Jose Luis Buendia is in charge of Garrigues’ Brussels office and a Partner in the Firm’s EU and Competition Law Department, having joined back in 2005. Previously, he spent fourteen years (1991-2005), also in Brussels, as a European Commission civil servant, specifically in the Legal Service (on the State Aid team), the Directorate-Generals of Competition and Internal Market and in the Cabinet of Commissioner Mr. Oreja.
Jose Luis is a renowned expert in EU and antitrust law, with a particular emphasis on State aid and other public measures impacting on competition, as well as handling appeals before the EU courts.
His wealth of experience in the above areas has made Jose Luis the lawyer of choice for a host of Spanish and international public and private companies. He regularly acts in many of the most high-profile antitrust and State aid-related proceedings, both before the European Commission and the EU Courts.
His professional expertise also takes in issues ranging from cartels to agreements between companies, abuses of dominant positions, concentration control, structural funds, the free circulation of goods, public procurement, tax rules and commercial defense proceedings. He can boast extensive experience in industries such as finance, energy, pharmaceutical distribution, telecommunications, public services, audiovisual production, steel, sports and transport.
Directories such as Chambers Global, Chambers Europe, Legal 500, IFLR 1000 and Global Competition Review have singled Jose Luis out for praise as a notable competition law expert, pointing in particular to his “magnificent” work in the field of State aid, as well as his communication skills.
Elsewhere, Jose Luis plays an active role in the world of academia. Since 2009, he has been a visiting lecturer on State aid at King’s College London and coordinates the section on aid in the courses on competition law at Instituto de Estudios Bursátiles de Madrid. Previously, he has been a visiting lecturer on competition at Vrije Universiteit Brussel (2003-2010) and assistant lecturer on commercial law at Universidad de Zaragoza (1988-1991). He regularly contributes to international conferences and seminars on the subject of competition and EU law.
He is a member of the Zaragoza and Brussels Bar Associations. He currently sits on the Executive Board of the Spanish European Legal Studies Association.
Doctorate in Law (1998), with special PhD prize (1999), and Degree in Law (1987) from Universidad de Zaragoza.
Visiting Researcher, Real Colegio Complutense and Harvard Law School, Cambridge, US (1996).
Master’s Degree in European Legal Studies from College of Europe, Bruges, Belgium (1991).
Jose Luis is the author of one of the core texts on public intervention in competition matters: Exclusive Rights and State Monopolies under EC Law, Oxford University Press, 450 pages, 2000, Oxford. Work on the second edition is underway.
Moreover, Jose Luis regularly contributes articles to the leading publications on international competition law. His most recent publications include:
- “Article 106 - Exclusive Rights and other anti-competitive State measures”, Chapter 6 of the book Faull, J. & Nikpay, A. (eds.) The EC Law of competition, 3rd edition, Oxford University Press, 2014.
- “Enforcement of Article 106(1) TFEU by the European Commission and the EU Courts” in P. Lowe & M. Marquis (eds.) European Competition Law Annual 2013, Effective and Legitimate Enforcement of Competition Law, Oxford Hart Publishing (publication pending).
- “Enforcement of Article 106(1) TFEU by the European Commission and the EU Courts” in P. Lowe & M. Marquis (eds.) European Competition Law Annual 2013, Effective and Legitimate Enforcement of Competition Law, Oxford, Hart Publishing (publication pending).
- “Public Undertakings and Exclusive or Special Rights ”, Part III of the book, Ortiz Blanco, L., EC Competition Procedure, 3rd edition, Oxford University Press, 2013.
- J.L. Buendia Sierra & J.M. Panero Rivas, “The Almunia package: State aid and Services of General Economic Interest”, in (eds. E. Szyszczak & J. W. van de Gronden) Financing Services of General Economic Interest, 2013, TMC Asser Press, The Hague, Chapter 7.
- J.L. Buendía Sierra & M. Muñoz de Juan, “Access to Justice in relation to State Aid: a game of dice”, Noticias de la UE, no. 324, January 2012, pages 19-34.
- J.L. Buendía Sierra & M. Muñoz de Juan, “Some legal reflections on the Almunia package”, EStAL, 2/2012, pp. 63-81.
- “Writing Straight with Crooked Lines: Competition Policy and Services of General Economic Interest in the Treaty of Lisbon”, in (eds. A. Biondi, e.a.) EU Law After Lisbon, Chapter 17, Oxford University Press, 2012, pp. 347-366.
- J.L. Buendía Sierra, M. Muñoz de Juan & M. Visser, “State Aid Policy in the Real Economy in Times of Economic Crisis”, in 2012 GCLC Annual Conference “EU Competition Law in Times of Economic Crisis”, Brussels, 9 November 2012.
