Competition Law Forum: Antitrust Marathon IV: With Authority

The fourth leg of the Antitrust Marathon was held at the Writer's Museum in Dublin on 26-27 October 2009. It was organised by the British Institute of International and Comparative Law and the Institute for Consumer Antitrust Studies, Loyola University Chicago School of Law (with the assistance of the Irish Competition Authority).

For a copy of the programme for this event, please click here.

The meeting will be co-chaired by:

  • Philip Marsden, British Institute of International and Comparative Law; and
  • Spencer Weber Waller, Loyola University Chicago School of Law

26 October:

26.2 miles, gently around Dublin

Participants' Dinner 6pm

A&L Goodbody

International Financial Services Centre

North Wall Quay

Dublin 1

For a map, please click here

27 October: Antitrust Marathon IV:

10.00-10.30 Coffee and welcome by the chairs

10.30-11.30

(1) Competition law and consumer protection - the debate is no longer about whether these two should be integrated, the question now is how

Chair: Spencer Weber Waller

Paper author: Max Huffman, Indiana University-Indianapolis School of Law

For a copy of the paper, please click here

Discussants:

Cavendish Elithorn, Office of Fair Trading

Melanie Aitken, Canadian Competition Bureau

Paul Gorecki, ERSI

Issues:

- How do we ensure that consumer protection issues are adequately resourced and attended to by competition authorities?

- How do we ensure that competition policy and consumer protection issues and cases are resolved with as little conflict as possible with the other area?

- How can competition authorities help strengthen consumer NGOs, and consumer redress generally?

11.30-11.45 Coffee Break

11.45-13.30

(2) Conflicts of process vs. conflicts of values

Chair: Philip Marsden

(a) Competition agency interaction with concurrent regulators (i.e. competition-related); and all-in-one models: conflicts of process

Paper author: Giorgio Monti, London School of Economics

For a copy of the paper, please click here

Discussants:

Barry Rodger, University of Strathclyde

Isolde Goggin, Ofcom Advisory Committee Northern Ireland

Imelda Maher, University College Dublin

Issues:

- Concurrency and conflicts of process: how best to manage jurisdiction and case resolution among 'competing' agencies

- What is the rationale for concurrent jurisdiction to be given to sectoral regulators and a competition agency? If a regulator is given competition enforcement powers, is this a recognition that the regulator is expected to balance regulatory goals and competition enforcement goals? If there is a difference of view between two agencies with concurrent jurisdiction on enforcement of competition laws, how should that be resolved?

(b) Competition agency interaction with Other Government Departments, other non-competition areas: conflict of values

Paper author: Edward J. Janger, Brooklyn Law School

For a copy of the paper, please click here

Discussants:

Philippa Watson, City Law School and Essex Court Chambers

Issues:

- Spotlight on financial services: when other policy areas override competition concerns, how best is this accomplished with a minimum of damage to the credibility of the competition regime?

- When OGDs request that businesses implement change (for environmental, social reasons, stimulating 'innovation', procurement, other policy rationales), how best do competition authorities engage in this process to ensure that this does not induce anti-competitive conduct?

- When competition laws and policy clash with other public policy goals, how should they be resolved? If they can be reconciled, what mechanism should be in place to do this? Who should do this? If other public policy goals should have primacy, should the competition policy issues still need to be articulated?

13.45-14.30 Lunch

14.30-16.00

(3) Institutional design generally: adminisitrative vs. judicial models vs. mixed

Chair: Spencer Weber Waller

Paper author: Vincent Power, A&L Goodbody

For a copy of the paper, please click here

Discussants:

Stanley Wong, Irish Competition Authority

Bruno Lasserre, Autorité de la concurrence

Issues:

- What is the appropriate model for adjudication at first instance of competition law? Administrative or judicial or a mixed?

- Does the nature of remedies sought affect the chocie, having regard to the legal system?

- If a decision at first instance is appealed to a judicial body, what should be the standard of review?

16.00 Close and thanks

Participants include:

  • Philip Marsden, BIICL
  • Spencer Waller, Loyola University Chicago School of Law
  • Stanley Wong, Irish Competition Authority
  • Melanie Aitken, Canadian Competition Bureau
  • Bruno Lasserre, Autorité de la concurrence
  • Giorgio Monti, London School of Economics
  • Matthew Newman, Bloomberg News
  • Barry Rodger, Strathcyde University
  • Vincent Power, AL Goodbody
  • Edward Janger, Brooklyn Law School
  • Max Huffman, Indiana University-Indianapolis School of Law
  • Francisco Marcos, Instituto de Empressa Business School
  • Maurice Stucke, University of Tennessee College of Law
  • Cavendish Elithorn, Office of Fair Trading
  • Isolde Goggin, Ofcom's Advisory Committee for Northern Ireland
  • Imelda Maher, University College Dublin
  • Anna Louise Hinds, NUI Galway
  • Philippa Watson, City Law School and Essex Court Chambers
  • Carlos Orci, Basham Ringe y Correa and Kings College London
  • Paul Gorecki, ESRI
  • Bill Prasifka, Irish Competition Authority
  • Ann Fitzgerald, National Consumer Agency
  • Gerald Fitzgerald, McCann Fitzgerald
  • Emily Gibson, Irish Society of European Law
  • Paolo Palmigiano, ComReg
  • Mr Justice John D. Cooke
  • Declan Walsh, University College Cork
  • Moore McDowell, University College Dublin
  • Pat Massey, CompEcon

The proceedings of this event will be published in the Spring 2010 edition of the European Competition Journal. For information on this journal, please click here.