Lovells

Under the EU rules, the European Commission has the exclusive competence to decide whether aid is compatible with the Common Market. To this end, Member States are obliged to notify any proposed aid to the Commission before the aid is actually granted. National courts have extensive powers to protect the rights of competitors in the event that the notification procedure is not observed. They can assess whether a specific measure constitutes aid and must decide under their national law how illegal aid must be recovered from the recipient and to what extent the grant of illegal aid affects the validity of a transaction as a whole. National courts can also grant interim relief to competitors of an aid recipient. The European Court of Justice has repeatedly stated that the Commission and the national courts fulfil complementary and separate roles.

The Lovells State aid team is recognised as one of the most experienced in Europe. Our lawyers have been representing and advising Member States granting aid, aid beneficiaries or their competitors adversely affected by the grant of aid for over 15 years, in procedures before the Commission, the European Community Courts or national courts.