Evaluation of the distinction between legitimate oligopolistic behaviour and cartels/concerted practices prohibited under Article 101 TFEU

Seminar paper from the year 2011 in the subject Law - Civil / Private / Trade / Anti Trust Law / Business Law, grade: First Class Honors (75 %), Trinity College Dublin (Faculty of Law), course: Economic And Legal Aspects Of Competition Policy, language: English, abstract: This essay evaluates the distinction between legitimate oligopolistic behaviour and cartels/concerted practices prohibited under Article 101 TFEU. It sets out a handy definition of oligopolistic behaviour for an evaluation in the context of competition law and carves out the important aspects of applying Article 101 TFEU in regard to such markets. The analysis itself covers explicit coordination (cartels in the strict sense), the means of information sharing and tacit coordination. It assesses the judgements of the ECJ in those matters and eventually offers a way to make tacit collusion actionable under European competition law de lege lata.