Chillin'Competition

Five years ago, our friend and colleague Rubén Perea Molleda passed away, just as he was about to embark on a promising career in competition law following his graduation from the College of Europe. Rubén’s memory remains vivid for everyone who knew him. To honour his memory, we established a competition-law and economics writing prize, which is already in its sixth edition.

As in previous years, the award-winning paper will be published in a special issue of the Journal of European Competition Law & Practice, together with a selection of the best submissions (the JECLAP special issue featuring the winner and finalists of the 5th edition will be out very soon; many articles are already available in Advanced Access). The winner may also receive the award from Executive Vice-President Teresa Ribera.

Who can participate?

In principle, you may only participate if you have not reached the age of 30 by the submission date (i.e., if you were born after 15 October 1995). Undergraduate and postgraduate students, as well as scholars, public officials and practitioners are all invited to participate. This award celebrates promising academic writing from individuals at the beginning of their careers. Our aim is to support and spotlight emerging voices. Thus, if your career path is non-traditional and you believe you align with the spirit of this award, we welcome a brief explanation for consideration here. 

What papers can be submitted?

You may submit a single-author unpublished paper on competition law, policy, or economics, which is not under consideration elsewhere. The paper may be specifically prepared for the award, but it may be a redraft of an undergraduate or postgraduate dissertation. Please follow the following instructions: (1) the paper must not exceed 15,000 words (including footnotes, knowing that there is no need to include a no bibliography); (2) follow the JECLAP house-style rules, which can be found here; (3) please include a short summary in the form of 3-4 key points (single-sentence bullet points).  

For your information, the Jury will assess your paper based on the following three main criteria: (1) clarity of writing; (2) depth of research; and (3) innovativeness. This year, the Jury will consist of Petra Nemeckova, Alfonso Lamadrid, Gianni De Stefano, Philip Marsden, Eugenia Brandimarte, Nicolas Fafchamps, David Perez de Lamo, and Lena Hornkohl.

How to submit?

Please submit the paper via this link: https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jeclap. IMPORTANT: As you go through the submission process, make sure that in Step 5, you answer YES to the question “Is this for a special issue?”, and indicate that your submission relates to the Rubén Perea Award.

What is the DEADLINE?

Papers have to be submitted by 23.59 (Brussels time) on 15 October 2025.