ABSTRACT
In competition law terms, the essential facilities doctrine has devel oped as a means by which a general prohibition of monopolistic conduct is applied in the context of the ownership and control of infrastructure bottlenecks. The doctrine originates from the USA, where it was first considered in the case of United States v. Terminal Railroad Association of St Louis.1 In the USA it has benefited from much academic and judicial analysis.2 In contrast, it remains rela tively unexplored in European law.3 It is even less well understood in the context of UK competition law, where no comparable prohibi tion has historically existed.
