Punitive Damages and the EU Damages Directive

After having framed the concept of punitive damages and having analysed the relevant case-law of the courts of the Member States, of the European Court of Human Rights and of the Court of Justice of the European Union, the presentation focuses on the regime laid down in the Damages Directive and discusses the reasons why, when drafting this Directive, the European legislator opted for the exclusion of punitive damages from the category of recoverable damages following a violation of antitrust law. Subsequently, the presentation focuses on the opportunity to introduce such a provision into the European legal systems, taking into consideration the problem of overdeterrence and the division of functions between public and private enforcement. Also, it makes a comparison with the relevant provisions of Directive 2004/48/EC on the enforcement of intellectual property rights.