Competition Law & Cartel Damages Forensic Expert Witness UK

Competition law damages claims require forensic economics experts who can construct counterfactual models showing what prices would have been absent the anticompetitive conduct and quantify the resulting overcharge or competitive harm. Following the implementation of the EU Damages Directive into UK law, follow-on damages claims before the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) have increased significantly, requiring rigorous economic expert evidence.

Forensic economists address cartel overcharge calculations using econometric techniques including difference-in-differences analysis, yardstick comparisons, and simulation models. They also address the pass-on defence, where defendants argue the claimant passed the overcharge on to its own customers, through pricing analysis and econometric modelling. The pass-on defence has been significantly shaped by CAT jurisprudence and requires specialist economic analysis.

Forensic accountants complement forensic economists in competition damages claims by analysing financial records to verify the economic expert's assumptions against actual data, reconstructing pricing and cost structures, and quantifying the financial impact of the overcharge at the entity level. Both disciplines produce CPR Part 35 compliant reports, attend joint meetings, and may give concurrent evidence in CAT proceedings.

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