A Comparison of Damage Theories in Price-Fixing Cases in the United States, Canada, and the European Union

American Bar Association Section of Litigation, The Class Actions and Derivative Suits Newsletter, Winter 2017

An Analysis Group team comprising President Pierre Cremieux, Managing Principal Marc Van Audenrode, and Vice President Marissa Ginn published “A Comparison of Damage Theories in Price-Fixing Cases in the United States, Canada, and the European Union” in the Winter 2017 edition of the Class Actions and Derivative Suits newsletter of the American Bar Association's Section of Litigation. The article uses an intuitive example to illustrate the economic impact of price-fixing in the marketplace, and to explain the differing evolution of litigation frameworks for private actions in the United States, Canada, and the European Union. In each jurisdiction, the regimes governing who can sue in private actions for damages, and what claims are allowed, differ; in particular, the standing of indirect purchasers and the admissibility of a pass-on defense shape the nature of private antitrust damages actions. The article illustrates how implementation, as well as upcoming precedents, may yet determine what the different frameworks imply for actual compensation levels. 

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Authors

Cremieux P, Ginn M, Van Audenrode M