EU lawmakers smooth way for class actions against cartels

Reuters ^ | Thu Apr 17, 2014 5:18pm BST | Foo Yun Chee

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European lawmakers on Thursday eased the way for cartel victims to claim compensation from companies under new rules that also shield price-fixing whistleblowers from being the main target of million-euro lawsuits.

The green light from the European Parliament came nine years after the European Commission broached the idea, seeing it as an additional tool, on top of fines, to deter companies from breaking antitrust laws.

According to the Commission, only one in four cartels and antitrust infringements faced damages claims in the last seven years. Its 2010 estimate put the cost of unrecovered damages of infringements at over €20 billion (£16.43 billion; $27.6 billion). …

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Nobody should do business with the EU, at least on the EU’s terms.

[DUMBGRUNT]

Whistleblowers have been crucial in helping the Commission uncover price-fixing in areas ranging from financial market benchmarks to TV monitor tubes and vitamins, resulting in fines of more than 22 billion euros in the last 14 years.

"We've always been at war with Eastasia"