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Media Releases
2006

03 April
2006

European Commission comes to Scotland to speak about claiming damages from cartel members - Scottish Competition Law Forum Spring Meeting

In the US it has long been the case that corporate victims of serious anti-competitive acts could obtain damages. Every year there are far more US civil cases than public prosecutions launched by the Justice Department and the States combined. This has not been the case in Europe where the law on competition damages is in a state of comparable underdevelopment.

It could be argued that the EU should avoid taking steps to develop its litigation system for fear of a US-style "compensation culture" litigation. Others however argue that it should be possible for victims of cartel behaviour to receive compensation for damage caused. To that end, the European Commission has published a Green Paper exploring ways of smoothing the process of making damages claims for breaches of EU competition law to enable companies and consumers that have been injured, particularly by price fixing cartels, to claim compensation.

The next meeting of the Scottish Competition Law Forum will take place on 5 April and will be focusing on the Commission's Green Paper on Competition Damages. The Forum will be fortunate in having Mr Donncadh Woods, from the Commission's Competition Directorate, and Mr Neil Dryden as principal speakers. Mr Woods is the leader of the Commission team who drafted the Green Paper and Mr Dryden is an Associate Director in NERA's European Competition Policy Practice.

The meeting will take place in Glasgow and will commence at 5.30 pm. The discussion will be followed by a drinks reception. The meeting is open to members and non-members.

To attend this event, please contact, Charlotte Sjostedt (direct dial: 0131 473 5458; email: charlotte.sjostedt@shepwedd.co.uk).

The Scottish Competition Law Forum (SCLF) has recently been established in order to promote discussion and debate on competition law and policy in Scotland. The Forum is supported by a range of interested parties including representatives of leading Scottish law firms, the Scottish universities and the Office of Fair Trading.

The SCLF is hoping to act as a means by which Scottish businesses can join in the debate on competition law issues affecting Scotland. John Fingleton and Philip Collins, the new Chief Executive and Chairman of the OFT, attended the winter meeting, which provided an excellent opportunity for debate.

Further details of the Forum may be found at www.scotcomp.org.uk


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