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Listen to the closing remarks by Bill Kovacic
Welcome Remarks : Bill Kovacic
Professor William KOVACIC (The George Washington University Law School, Washington DC) opened the conference by acknowledging Betty Bock, former Chair of the Research Program at The Conference Board in New York, for her development of forums, which inspired the Bill Kovacic Antitrust Salon, where community members could engage in comprehensive and earnest discussions exempt from vehemence and urgency fostered by social media. Prof. Kovacic then highlighted some marking events of the year ahead. First, 2020 is the 130th anniversary of the establishment of the US antitrust system ; it provides an opportunity to reflect on policy developments. Second, the Berlin Wall came down third years ago ; since then, over a hundred competition authorities have been established, which brought about dramatic, systemic changes in the field. Third, this fall is the fortieth anniversary of Jean Monnet’s death, in many ways the co-creator of the forerunner of the European Union, the Coal and Steel Treaty. Prof. Kovacic reminded that Mr. Monnet brought to the process of building the community his remarkable understanding of institutions from both sides of the Atlantic and invited the panelists to be driven by a similar idea.