Module overview
Competition law, whether on an international or national level, is an important influence on companies' business strategy. Competition law plays a major role in trade and trade relations between countries. It is also an increasingly important element of the everyday life of businesses. The aim of the course is to give you a good understanding of competition law, with a primary focus on EU and US antitrust rules and cases for the purpose of either practice or research in the field.
Aims and Objectives
Learning Outcomes
Knowledge and Understanding
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
- A2. The core principles, concepts, economics and doctrines of competition law and their application to commercial relationships or transactions or corporate parties.
- A3. The values, policies and interests underlying international competition law.
- A1. The national, regional or international institutional framework of competition law and its corporate or commercial governance agendas.
Transferable and Generic Skills
Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:
- C1. Undertake independent research and access primary and secondary sources effectively.
- C3. Communicate arguments and reference sources appropriately.
- C2. Analyse complex written texts and construct arguments and solve problems based on premises drawn from various sources.
Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills
Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:
- B1. Suggest possible legal developments to improve the efficiency and fairness of competition law governing affected parties in the international commercial context and in the context of other areas of law and sector regulation.
Syllabus
The course will generally cover agreements between undertakings, unilateral conduct, and merger control in an international context. It will also cover the competition law’s relation to other areas of law such as intellectual property and trade and the application of competition law as a regulatory tool. Enforcement issues will be discussed when necessary to understand the substantive law. During the module you will consider the underlying policies behind the competition rules, how they have changed over the years and their improvement.
Learning and Teaching
Teaching and learning methods
Teaching Method:
One 2-hour seminar per week
Learning methods include:
Essential and additional directed reading, as per distributed reading lists reproduced on Blackboard;
Engagement with current legal or commercial developments to ensure that you can relate the material being discussed in class to contemporary controversies
Type | Hours |
---|---|
Teaching | 20 |
Independent Study | 130 |
Total study time | 150 |
Resources & Reading list
Textbooks
(2004). Concurrent Proceedings in Competition Law: Procedure, Evidence and Remedies. Oxford University Press.
Dabbah. International and Comparative Law. Cambridge University Press.
Nazzini (2011). Abuse of a Dominant Position: Objectives and Principles of Article 102. Oxford University Press.
Whish. Competition Law. Oxford University Press.
Jones and Sufrin (2016). EU Competition Law, Text, Cases and Materials. Oxford University Press.
Gerber (2010). Global Competition, Law, Markets and Globalisation. Oxford University Press.
Gerber (1998). Law and Competition in Twentieth Century Europe: Protecting Prometheus. Oxford University Press.
Anderman and Schmidt (2011). EU Competition Law and Intellectual Property Rights, the Regulation of Innovation. Oxford University Press.
Assessment
Formative
This is how we’ll give you feedback as you are learning. It is not a formal test or exam.
Formative Assessment
- Assessment Type: Formative
- Feedback: Feedback will be provided to you individually in writing on the school feedback form.
- Final Assessment: No
- Group Work: No
Summative
This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.
Method | Percentage contribution |
---|---|
Coursework | 100% |
Referral
This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.
Method | Percentage contribution |
---|---|
Coursework | 100% |
Repeat
An internal repeat is where you take all of your modules again, including any you passed. An external repeat is where you only re-take the modules you failed.
Method | Percentage contribution |
---|---|
Coursework | 100% |
Repeat Information
Repeat type: Internal & External