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Competition Law , by R. Whish and D. Bailey, Oxford, Oxford University Press,

2012, 7th edition, 1015 pp., £36.99, ISBN 978-0-19-958655-4

Article  in  The Law Teacher · December 2012

DOI: 10.1080/03069400.2012.732400

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Competition Law, by R. Whish

and D. Bailey, Oxford, Oxford
University Press, 2012, 7th
edition, 1015 pp., £36.99, ISBN
978-0-19-958655-4
a
Dr Jurgita Malinauskaite
a
Lecturer in Law, Brunel University
Version of record first published: 12 Dec 2012.

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D. Bailey, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2012, 7th edition, 1015 pp., £36.99, ISBN
978-0-19-958655-4, The Law Teacher, 46:3, 320-321

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 320 Learning Resources Reviews

Competition Law, by R. Whish and D. Bailey, Oxford, Oxford University Press,

2012, 7th edition, 1015 pp., £36.99, ISBN 978-0-19-958655-4

Competition law is a constantly evolving area of law, which corresponds to

political and economic thinking. The most recent edition of Richard Whish’s
textbook Competition Law is co-edited with David Bailey, and provides a com-
prehensive review of competition law suitable for both undergraduate and
postgraduate law students, which is marked by an easy-to-read and under-
standable writing style. There are useful diagrams, boxes, figures, examples and
tables peppered throughout the text, highlighting the key aspects of law to
students. The book contains two main elements – law and economics, which
are the cornerstones of competition law. The main economic concepts, prin-
Downloaded by [Brunel University] at 02:56 17 December 2012

ciples and theories underpinning competition law are discussed not only in
the introductory Chapter 1, but also in more specialised chapters, such as
Chapters 13–18 and Chapter 20. Additionally, two main jurisdictions of the EU
and UK are extensively explored with a grasp of an international dimension.
Both jurisdictions are discussed either in separate chapters or separate sec-
tions, marking a clear division between them and avoiding any confusion for
students.
The book consists of 23 substantive chapters, covering the major tenets of
competition law, such as restrictive agreements, abuse of a dominant position,
merger control, the obligations of member states, public and private enforce-
ment. The book also contains other more controversial features, such as the
relationship between intellectual property rights and competition law and
competition law in particular sectors. As far as the structure is concerned, there
are three main parts. The first part covers two introductory chapters, where
Chapter 1 contains some general aspects of competition law and policy and its
benefits, including the theory and function of competition followed by market
definition and market power. Chapter 2 is devoted to a concise overview of EU
and UK competition law, combined with an institutional framework of EU and
UK competition law, followed by the vital relationship between EU competi-
tion law and domestic competition law. In the second part (Chapters 3–12) the
authors turn to the individual provisions of competition law, such as Articles
101 and 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) and
its domestic equivalents Chapters I and II of the UK Competition Act 1998 and
finally the UK Enterprise Act 2002. Regrettably, the book has scarce discus-
sion on state aid (apart from a brief section in Chapter 6). Given the recent
developments in EU in state aid because of the financial crisis, the next edi-
tion could benefit from a chapter on state aid, such as in Bellamy & Child’s
European Community Law of Competition. The final part (Chapters 13–23) is
referred to as “contextual” chapters by the authors. The first three chapters
(Chapters 13–15) critically analyse horizontal agreements starting with the
most alarming in competition law – hard core cartels (Chapter 13) expressing
not only the European Commission’s and UK’s approaches but also the inter-
national position in relation to cartels, specifically, the OECD (the Organisation
 The Law Teacher 321
for Economic Co-Operation and Development) and the ICN (the International
Competition Network); then followed by the “problem” of tacit collusion and
oligopoly and collective dominance (Chapter 14); and ending with horizon-
tal agreements that can be countenanced due to their benefits for consumers
in Chapter 15. Vertical agreements are dealt with in Chapter 16, which fur-
ther explains vertical integration and its effects on competition in the light
of the case law and the position of the European Commission in its recent
Guidelines on Vertical Restraints and Regulation 330/2010 on the block exemp-
tion for vertical agreements. Chapters 17 and 18 provide a more extended
analysis of different types of abuse of dominance, including non-pricing prac-
tices (Chapter 17) and abusive pricing practices (Chapter 18). In recent years,
Microsoft and other cases have drawn attention to intellectual property rights
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and its interface with competition. Thus, it is undoubtedly valuable that the
relationship between intellectual property rights and competition law, includ-
ing technology transfer agreements are the subject matter of Chapter 19.
Merger control in the EU and the UK is addressed in Chapters 20–22. The
book concludes with a short discussion on the impact of competition law in
particular sectors, such as energy, post, transport to name a few.
The book addresses all the changes relevant to competition law brought by
the Treaty of Lisbon. First of all, the new terminology is incorporated referring to
Articles 101 and 102 TFEU (former Articles 81 and 82 of the Treaty establishing
the European Community) and the terms “General Court” and “Court of Justice”
instead of former references to “CFI” for European Court of First Instance and,
still largely applied by English scholars, “ECJ” for European Court of Justice.
Secondly, the book’s value lies in its presentation of the law’s latest develop-
ments, such as new guidelines on block exemption regulations for vertical and
horizontal agreements and finally recent ground-breaking cases put before the
European Commission and the courts, including judgments against Intel and
Microsoft. Given the complex nature of competition law and thorough analysis
of each chapter, it would be beneficial for students if the book had a short sum-
mary of each chapter emphasising the key aspects, which appears in Graham’s
EU and UK Competition Law. Nevertheless, the book has drawn together sys-
tematically the intricacies of EU and UK competition laws, underpinned with
economic analysis and reasoning and relevant European and UK cases and
invites students to engage in case-orientated as well as doctrinal debates and
discussions. Overall, this is another extremely valuable edition in the field of
competition law.

Dr Jurgita Malinauskaite
Lecturer in Law, Brunel University
Jurgita.Malinauskaite@brunel.ac.uk
© 2012 Jurgita Malinauskaite

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