Mens Rea in EU Antitrust Law: When Intentions Matter

About this book:

Mens Rea in EU Antitrust Law is a groundbreaking book in which the author analyses the role in antitrust law of the concept of mens rea, the idea of the ‘guilty mind’, which has longheld significance in criminal law. With economic evidence assuming a key role in competition law analysis, the question of intent appears to be sidelined. Yet, this book offers an original, thorough and accessible analysis of the interplay between economic and intent-based evidence in European Union (EU) antitrust enforcement. It also provides a resolute stance on the arguments pro and con using mens rea and intent evidence in competition law enforcement, thus opening a new perspective in the ongoing paradigm shift in antitrust law.

What’s in this book:

Delving deep into the case law of the European courts on the topic of mens rea in EU antitrust law has enabled the author to elucidate the following areas of law:

• the role of mens rea in the criminal law in France, Germany, and England and Wales;
• the different types of mens rea (e.g., intent, recklessness, negligence);
• mens rea in a corporate context;
• mens rea evidence in United States antitrust law;
• the notion of the ‘meeting of minds’ in Article 101 TFEU;
• relevance of intentions in the determination of the object of an agreement or concerted practice;
• relevance of intentions in the determination of abuse of a dominant position; and
• the role of mens rea in the determination of fines for antitrust breaches.

How this will help you:

This intensively researched and meticulously presented book, which is an analysis of the current status of the use of mens rea in antitrust enforcement and how the practice could develop, will be valuable to practitioners as well as enforcers, policymakers and academics.