Sharing Powers Within Exclusive Competences: Rethinking EU Antitrust Law Enforcement

Abstract

Although the establishment of competition rules forms part of the EU’s exclusive competences, the application and enforcement of those rules has always been shared consistently between the EU and its Member States. The sharing of enforcement powers is conceptualised traditionally as a delegation of the exercise of exclusively conferred competences. The Court of Justice of the European Union’s case law in the context of EU antitrust law enforcement nevertheless raises profound questions as to the overall tenability of this delegation framework in this particular field of EU exclusive competence. This contribution argues the traditional exclusive competences narrative indeed fails to grasp the system of shared enforcement powers underlying EU antitrust law. Seeking to make sense of the realities of that system in light of EU competence doctrines, it explores the constitutionality of legal policy strategies enabling a more explicit recognition of shared competences principles as an inherent part of this EU exclusive competence domain.

Keywords

• eu competition law
• competences
• member states
• court of justice
• delegation
• enforcement