The Liner Shipping Block Exemptions in European Law: Has the Tide Turned?

This article discusses the competition regime as it applies to shipping or liner conferences and consortia under European Community law. The Commission is currently considering changing this regime. There are five sections to this article. Section I is a factual introduction to shipping conferences and consortia, what they are, and how they operate. Section II deals with the competition law regime as it applies to certain shipping cartels, briefly highlighting the background, as well as the substance, of the relevant legislation and jurisprudence. Section III discusses the economic effects of these rules, as well as considering their effect on developing countries; it also examines whether or not these rules achieve their underlying objectives. Section IV takes the conclusions of Section III and asks whether, and where appropriate how, these should impact upon the substantive content of the rules, as discussed in Section II. Section V concludes.