Private Antitrust Enforcement in the US and the EU - A Comparison of Key Issues

Thomas Obersteiner, Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP offers Private Antitrust Enforcement in the US and the EU - A Comparison of Key Issues.

ABSTRACT: This paper explains how the EU has adopted some elements from the US system of private enforcement but has made very different policy choices with respect to other elements. The paper begins with a glimpse at the origins of private enforcement and a consideration of two of the biggest challenges to a comparison, namely the federal legal structures in the US and the EU and the different purposes of private enforcement (compensation v. deterrence). The core of this paper is a comparison of nine key issues of private antitrust litigation, including, among others: standing, passing-on, collective actions and discovery.