State Aid Rules: HEI-Industry Collaborative Research in Ireland

This thesis looks at the relevance of competition law to Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Ireland, and at how they can avoid contravening the EU’s state aid rules when working with industry. It was not originally projected that HEIs, as providers of a public service, would be constrained by EU competition law, but increasing emphasis on commercialisation means that they more frequently fall into its ambit. HEIs in the EU are encouraged to collaborate closely with Industry through EU and Member States funded schemes. This raises the possibility that the HEI might provide the Industry collaborator with indirect State Aid by making state-funded intellectual property available to them. There is a gap in the literature on the role of competition law on the commercialisation of the results of collaborative research by HEIs and this study explores whether funding mechanisms in Ireland for HEI-Industry collaborations are consistent with EU Competition law and adhere to State Aid Rules. Further, we consider, based on published information, if the approach of Irish HEIs is comparable with other EU Member States. This study finds that Ireland’s HEIs have one of the more robust frameworks for the awareness State Aid among Member States and that Ireland, uniquely in the EU, has Soft Law instruments specifically addressing the management of IP coming out of HEI-Industry collaborations. This study recommends that funding schemes, after a trial-period to demonstrate efficacy, should apply the EU’s general block exemption as the most effective means to avoid State Aid concerns.