Competition Law

Recommended Prerequisites

It is recommended that the students have had prior contact with another legal discipline.

Teaching Methods

Exposition of the fundamental contents with the monitoring of the applicable legal norms. Analysis of applicable legislation. Frequent questioning of students requesting a critical analysis of concrete cases. Critical analysis of decisions by the Competition Authority and the European Commission. Resolution of practical cases.

Learning Outcomes

It is expected the acquisition of a reasonable knowledge of national and EU regulations in this area, both with regard to the substantive law as the procedural and institutional aspects; acquisition of relevant tools to make more informed business decisions when competition matters are at stake; acquisition of adequate information about the role and functions of competition authorities, as well as on the national and EU mechanisms available to companies to protect them against harmful competition practices. From the administered knowledge and practical exercises, students should acquire the necessary skills to enable them identify the most important anticompetitive conducts prescribed by the national and EU competition law;
understand the main legal consequences associated with the commission of such offenses; recognize the mechanisms available to companies to react against those anticompetitive practices; select the entity to address a complaint of anticompetitive practices.

Work Placement(s)

No

Syllabus

1. Market; Law and Competition. 2. Competition law: unfair competition and other unlawful competitive practices; the protection of competition. 3. National and EU antitrust law: national. 5. National and EU competition authorities. 6. Relevant market. 7. Coalitions. 8. Abuse of dominant position and abuse of economic dependence. 9. Merger´s control. 10. State aid. 11. Public companies, SGEI and competition law.

Head Lecturer(s)

Maria Elisabete Gomes Ramos

Assessment Methods

Evaluation
The evaluation consists on choosing between a final exam and a system of continuous assessment, translated into two interim tests that replace the final exam.: 100.0%

Bibliography

CONCORRÊNCIA: estudos. Coordenação António Goucha Soares e Maria Manuel Leitão Marques. Coimbra: Edições Almedina, 2006.

CUNHA, Carolina - Controlo das concentrações de empresa: direito comunitário e direito português. Coimbra: Livraria Almedina, 2005.

FONSECA, Margarida Rosado da; FERREIRA, Luís do Nascimento - O procedimento de controlo das operações de concentração de empresas em Portugal: a prática decisória da autoridade da concorrência, à luz da lei nº 18/2003, de 11 de Junho. Coimbra: Almedina, 2009.

GOMES, José Luís Caramelo - Lições de direito da concorrência. Almedina, 2010.

GORJÃO-HENRIQUES, Miguel - Direito da União. História, direito, cidadania, mercado interno e concorrência, 6.ª ed., Almedina, 2010.

MACHADO, Jónatas E. M. - Direito da União Europeia. Coimbra Editora, 2010.

MORAIS, Luís D. S. - Os conceitos de objecto e efeito restritivos da concorrência e a prescrição de infracções de concorrência. Coimbra: Edições Almedina, 2009.