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Fireside Chat, moderated by Nuno Cunha Rodrigues, featuring Frederic Jenny.

The first panel of the VII Lisbon Conference focused on Industrial Policy and Competition. We had the privilege of hearing from Nuno Cunha Rodrigues, Benoît Cœuré, Cani Fernández and Antonio Andreoni who offered valuable perspectives on how competition policy can fit into the industrial policy debate, the role of competition authorities in supporting industrial policy objectives through the defense and promotion of competition and the relationship between industrial and competition policies.

Marc van der Woude, President of the General Court of the European Union, offered valuable insights into the quantitative and qualitative evolution of the Court of Justice of the European Union’s case law in the field of competition. A perspective with potential solutions and future changes aimed at addressing current challenges.

The last panel of the VII Lisbon Conference, moderated by Teresa Moreira, had interventions from Cani Fernández, Fernando Castillo de la Torre and Richard Whish, who reflected on the opportunities brought by the revision of Regulation 1/2003, the revolutionary framework that has shaped competition law enforcement in the EU for more than 20 years and the essential role national competition authorities play in this context.

At the opening session of the VII Lisbon Conference, Nuno Cunha Rodrigues stressed that competition law and economica are “living disciplines” built “for people” and that the conference is “a space for debate, reflection and critical thinking” on the future of competition. The Portuguese Secretariat of State for the Economy expressed his conviction that “only the impartial, objective, and independent enforcement of competition rules can ensure an economy that is truly free and fair”.

In a debate moderated by António Ferreira Gomes, the speakers Elisabetta Iossa, Daniele Calisti and Volker Nocke addressed topics on the importance of the revision of the EC merger guidelines. Focusing on the need to create clear and precise rules, the conversation highlighted resilience, call-in powers, and innovation as key themes.

The VII Lisbon Conference ended with an intervention made by Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice-President for a Clean, Just and Competitive Transition of the European Commission. Teresa Ribera stressed the importance of competition policy and enforcement for fostering Europe's competitiveness.

The first day of the Lisbon Conference ended with the awards ceremony for the AdC Competition Policy Award, 2024 and 2025 editions. See the winners here.

This panel, moderated by Ana Sofia Rodrigues, featured Massimiliano Kadar, Chiara Fumagalli, Ioannis Lianos and Pınar Akman, speakers who explored the legal and economic challenges in enforcing rules on abuse of dominance.

A debate focused on Digital Markets that brought together the voices of Miguel Moura e Silva, Camila Alves, Will Hayter, João Varela and Luís Cabral in a space to reflect about the state of play in digital competition policy, drawing on recent regulatory and enforcement experiences.