Most competition law enforcement systems are based on two enforcement pillars:
public and private enforcement. Public enforcement refers to state authorities that
enforce antitrust rules; such authorities are vested with special powers and use
special procedures to investigate and punish infringements. Private enforcement,
in contrast, is litigation initiated by individual plaintiffs before a court to remedy
an infringement of competition law. Remedies include damages, restitution, injunction,
nullity or interim relief. They can be asserted in stand-alone actions or
they can follow an infringement decision by a competition authority. Unlike public
enforcement agencies, private parties have no special powers in civil law disputes.