PhD student: Mrs R.B. Beems

Promotor: J.W. van de Gronden

Duration: 1/9/2017 - 31/8/2021

Abstract:

A wide variety of legal cases trigger the application of multiple laws and legal areas within the EU economic law acquis. However, and surprisingly, recent developments show a potential convergence between the fields of EU law on competition, on unfair commercial practices, on consumer protection, and on data protection. In the light thereof, the proposed research first scrutinizes the existence of a trend towards substantive, procedural and institutional convergence. Second, the research determines how this convergence among legal domains, if it is more than apparent, can further develop. In particular, the research aims to determine whether institutional convergence (e.g. one supervisor is made responsible for several domains or supervisors act in networks) can act as a catalyst for substantive and procedural convergence. Finally, it will be evaluated how such convergence may promote the overarching objectives attributed to the aforementioned fields of the EU economic law acquis (e.g. consumer welfare or the establishment of a genuine EU internal market)and, on that basis, whether more convergence is desirable.