About this site

What can I find on this database?

This is a curated database of European Commission decisional practice on competition law from 1964 to today. It includes decisions on abuse of dominance (monopolisation), agreements (restraints of trade), and concentrations (mergers). Only decisions in English are available and only decisions that include substantive content:

• From Articles 101/102​: closure of proceedings,​ commitments,​ interim measures,​ prohibition decisions, rejections,​ settlements.
• From concentrations: decisions that rely on​ Council Regulation 139/2004 Art 6(1)(b) with conditions, 6(1)(c)​, 8(1) + (2) + (3)​, Council Regulation 4064/89 Art 6(1)(c)​, 8(2) + (with conditions) + (3). In short, concentrations that were cleared or blocked in Phase II, and concentrations that were cleared in Phase I but after 2004 and with conditions (we are working to add Phase I clearances with conditions pre-2004).

The database is periodically updated, but decisions of the past year may be missing. If you find omissions/mistakes, please contact us here.

How does this database differ from the one provided by the European Commission?

Our database differs in three main respects. Firstly, it allows full text search into the decisions, a feature that is unavailable on the Commission’s database. Secondly, it catalogues cases going back to the 1960s, whereas the Commission's database only lists cases post-1998. Thirdly, our database is curated and includes only decisions that contain substantive discussion of the law (in English). These features allow for a more targeted search that yields decluttered results.

Who is behind this database?

The database was initially developed as part of the research project on “The Goals of EU Competition Law: A Comprehensive Empirical Investigation” by Prof Konstantinos Stylianou (University of Glasgow) and Dr Marios Iacovides (Uppsala University) (you can find the results here and here). That project was funded by the Swedish Competition Authority. The public version of the database was further developed through an ESRC Impact Acceleration Account grant. Parts of the database were based on research conducted by Dr Or Brook (University of Leeds).

How do I use the database?

You can search by case number, case name, full-text, or date. If you use multiple search criteria, only results that match all of them will appear. When using the full text search, while phrases are allowed (e.g. "restriction of competition"), we recommend you search one keyword at a time. By default, results appear in order of relevance, but you can rank them by date too.

Is this database affiliated with the European Commission?

No. The database is the outcome of a research project unaffiliated with the European Commission, and no funding has been received by the European Commission.

Is it free to use, and who owns the copyright?

It is free to use and the copyright of the database is vested with the University of Leeds.