Hjem
Forskargruppe for europarett

Research Fellow Ingrid Margrethe Halvorsen – “EU perspectives on Leniency in Competition Law”

Hovedinnhold

Ingrid’s PhD-project aims to look into what the scope of the leniency system should be. As opposed to the US, the competition rules at EU-level are administrative law-based, and leave out criminal law. This raises the question whether the EU should change its position and criminalize cartels, which would lead to a further harmonization of the rules of cartel enforcement at EU-level. A criminalization of cartels at EU-level will also raise the question whether or not a cartel member should receive immunity from criminal sanctions. The same question arises regarding immunity from damages. The European Parliament and the Council have recently proposed a directive on certain rules governing actions for damages under national law for infringements of the competition law provisions of the Member States and of the European Union (summer 2013). This directive seeks to establish a common standard in all Member States for the interaction between public and private enforcement at the EU level. It reaffirms the right to compensation for infringement of EU competition rules and the responsibility for each Member State to ensure this, and emphasizes inter alia the need to improve and regulate the protection of leniency material in the context of civil damages actions. With regard to both the public enforcement and the interaction between public and private enforcement, transparency and certainty should be of key importance in maximizing incentives to apply for leniency in the European Union. Ingrid will also examine what types of cooperation both horizontally and vertically a cartel member should receive immunity from.