This platform serves as the digital hub for the first comprehensive empirical analysis of private antitrust enforcement and access to justice within the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT). The project examines a wide range of variables, including case duration, claim types, and the parties involved in litigation related to competition damages claims (Section 47A) and collective actions (Section 47B).
Aims
While competition law is theoretically designed to protect markets and consumers from anti-competitive practices, the reality of litigating these claims is often complicated by enforcement complexities and hidden costs. This project systematically analyses over twenty years of judicial data to answer a vital question: Does the current legal framework effectively serve those harmed by monopolistic behaviour and cartels?
By going beyond doctrinal legal analysis and employing data science and empirical methods, this research seeks to provide clear insights into these issues.
Our database tracks the structural, procedural, and financial realities of the CAT from 2004-2025. By coding unstructured judicial decisions, cost awards, and corporate registries, the study maps the life cycle of 454 cases.
To accurately measure Access to Justice, the study deploys algorithmic corporate tracking. This reveals the true corporate size, registered location, and standard industrial classification (SIC) of all litigants, effectively separating independent SMEs from subsidiaries of multinational groups.
The research systematically codes all available final judgments on the merits, isolating the actual rate at which claimants recover what they sought.
We analysed all published CAT cost judgments to map the empirical gap between claimed legal expenses and awarded costs. This quantitative foundation drives the project’s Cost Estimator.
Where do claims originate, and which industries are most exposed to antitrust litigation?
Lecturer in Law, University of Aberdeen, Scotland
Dr. Lombardi's research focuses on the intersection of competition law and empirical legal studies.
This project bridges the gap between theoretical antitrust frameworks and the financial realities of litigation, providing policymakers, practitioners, and scholars with open-access, data-driven insights into the functioning of the UK's primary competition court.
This website was made possible through an Agile grant from the University of Aberdeen. Project ID 12073249.
