On 6 May 2021 the CJEU published the opinion by AG Bobek in Case C‑819/19 Stichting Cartel Compensation and Equilib Netherlands BV v. KLM NV et al regarding a request for a preliminary ruling from the Rechtbank Amsterdam. It concerns damage actions against members of the international Air Cargo cartel. The case is particularly interesting as it shows the importance of choosing the right forum for a damage action in EU-wide cartel cases and the risks if national courts do not make use of preliminary rulings that are aimed at ensuring a consistent application of EU law across all Member States. Should the CJEU follow the opinion of AG Bobek, claimants that have pursued damage claims before the Amsterdam Court will have good chances to obtain compensation for the entire duration of the cartel from 1999 to 2006, while claimants before the High Court of England and Wales saw their damage claims significantly reduced to the period between 2004 and 2006.
Trucks Cartel: German Supreme Court confirms the binding effect of settlement decisions and the presumption of damages
By judgment of 23 September 2020 (KZR 35/19, translation into English) the German Federal Court of Justice (‘Bundesgerichtshof’, ‘BGH’) provides detailed guidance on legal principles and standards of proof regarding several key aspects of actions for damages resulting from the European trucks cartel. The Bundesgerichtshof confirms that the scope of the infringement established in the […]
German Supreme Court provides guidance on applicable law and standards of proof for causality and damage quantification in follow-on damage actions in light of recent CJEU case law
On 29 May 2020 the German Supreme Court (‘Bundesgerichtshof’) published two judgments (KZR 23/17 and KZR 25/17) in which it provides detailed guidance on the legal principles and the standard of proof to be applied for the substantiation of damages in follow-on damage actions in the light of EU law principles. These judgments are of wide interest […]
What makes a jurisdiction attractive for follow-on damage actions? The case of the Netherlands
This article is the first in a series on private enforcement in the Netherlands. Introduction Over the past 10 years the Netherlands has established itself as one of the key jurisdictions for private damage actions in the field of competition law in the EU. Claimants have brought multiple follow-on actions, mainly relating to pan-European cartel […]
CJEU confirms the right of all cartel victims to obtain redress in Elevators and Escalators cartel case
Introduction The year 2019 was marked by a number of landmark judgements of the Court of Justice of the European Union (‘CJEU’) in the field of private enforcement such as Skanska, Cogeco and Tibor-Trans. On 12 December 2019 the CJEU rendered its judgement in Case-435/18, Otis Geselschaft m.b.H. e.a., (Austrian Elevators and Escalators). Following the Opinion of Advocate General (‘AG’) Kokott, it […]
Collective or Class Actions and Claims Aggregation in the EU: the Claimant’s Perspective
An extract from GCR’s Private Litigation Guide – First Edition. The whole publication is available to purchase on GCR’s website. Private enforcement of competition law in Europe has in the past decade been driven in large part by the aggregation and enforcement of damages claims brought by multiple companies affected by the same competition law infringement […]
Dutch Court accepts jurisdiction for damage claims of non-EU claimants and provides guidance on the interpretation of limitation periods
On 27 June 2018 the Dutch District Court of East Brabant rendered an interim judgment (ECLI:NL:RBOBR:2018:3170) on the limitation periods of damage claims initiated by a Turkish company Vestel Ticaret A.Ş. (Vestel) against various international companies which were members of the cathode ray tubes cartel (CRT Cartel). The Dutch Court accepted jurisdiction of the case as one […]
The EFTA Court clarifies the application of limitation periods to antitrust claims resulting from EEA competition infringement
The EFTA Court with its judgment of 17 September 2018 (reference no. Case E-10/17 – Nye Kystlink AS and Color Group AS and Color Line AS) has confirmed that lawsuits against antitrust offenders can face deadline restrictions, but this should not make them “impossible or excessively difficult”. The EFTA Court stated that the compliance of national rules […]