Shipping Conferences under EC Antitrust Law


Book Description

Liner conferences are among the oldest surviving cartels in the world. Created in the 1870s they have existed since on all the world's shipping routes. With the approval or tacit acquiescence of governments everywhere, they fix freight rates, control capacity and share markets. The United Nations Code of Conduct for Liner Conferences (1974) granted them global recognition and prompted the European Community to recommend Member States to join the Convention on the Liner Code (1979) and to grant them the most generous and extraordinary block exemption from EC antitrust rules ever (1986). The European Commission's administration of the block exemption has clarified some of its aspects and, to a certain extent, limited its scope; but until very recently, it has not questioned the appropriateness of the exceptionally lenient treatment of liner shipping cartels in the European Union. After a report by the OECD Secretariat (2002) recommending abolition of antitrust immunity for shipping cartels in member countries, the European Commission launched a review of the block exemption (2003) which has led to its repeal (2006). This book studies first the origins, the early history and the regulation of liner conferences in the world and in the European Community, focusing in particular on the Regulation which granted a block exemption to liner conferences. Then, it examines one by one the four conditions for a block exemption to be granted under EC law, and concludes that none of them is fulfilled by shipping cartels. Finally, it proposes some alternative scenarios and solutions for the adequate enforcement of antitrust law in the maritime sector once the block exemption has been repealed.




Liner Conferences in Competition Law


Book Description

A liner conference, as a self-regulation organisational form of liner shipping companies, constitutes a typical "hard-core cartel" with significant anti-competitive effect. One of the main three trade routes of liner shipping traffic is the Europe-Asia Trade, on the two ends of which both the European Community (EC) and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) play important roles in the international liner shipping market. However, the competition regimes on liner conferences in both jurisdictions are not equivalent. From a comparative point of view, this book reviews the historical development of maritime policy and regulatory legislation in the EC and the PRC, catches insight into the system of regulation regime and individual provisions in substantive and procedural meaning, and finally provides a wide-ranging perspective on the future competition regulation in respect of the latest developments in both jurisdictions.




Competition and Regulation in Shipping and Shipping Related Industries


Book Description

Maritime competition as an economic phenomenon is currently influenced by a number of factors both at EU and international level. From a legislative point of view, the recent repeal of EC Reg. 4056/1986 affects the treatment of horizontal agreements not only in the liner but also in the bulk sector, which was excluded until recently from the scope of EC secondary competition rules. However, competition distortions are not only a question of private arrangements. They emanate also from measures and practices incompatible with the freedom to provide services, Member states protectionism and international mandatory regulation. This volume comparatively and comprehensively examines all these issues, by bringing together contributions from distinguished academics. Particular focus is given on private shipping cartels, the liberalization of cabotage and port services, indirect competition-distorting factors and the latest developments on international regulation of carriage of goods by sea.




Liner Shipping and EU Competition Law


Book Description

As of October 2008, liner shipping companies lose their privileged status under EU competition law due to withdrawal of the liner conference block exemption, which generously authorized horizontal price-fixing and similar agreements between liner shipping companies. Where the liner consortia block exemption does not apply, all cooperative activity should be carefully and individually assessed under the competition provisions of the EC Treaty. Alla Pozdnakova has taken this opportunity to research and write an in-depth study of competition law problems in the liner shipping context. Her analysis is not only the first to examine the new European regime, and thus the most up-to-date study of the subject; it is in fact the first major independent study of how Articles 81 and 82 EC are construed and applied to the market conduct of liner shipping companies. In particular, the author addresses the following legal questions: * Does cooperation between liner shipping companies infringe Article 81(1) even if it does not entail hard-core restrictions of competition? * Can a cooperative arrangement between liner shipping companies claim that the efficiencies they produce outweigh the negative impact on competition (Article 81(3))? * When do certain market strategies of liner carriers become an abuse of a collective or individual dominant position (Article 82)? * Does parallel pricing behaviour infringe EC Treaty competition rules? Systematically, the author considers various market strategies of liner shipping companies and tests them as to their compatibility with EC Treaty competition provisions. In doing so, she thoroughly analyses European Commission decisions and judgments of the European courts, applying them authoritatively to the liner shipping sector. In this way, her book provides a well-structured account that clearly identifies the legal issues that liner shipping companies are likely to face once the special treatment traditionally allowed them is withdrawn. A summary of current and prospective developments in EU competition regulation and policy in liner shipping rounds up the analysis. Liner Shipping and EU Competition Law will be a unique and powerful resource for practitioners and policymakers as liner shipping companies restructure their agreements and market strategies to accommodate loss of the block exemption. It is also sure to become a definitive analysis of the legal identity of the liner shipping market sector under European competition law.




EU Shipping Law


Book Description

A previous winner of the Comité Maritime International’s Albert Lilar Prize for the best shipping law book worldwide, EU Shipping Law is the foremost reference work for professionals in this area. This third edition has been completely revised to include developments in the competition/antitrust regime, new safety and environmental rules, and rules governing security and ports. It includes detailed commentary and analysis of almost every aspect of EU law as it affects shipping.




