• demonstrate a comprehensive knowledge of the fundamental competition law areas
• identify and explain the basic legal concepts of the subject area
• select, formulate and discuss basic examples that are sufficiently complex to reflect such assignments faced by practitioners in the field of competition law and economics
• identify legal issues in concrete examples, and to argue and propose measures to meet legal requirements
• explain the economic substance of specific industrial economic concepts that are applicable to competition policy
• describe and rationalize the main assumptions of economic models of competition and monopoly
• use economic models analytically and graphically to illustrate issues relevant for competition policy

EU competition law plays today a central role in society and in the everyday life of many companies and legal and economic practitioners. The aim of this course is to conduct a deepened examination of the legal rules of EU Competition Law taking into account the underlying economic principles and wider policy issues. Students will upon completion of the course have sufficient understanding of the subject to practice and research in the field. The course concentrates on the foundations for the system of rules, consisting of Articles 101 and 102 of the EU Treaty and the Merger Regulation, which together are enforced in order to ensure that ‘effective competition’ prevails in EU markets. These legal sources regulate much business activity using a complex balancing test to determine whether such activity is lawful competition or unlawful anti-competitive conduct.
The industrial economic theories crucial for understanding the reasoning behind competition law will be analyzed and discussed, in particular the theories which are used to change the content of the current legal doctrine. Thus, the general industrial economy theories on the sources of market power, the definition of the relevant market, horizontal agreements and mergers, predation and abuse of dominance will be scrutinized.

There will be lectures, where students are expected to participate actively, and case-based teaching.

Course material

Brenda Sufrin (2014) EU Competition Law – Texts, Cases & Materials, 5 udg., Oxford University Press, in addition to selected cases and articles.
Massimo Motta (2004) Competition Policy – Theory and Practice, Cambridge University Press.

Bruce Lyons (Ed.) (2009) Cases in European Competition Policy – The Economic Analysis, Cambridge University Press