Justin Lindeboom receives NWO-XS grant to study legal uncertainty in EU competition law

Justin Lindeboom, associate professor of European law and Jean Monnet professor, recently received a grant from the NWO SGW Open Competition XS program. Lindeboom received the grant for his research into legal uncertainty in European competition law.

Legal uncertainty in competition law

Competition law aims to protect effective competition among firms, benefitting consumers through low prices, freedom of choice and innovation. European competition law consists largely of vague provisions whose application in specific cases is often unclear. This leads to legal uncertainty. It is often assumed that companies suffer from this legal uncertainty because they do not know exactly which business practices are permitted and which are not.

Lindeboom's research challenges this assumption. Legal uncertainty may also benefit firms, particularly large companies such as Google, Amazon, and Meta, because it could increase the likelihood that anti-competitive behaviour will remain unpunished.

Empirical analysis of stakeholder preferences

For this research, Lindeboom looks into the input of various stakeholders, including companies, on five draft policy guidelines from the European Commission on the application of European competition law. He will analyse the extent to which the input of companies and other stakeholders aims to increase legal uncertainty in competition law.

The research project will start in February 2026 and be completed in October 2026.

NWO SGW Open Competition XS program

The NWO SGW Open Competition XS program selects proposals for fundamental, curiosity-driven research in the field of Social Sciences and Humanities (SGW). The grant amounts to €50,000.

This article was published by the Faculty of Law.