Julian Nowag

Bio: Julian Nowag is an academic researcher from Lund University. The author has contributed to research in topics: Competition law & Competition (economics). The author has an hindex of 5, co-authored 27 publications receiving 61 citations. Previous affiliations of Julian Nowag include University of Oxford.

Environmental Integration in Competition and Free-Movement Laws

Abstract: Environmental Integration in Competition and Free-Movement Laws engages in a comprehensive analysis of the obligation of Article 11 TFEU (integration of environmental protection requirements) in the three core areas of EU internal market law: competition, state aid, and free movement. It develops a theoretical framework for integrating environmental and other policies and compares how environmental integration takes place within competition, state aid, and free movement law. In turn, it paves a way for a more transparent and consistent integration of environment protection in these three core areas of law.Structured in three parts, this volume (I) offers a detailed analysis of the historical development of environmental integration including discussions of the various intergovernmental conferences which led to a number of Treaty changes, shaping the obligation itself. (II) It investigates which provisions and concepts within competition law, state aid law, and the market freedoms can be interpreted in order to provide a clear demarcation of environmental protection and these areas of law. (III) It analyses how competition, state aid, and free movement law allow for a balancing of the environment against restrictions in cases of conflict. (Less)

Is This Completely M.A.D.? Three Views on the Ruling of the German FCC on 5th May 2020

Abstract: This brief note, on the Bundesverfassungsgericht’s Weiss judgment of 5th May 2020, highlights three implications of the German Federal Constitutional Court’s landmark ruling and its constitutional significance with implications for the wider context of Member States’ cooperation in the EU and European integration as a whole. We explain the relevant background of the judgment and argue that the specific issue created by the judgment might be addressed quickly but that the resulting judicial turmoil for the broader relationship between the law of the EU and the Member States can only be remedied by treaty changes in the longer term in order to avoid the Mutually Assured Destruction (M.A.D.)

EU Law, Constitutional Identity, and Human Dignity: A Toxic Mix?

Abstract: This paper examines the Bundesverfassungsgericht’s decision (BVerfG) in Mr R on the relationship between German constitutional law and EU law. The case concerned an extradition under the European Arrest Warrant (EAW) and the Court found a violation of human dignity as protected by the German constitution. Some creatures release toxins when threatened and as Paracelsus explained dosis sola facit venenum, the dose alone makes the poison. While this quote is related to toxicology, it is equally relevant to the judgment. The, therefore, paper first describes the relevant facts of the judgment and the threatening environment which may have contributed to this reaction of the Court. Then, the paper highlights the venomous qualities of the BVerfG’s judgment and how it effects the body of EU law. Finally, the treatment of mutual trust and acte clair will be analysed, before it will be shown that if used in the right dosage the judgment might help curing some illnesses of the current human rights protection in the EU.

Buyer Power In The Big Data And Algorithm Driven World: The Uber & Lyft Example

Abstract: For competition lawyers, Uber is an interesting subject to study. Not only does Uber change the dynamics of the transportation market but it also raises interesting competition law questions. Last year for example, a class action suit against Uber in New York raised the question whether Uber is possibly arranging a hub and spoke cartel amongst the drivers by coordinating their selling prices. 2017 has continued to be litigious and interesting.One of these new class action lawsuits might also raise thought-provoking antitrust issues related to big data and buyer power. Uber, the maverick firm that revolutionized passenger transportation services across the world has been now sued over its alleged use of its “Hell” software before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California filed on April 24th, 2017. The suit alleges a breach of privacy laws due to interception of private communications and unfair competition.This software apparently allowed Uber to track Lyft drivers, its main competitor, create fake Lyft accounts, determine which drivers drove for both companies, and “execut[e] a plan meant to entice double-appers to drive exclusively for them”.In this paper we explore such behaviour from a different perspective, the antitrust one. The focus of this paper is on exploring relevant behavior from a buyer power-oriented focusing on reverse rebates and overbuying, while not engaging in a concrete analysis of Uber’s conduct. This analysis provides us with the opportunity to re-explore traditional antitrust concepts, anchored on the purchasing of raw material, in the data and algorithm driven world, in particular, how companies can use big data in anticompetitive strategies, such as granting supra-competitive bonuses, overbuying, and raising rival’s costs through overbuying input (Less)

The UBER-Cartel? UBER between Labour and Competition Law

Abstract: UBER is often described as disruptive innovator. This paper examines whether the UBER model disrupts the classical competition analysis thereby creating the uber-cartel, a cartel to which the normal competition rules don’t apply. This working paper on UBER and UBER-like business models examines issues that such a model faces with regard to labour and competition law with a particular focuses on the competition law implications if UBER’s business model is not subject to labour law. The paper first describes the UBER model and the labour law questions. Then it examines the possible competition law implications of UBER and UBER-like business models. After presenting a recent antitrust court decision in the US in a pending antitrust case against UBER, the paper finally briefly explores potential ways how UBER and UBER-like can prevent antitrust liability.

