Moral suasion and antitrust law

Abstract

As a result of the economic crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Italian Competition Authority, following other countries, has increased the use of moral suasion. In the context of antitrust law, this observation allows, on the one hand, to assess the impact of alternative instruments to the classic method that is usually applied in antitrust law: legislation, violation, formal warning, sanction. On the other hand, it suggests shifting attention from rules to behaviour, based on the belief that behavioural dynamics between the logical and mandatory contents of the rules and the actual consequences are underestimated.