Emeritus Professor Richard Whish KC (Hon) began teaching and researching competition law and policy at King’s in 1991. Since then, our faculty and affiliates have grown into one of the largest competition law groups at any UK university, with expertise spanning the EU, UK, US, and beyond.

Our expertise covers the law, economics, and politics of competition policy and economic regulation. We examine substantive, procedural, jurisdictional, and institutional questions, and specialise in areas including EU state aid and the intersection of competition law with public procurement, anti-corruption, and intellectual property law.

As researchers, we engage with a broad range of competition and regulatory issues, from close analysis of how specific provisions operate in practice to fundamental reinterpretations of entire regulatory regimes. Our work draws on comparative, doctrinal, economic, empirical, historical, political science, socio-legal, and theoretical perspectives, and we contribute actively to current policy debates.

Many of us have practised as lawyers or economists, for example at Brick Court Chambers, the Competition and Markets Authority, the EU Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, the Financial Conduct Authority, Freshfields, Linklaters, Matrix Chambers, Monckton Chambers, and Slaughter and May, among others. This practical experience informs our teaching, which offers balanced, realistic insights into what it means to work in these areas today.

Our LLM Pathway in Competition Law is among the leading programmes of its kind globally, ranked in the Top 10 by LLM Guide. Thousands of students — many now prominent practitioners in the field — have completed our LLM modules and our distance learning diplomas in Competition Law, Competition Economics, and Public Procurement. Many of our teachers have been recognised through nominations for teaching and research awards, both within King’s and in wider global competitions.

Through an extensive alumni network and close ties with leading competition agencies, law firms, and major companies worldwide, our students are well-placed to find and pursue future career opportunities in the field.