Day-to-Day Competition Law


Book Description

Companies today must consider and comply with competition law in their daily business management. The financial and reputational risks for breaching such rules are severe and the success of many merger and acquisition projects depends very much on it. While competition law rules become increasingly sophisticated, business people are still expected to comply with it. Rather than giving a theoretical approach that can be found in a typical practitioner’s book or textbook, «Day-to-Day competition law: a practical guide for businesses» is genuinely a practical book. The interaction between theory and practice is the main feature of the book. Major competition law issues are explained in a jargon-free manner and summarized in a nutshell at the end of each chapter. Not only will the reader gain an understanding of competition law rules, but also will gain a better understanding on how a company can behave and what to do if it is subject to an investigation by the competition authorities. This practical guidance may serve as a platform for designing internal in-house rules governing behaviour in relation to competition law, and may also trigger a revision of such rules in light of some of the issues raised by the authors. While a particular focus is drawn on the EU – as the EU competition law system is replicated in a large number of countries around the world – reference to differing rules and other key jurisdictions such as the United States is also made. This book is written to appeal to business people, as well as non-specialized in-house lawyers, and all those who wish to understand competition law in a clear and practical way. The authors’ experience in the field of competition law ranges from leading investigations on behalf of competition authorities to applying competition law in a major global company in its daily activities, and advising multinational clients of one of the world’s leading law firms. It is this professional insight which provides the reader with an invaluable inside view of all aspects of competition law, from the way authorities think to the impacts competition law has on businesses.




Remedies in EU Competition Law


Book Description

By their nature, remedies are central to competition law enforcement and represent the yardstick against which the efficiency of the overall system can be measured. Yet very rarely have remedies been treated in a horizontal and comprehensive manner from the combined perspectives of substance, process and policy. The present volume, developed in partnership with the College of Europe’s Global Competition Law Centre (GCLC), provides coherent, practical, and authoritative commentaries by leading experts from the GCLC’s incomparable network. The contributions – originally presented at the 2019 GCLC annual conference – examine remedies to assess the overall effectiveness of competition law enforcement in merger, antitrust and State aid matters. The overall topic is presented under five headings: objectives and limitations of remedies; types of remedies in competition law enforcement; implementation and process; ex post assessment of remedies and policy lessons; and national and international approaches. The high-profile and wide-ranging group of authors includes the Director-General of the European Commission’s competition department, lawyers from major international firms, and well-known economists and academics specialising in competition law. With a sharp focus on how to make competition rules work well in today’s digital environment, this systematic and coherent analysis illuminates an issue that we need to fully grasp and understand in order to make sense of competition policy, law and enforcement in the years and decades to come.




The Hamburg Lectures on Maritime Affairs 2009 & 2010


Book Description

In 2007, the International Max Planck Research School for Maritime Affairs together with the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), both based in Hamburg, decided to establish an annual lecture series, the "Hamburg Lectures on Maritime Affairs" - giving distinguished scholars and practitioners the opportunity to present and discuss recent developments in this field. The present volume - the second in the series - collects eight of the lectures held in 2009 and 2010 by David Joseph Attard, Lucius Caflisch, Beate Czerwenka, Lars Gorton, Francesco Munari, Kyriaki Noussia, Peter Wetterstein and Wolfgang Wurmnest.




Maritime Law in China


Book Description

The Chinese maritime and shipping market has been expanding enormously in recent times as its commercial capacity to perform shipping, ship building, banking and insurance activities grows and the role of the State as guarantor of commerce is gradually reduced. This book provides a detailed guide to current Chinese maritime law, written by an expert team of contributors and systematically covering key areas such as carriage of goods by sea, international trade, vessels and seafarers and maritime liabilities. The authors explore cutting-edge issues within each topic, and analyse current trends in law reform. The book will be of interest to academics researching commercial and maritime law, as well as maritime law practitioners and shipping industry professionals working with aspects of Chinese maritime practice.




EU and US Antitrust Arbitration


Book Description

EU and US Antitrust Arbitration is the first book that deals with how both of the world's leading antitrust systems, US and EU law, are treated in international arbitration. In forty-nine chapters written by renowned experts, this book provides an in-depth examination of all relevant topics, from drafting arbitration clauses, to arbitrability, provisional measures, the applicability of antitrust law in arbitrations, dealing with economic evidence and experts in relation to antitrust law, to relations with courts and regulators, remedies, and recognition and enforcement of arbitration awards dealing with antitrust issues. Both antitrust and merger control are covered. The perspectives of the arbitrator and the in-house andquot;userandquot; of arbitration are included. Two chapters outline and explain US antitrust law and EU antitrust law with special reference to matters particularly likely to arise in arbitration. One chapter is devoted to ICC antitrust arbitrations and another to the emerging area of EU State aids in arbitration. There are industry-specific chapters, such as on telecommunications and pharmaceuticals, and much else. In this substantial book, practitioners will find helpful and easy-to-understand guidance to their questions on antitrust arbitrations.