Zahlungsunfähigkeit nach § 81b Abs. 1 GWB

While competition law is intended to prevent distortions of competition, insolvency law aims to effectively protect the market from non-competitive participants. Section 81b ARC gives cause to reassess the legal relationship between competition and insolvency law. This is because Section 81b ARC establishes special powers for the German National Competition Authority to enforce fines if the addressee is not solvent. Based on a definition of the term „inability to pay“ in Section 81b (1) ARC, the study analyses possible legal conflicts between competition and insolvency law and questions the functioning of Section 81b ARC with regard to the protection of competition.

The work was awarded the “CBH Promotion Prize” by the Institute for Media and Communication Law and the Intellectual Property and Competition Department of the Faculty of Law at the University of Cologne!