Abstract | This chapter focuses on the drafting history and the role of Regulation 17/62 in the evolution of the European Economic Community's (EEC) competition law and policy. It argues that while the text of Articles 85 and 86 show a substantial French influence, Regulation 17/62 — and thus the procedural rules governing the implementation and public enforcement of substantive competition law — was more reflective of the German economic and legal tradition and understanding of competition. Despite some tensions, Regulation 17/62 was premised on the overall consensus to create a competition law culture in Europe. For this reason, Article 85 was interpreted as a strict prohibition of agreements and concerted practices in restraint of competition — a prohibition unknown in most member states at that time. The Regulation's notification system turned into a sort of transmission belt, transferring the new prohibition to each of the member states' competition laws. Taken together, these dynamics led to a revolutionary way of regulating relations between undertakings through previously little-used antitrust provisions |
---|