Joint and several liability for damages caused by the truck cartel

Abstract

Cartels are anti-competitive conducts prohibited by competition law that distort the functioning of the market and overcharge customers. Compensation of the victims of cartels is enforceable against any of the parties who participated in the infringement, who are jointly and severally liable. This paper examines the joint and several liability in the truck manufacturers cartel. To date, the issue has arisen on an occasional basis in a few cases in claims against DAF, Daimler, MAN, IVECO and Volvo/Renault (with an incorrect solution by several Courts of Appeal). The issue gains momentum in the claims against Scania, with a longer time period of the action (in any interpretation of the dies a quo), more beneficial for the claimants: Scania is also jointly and severally liable for the overcharges caused by the truck cartel.