On 24 November 2014 the Commercial Court of Brussels rejected the European Union's claim for damages against four elevator manufacturers who had previously been fined by the European Commission for cartel arrangements. The EU was demanding EUR 6 million as compensation for the higher price it allegedly paid for the maintenance of elevators in European institution buildings.
In 2007, the elevator manufacturers Otis, Kone, Schindler and ThyssenKrupp were fined by the European Commission for their involvement in market sharing and bid rigging with regard to the installation and maintenance of elevators and escalators in Germany and Benelux. As representative of the European Union, the European Commission initiated proceedings seeking to recoup the higher price that the EU allegedly paid for the maintenance of the elevators in its buildings in Belgium and Luxembourg.
After having requested a preliminary ruling from the Court of Justice with regard to the double locus standi of the European Commission as prosecutor and civil claimant, the Commercial Court rejected the Commission's claim. According to the Commercial Court, the Commission had not sufficiently proven that it and the other EU institutions had sustained actual damage as a result of the cartel arrangements. The Court emphasised in particular that it cannot simply be assumed that practices aimed at rigging bids will automatically lead to higher prices.
Recently the Directive on private damages actions for competition law infringements entered into force (Eubelius Spotlights December 2014); it must be implemented by the Member States by 27 December 2016. This directive aims at facilitating actions for damages. The Commercial Court clearly stated that the rules laid down in the directive cannot be applied to this case, since the proceedings were initiated (quite some time) before the entry into force of the directive.