The EU Renewable Electricity RegulatoryFramework and Its Legal Conflicts With FreeTrade Principles

Abstract: This research considers the EU’s 21st century objective of mitigating climate change by promoting renewable electricity and the multiple legal conflicts between this objective and EU’s core legal principles of free movement, the prohibition of distortion of competition and other forms of state aid. This research fills a gap in academic literature by analysing the EU renewables regulatory framework. The research finds renewable electricity is accorded a ‘special’ status, allowing export restrictions, price enhancements, priority market access, tax exemptions and payment guarantees. This ‘special’ status is analysed via case law and empirical research data. The case law analysis confirms a lex specialis approach by the CJEU. This is considered problematic from a legal consistency point of view, as it leads to unclear investment signals and short-termism in an industry with long-term investment horizons. Uniquely, within the academic context, the empirical research considers how market operators view these conflicts, via the findings of semi-structured interviews. The research shows that market operators (i) prioritise regulatory stability to ensure longterm asset business case validity, (ii) mitigate against uncertainty via higher financial returns and (iii) lobby legislators and regulators to manage change. Market operators recognise that diagonal conflicts exist and see the CJEU’s use of lex specialis as a temporary expedient, surrounded by judicial and political risk. The research proposes regulatory change to remove the ‘special’ status and outlined diagonal conflicts, including carbon pricing mechanisms, removing fossil fuel subsidies and enforcing network access rules. These proposals align the regulatory framework with EU free trade principles - to create long-term regulatory stability, valued by market operators.

Competition policy and state-owned enterprises in contemporary China

Abstract: This thesis explores, first, the evolvement and implementation of competition policy in China, where a competition culture was largely missing for decades; and second, the extent to which the government has resolved the inherent contradiction between preserving state control and promoting competition. The main aim is to evaluate how a competition law, which is essentially a product of capitalist free market economy, is being applied in China, a socialist country where predominant stateowned enterprises (SOEs) together with their owner – the Chinese government – generate the most distortions to market competition. To achieve this aim, the thesis studies, first, the ongoing economic transition and the historical development of Chinese competition policy; second, the prolonged drafting process of the AntiMonopoly Law (AML); third, the substantive and institutional aspects of the enforcement of the AML, and the outstanding problems of the current competition system; and fourth, the role of the government in the interplay between competition

Investigating European Union Decarbonization Strategies: Evaluating the Pathway to Carbon Neutrality by 2050

Abstract: Despite the rich and extensive documentation provided by European Member States and the European Commission in describing National Energy and Climates Plans and Long-Term Strategy plans, it is still very difficult to evaluate where and how the European Union as a whole has positioned itself on the path to achieving the Green Deal objectives, named the Fit 55% package in 2030 and the achievement of carbon neutrality by 2050. This research aims to fill this gap, proposing a simple but exhaustive semantic scaling methodology that allows, for the first time, a quantitative evaluation of the quality of the National Plans based on European Commission assessments to measure their compliance with the European Green Deal objectives. Results show that Member States have more clearly set the Green Deal targets than the actions to deliver against those targets. Actions, in term of nationals policies and funds administration, are still immature and partially addressed.

Protection of competition through the principle of legal certainty - the role of the court of justice of the european union

Abstract: The present work is concentrated on the analysis of the rule of reason of law in European Union law and especially in the sector of european competition law, where the rule of reason is a guarantee of the crystallization of the rules that constituted the normative basis for the law to access to the market, to the tariffs of regulated services rather than to the management of infrastructures, etc. The rule of reason stands as predictability of the consequences of behavior as we see from the analysis of the Court of Justice of the European Union and especially according to the preliminary ruling trying to guarantee the principle under examination as fundamental of the good functioning of the European market, both in the access phase and in the operational phase, to the point that any other Community law is applied only in coherence and full compatibility with the latter.