Footnote:
In: Lindenmaier-Möhring Kommentierte BGH Rechtsprechung (LMK) 2018, 402439
Nach Informationen von SSRN wurde die ursprüngliche Fassung des Dokuments February 5, 2018 erstellt
Description:
In a dispute regarding the nullity of a gas station lease agreement concluded between Gasorba SL and Repsol, the Spanish Supreme Court referred two questions to the ECJ regarding the relationship between commitment decisions adopted by the Commission and the powers of the national courts to adjudicate on the compatibility of the behaviour in question with competition law. In particular, the Spanish court raised the questions if the Commission's decision would preclude national courts from finding an infringement of competition law, and, if so, whether it would have to be considered as an exemption under Art. 101 (3) TFEU. The article provides an overview of the ECJ's decision and discusses its legal and practical ramifications. The author concludes that, while the referred questions are answered quite evidently in the negative, the decision provides valuable guidance regarding the question to what extent the national courts have to take into account a commitment decision adopted by the Commission. This article is a revised translation of a German language article published in LMK 2018, 402439. The author thanks Jörn Kramer for his valuable contribution to the translation