From Regulation 1 to Regulation 2: National Enforcement of EU Cartel Prohibition and the Need for Further Convergence

摘要

In 2002 Celine Gauer asked: 'Does the effectiveness of the EU network of competition authorities require a certain degree of harmonisation of national procedures and sanctions?'.1 After more than nine years of experience with Regulation No 1/2003, this paper argues in the affirmative. Regulation No 1/2003 has changed immensely the legal and political framework conditions for antitrust enforcement. A key aspect of this change has been the decentralisation of enforcement due to the closer integration of the national competition authorities and courts in the application of European law. But antitrust enforcement in the Member States is currently faced with huge challenges. Take the example of Germany. Given the manageable number of cases and moderate fines up until 2000, the German enforcement framework did not pose significant problems to cartel prosecution until the beginning of the century.