- “The application by the European Commission of EU State aid rules to the financial sector during the crisis: policing the banks and refocusing State aid control”, in IBA's Antitrust Committee Conference, "Financial Markets - Is competition the right tool to prevent a new chaos?", 14 June 2012, Madrid.
- “Exclusive or special rights under Art. 106 TFEU: An overview of EU and national case law”, e-Competitions, n. 44436 l, www.concurrences.com, 20 March 2012.
- J.L. Buendía Sierra & J.A. Rodriguez Míguez, “State Aid and Services of General Economic Interest: BUPA versus Altmark?”, Gaceta Jurídica de la UE, no. 9, May-June 2009, p. 49-60.
- J.L. Buendía Sierra & B. Smulders, “The Limited Role of the “Refined Economic Approach” in Achieving the Objectives of State Aid Control: Time for Some Realism”, in EC State Aid Law: Liber Amicorum Francisco Santaolalla, Chapter 1, Kluwer, 2008.
- “Finding the Right Balance: State Aid and Services of General Economic Interest”, in EC State Aid Law: Liber Amicorum Francisco Santaolalla, Chapter 10, Kluwer, 2008.
- “Writing Straight with Crooked Lines: Competition Policy and Services of General Economic Interest in the Treaty of Lisbon”, Anuario de la Competencia 2007, Fundación ICO, 2008, p. 129-137
- J.L. Buendía Sierra & Susana Cabrera, “State Aid Control and the new Competition Law”, in A. Creus (ed.) La Ley de Defensa de la Competencia, Asociación Española de Defensa de la Competencia, Madrid, 2008, p. 279-288
- “Importations parallèles: Comment concilier intérêt du consommateur et intégration du marché communautaire?”, Conférence “Le traitement des restrictions verticales en droit comparé de la concurrence”, Université de Paris II Panthéon Assas & University College London -Paris, May 23, 2008.
- “Standing before the Community Courts in the context of State aid litigation”, in Proceedings of 5th EStALI Expert’s Forum on New Developments in European State aid Law, May 2007, Brussels, European State Aid Law Quarterly, 2007.
- “Spanish Report on State aid enforcement”, report for the XXII FIDE Congress, 2006, published as Chapter 20 of P: Nemitz (ed.) The Effective Application of EU State Aid Procedures, Kluwer, 2007, pp. 355-377.
- “Not like this: some skeptical remarks on the 'refined economic approach' in State aid”, Proceedings of 4th EStALI Expert’s Forum on New Developments in European State aid Law, May 2006, Brussels, European State Aid Law Quarterly, 2006.
- “An analysis of Article 86(2) EC”, Part IV, Chapter 1, of Sanchez Rydelski (Ed.) The EU State aid regime, Cameron May, 2006, pp. 541-574.
- “Special and exclusive rights, public services and services of general economic interest”, chapter 16, J.M. Beneyto and J. Maillo (ed.) Tratado de derecho de la Competencia, Tomo I, Madrid, Bosch, 2005, p. 1055-1154.
- Leigh Hancher & José Luis Buendía Sierra, “Cross-subsidization and EC Law”, Common Market Law Review, 35, 1998, pp. 901-945
- “La Communication sur les services d'intérêt général en Europe et la politique communautaire de concurrence”, Chapter of the book Kovar, R., and Simon, D. (dir.) Service public et Communauté européenne: entre l'intérêt général et le marché, Actes du colloque de Strasbourg, October 17-19, 1996, La Documentation Française, Paris, 1998, Tome II, p. 461-473.
- “Public companies and competition law: Article 90 of the EC Treaty”, in (ed. L. Ortiz Blanco), El Derecho comunitario de la competencia, Madrid, Centro Ramon Carande, 1998, p. 211-232.
- “Liberalization and State Intervention – Summary of the most important developments”, EC Competition Policy Newsletter, Vol. 2, n. 3, 1996, pp. 41-45; Vol. 1, n. 6, Autumn/Winter 1995, p. 39-43; Vol. 1, n. 5, Summer 1995, pp. 37-42; Vol. 1, n.4, Spring 1995, p. 40-45; Vol. 1, n.3, Autumn/Winter 1994, pp. 49-50.
- “Commentaire de l'arrêt de la Cour de Justice des Communautés européennes du 5 octobre 1994, affaire C-323/93, "Centre d'insémination de la Crespelle", EC Competition Policy Newsletter, Vol. 1, n. 3, Autumn/Winter 1994, p. 53-56.
- "The concept of Third Party Access under EEC Treaty rules”, in (Stuyck & Vossestein eds.), State Entrepreneurship, National Monopolies and European Community Law, Kluwer, Deventer-Boston, 1993, Chapter V, pp. 41-46.
- "Fallout from the Cassis de Dijon case", Revista de Instituciones Europeas, Madrid, vol. 16, no. 1, Enero-abril 1989, p. 135-171.
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