Study-Unit Description

Study-Unit Description


CODE ECL4009

 
TITLE Commercial Agreements under EU Competition Law

 
UM LEVEL 04 - Years 4, 5 in Modular UG or PG Cert Course

 
MQF LEVEL 6

 
ECTS CREDITS 4

 
DEPARTMENT European and Comparative Law

 
DESCRIPTION This study-unit, after a discussion of principles governing the application of Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, examines specific types of vertical and horizontal agreements and through an analytical study of the relevant case-law, block exemptions and guidelines demonstrates how the principles governing Article 101 are applied in practice to these particular types of agreements which form the structure of today’s business. At the same time for the student who intends to pursue studies at Masters level this study-unit will serve as a useful intermediate course to enable him/her to prepare for a more in-depth and comprehensive study of EU Competition law.

Learning Outcomes:

• Students will gain a clear understanding of the legal and economic principles underlying the application of EU competition rules to different forms of collaboration between market players
• The practical and empirical approach adopted in this study unit will enable students to acquire an ability to analyse the legality of various clauses in commercial agreements and to advise on permissible horizontal and vertical collaboration
• Students will gain an insight into the EU Courts’ and Commission’s current thinking on collaborative practices through a discussion of the latest judgments and Commission decisions and guidelines
• Students will learn to view the law from a comparative angle by comparing and contrasting the EU approach to the approach taken by US courts and authorities under US antitrust law to the same forms of collaboration.

Reading List:

EU Competition Law: Text, Cases and Materials, A Jones & B Sufrin, 4th edn, OUP Competition Law, R Whish, 6th edn, OUP An Introductory Guide to EC Competition Law and Practice, V Korah, 9th edn, Hart Publishing Distribution Agreements under the EC Com-petition Rules, V Korah & R O'Sullivan, Hart Publishing.

 
ADDITIONAL NOTES Students taking this study-unit need to have a background in law.

 
STUDY-UNIT TYPE Lecture

 
METHOD OF ASSESSMENT
Assessment Component/s Assessment Due Sept. Asst Session Weighting
Examination (1 Hour) SEM1 Yes 100%

 
LECTURER/S

 

 
The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints.
Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice.
It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years.

https://www.um.edu.mt/course/studyunit