Seminar empirical legal research: competition and state aid

On Wednesday May 11 (16.00-17.00), the Groningen Centre for Empirical Legal Research will organize a seminar on 'government subsidies' with Pieter Wesselius .

Pieter Wesselius is a PhD at de department of Transboundary Legal Studies. He empirically researches the effects of subsidies on competition. He applies methods from the field of law and economics to assess the impact of a subsidy to one company, on the competitiveness of its competitors.

Every year several hundred billion euros flow in the economy through government subsidies. These subsidies can be vital in achieving important objectives, such as keeping companies afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic, incentivizing companies to become more sustainable, and creating jobs by for example promoting research and development projects. However laudable these objectives may be, the impact of subsidies on competition - i.e. competitors of the beneficiaries, is largely unknown.

This research focuses on this grey area by empirically assessing the actual impact of subsidies on competition. Does a subsidy, for example, that leads to the creation of five jobs for one company, lead to the firing of five employees in a competing company? By combining legal and economic research methodologies this research seeks to tackle such questions.

Location of the meeting is 1315 0049. During the meeting there will be room for questions and discussion.

We hope to see you all!

Contact: Oude Kijk in 't Jatstraat 26, 9712 EK Groningen, room 1315.0482 | +31503636213