulation of minority shareholdings as a type of “structural link” between competing undertakings is not a new one in the sphere of EU competition law. As a matter of policy, the incomplete and rather divisive treatment of minority shareholdings under the current EU merger...

Traditionally, the way competition law has viewed the exchange or sharing of information among competing firms, has been to some extent mainly negative, at least from the supply side. Present market conditions, an excessively transparent market, where operators exchange detailed and (prospect)...

Many competition lawyers and economists argue that the prime of objective of competition law regimes is to promote economic efficiency. Yet, few of these regimes define what should be understood by economic efficiency. For instance, although this concept is referred to in an increasingly larger...

Brands and brand management have become a central feature of the modern economy and a staple of business theory and business practice. Contrary to the law’s conception of trademarks, brands are used to indicate far more than source and/or quality. This volume begins the process of broadening...

This is a comparative examination of the slogans and goals most advocated for antitrust law today – namely, that antitrust should be concerned with “bigness,” that it should intervene when actions undermine the “competitive process,” or that it should be concerned about promoting some...

The Supreme Court Judgment of 29 January 2008 was delivered in an appeal in the interest of law against a fine imposed by the Catalonian regional antitrust authority, which was annulled by an Administrative Judge. That judgment made relevant considerations concerning the need for sensitivity in...