The UK Implements The EU Antitrust Damages Directive

The Damages Directive¹ seeks to promote private enforcement of EU competition law before national courts across the European Union (the "EU"). The UK Regulations² implementing the Directive³ were laid before Parliament on 20 December 2016 but will not come into force until after they have received formal Parliamentary approval (the "Implementation Date"). The Regulations will apply to claims brought on or after the Implementation Date, although the extent of their application differs depending on when the infringements to which the claims relate took place. The Regulations will make significant changes to rules governing antitrust damages actions:

• The Regulations make changes to the limitation periods for competition damages actions brought after the Implementation Date. Limitation periods will in these cases be suspended during investigations by competition authorities and during any consensual dispute resolution ("CDR") process.