The opt-out collective damages action as a means of claiming redress for infringements of competition law: the story so far and the potential challenges going forward.

Grant Stirling (Edinburgh Napier University)

Abstract

This paper discusses the experience so far of collective damages actions in the UK courts in respect of competition law infringements. This follows the introduction of an opt-out action in the Consumer Rights Act 2015. While it will be argued that such actions appear to have had some success so far, there are a number of challenges that are evident. These include the difficulty of delineating the relevant class members and the long-standing issue of the passing-on defence. There are also wider questions about the extent to which opt-out actions will result in a meaningful transfer of welfare to the victims of competition law infringements from the infringers.

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