CJEU finds national limitation periods in conflict with the EU law principle of effectiveness

On 28 March 2019 in Case Cogeco C‑637/17 the CJEU provided guidance on the application ratione temporis of the EU Damages Directive 2014/104/EU (Directive) and stressed the importance of the principle of effectiveness for damages actions for breaches of EU competition law. The CJEU confirmed that a case-by-case analysis is required in order to assess whether the Directive is […]

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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 […]

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AG Kokott: Confirming the Wide Scope of Antitrust Damage Claims

Introduction Advocate General (AG) Kokott is one of the most influential and experienced members of the European Union’s judiciary. Recently, she handed down a landmark opinion in relation to the Austrian Elevators and Escalators cartel damages case on the scope of damages claims that can be brought by claimants. The key issue in Austrian Elevators and Escalators revolved around […]

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Landmark judgment by the EU Court of Justice on the interpretation of the place of harmful event under Regulation Brussels I bis for the determination of alternative grounds of jurisdiction in pan-European cartel damages cases

With its judgment of 29 July 2019 in Case C-451/18, Tibor-Trans (‘Judgment’), the EU Court of Justice (‘CJEU’) clarified the competence of national courts to hear damage actions relating to pan-European infringements of Art. 101 TFEU under Regulation 1215/2012 Brussels I bis (in short ‘Brussels I bis’). The CJEU specified that victims of illegal cartels can lodge an action for […]

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