Ordoliberalism and Balancing Competition Goals in the Development of the European Union

Abstract

This paper examines the aims behind the incorporation of competition rules into the European project and studies how the development of the doctrine has been molded to the specific circumstances and outlooks encountered in post-war Europe. It is argued that the objectives of competition law in the EU go beyond economic or legal standards that are applied in individual cases; rather, competition law and policy have been calibrated to contribute to allowing the EU project to harness the benefits of an open capitalist economy within the context of a democratic European society. The analysis aims to demonstrate that while Ordoliberal thinking played a role in the development of European competition law and policy, there were several other social, political and macroeconomic influences at play as well. As such, the strain that competition policy has come under is a result of attempts to use competition policy to balance several public policy objectives.