Legal effects of the European Commission’s guidelines on State Aid

Abstract

This paper analyses the legal effects of the guidelines approved by the European Commission on the control of State aid available in various economic sectors, also known as “encadrements”, and whether the criteria contained in those guidelines are binding on the Commission. The issue at stake is whether national authorities and economic operators may rely on the fact that the Commission will apply the criteria contained in those guidelines and, therefore, whether any decisions issued by the Commission that contradict these criteria may be contested by filing an action for annulment. The analysis focuses on the legal effects of soft law and, in particular, on the –few and contradictory– rulings issued by the European Court of Justice in relation to the Commission’s guidelines on State aid. This exercise leads the author to formulate proposals for the future, with the aim of improving the legal certainty of national authorities and economic operators.