Abstract

This chapter assesses the framework enabling private parties to enforce competition law and the implications this has both in relation to the evolution of national tort law in European Union (EU) member states and for an incipient acquis of EU tort law. It considers how the law has evolved since the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), in Courage v Crehan, confirmed that those able to show that they have suffered loss as a result of a competition law violation are able to recover compensatory damages and the progress made since the adoption of Directive 2014/104/EU on antitrust damages. The chapter focuses on four selected topics: the erosion of the requirement of fault; the erosion of individual responsibility; the extension of recoverable losses; and modifications to the burden of proof arising from a presumption of damage resulting from certain types of anti-competitive behaviour. It concludes by questioning whether traditional tort law doctrines at member-state level can survive under the pressure of these EU law developments. The chapter indicates areas of uncertainty that may serve to guide future research efforts.