European Commission names Fiona Scott Morton as chief competition economist

The European Commission has appointed Fiona Scott Morton as chief competition economist at the intergovernmental organization’s directorate-general for competition.

In the role, the Yale professor will provide strategic advice and economic analysis to guide competition policy and enforcement efforts by the European Union. She is the first woman to hold the advisory post. 

While holding the appointment, Scott Morton will be on public service leave from Yale School of Management, where she is the Theodore Nierenberg Professor of Economics.

Her research focuses on industrial organization, and she has advocated for the U.S. government to play a strong role in ensuring health competition in health care markets and the technology industry.

Scott Morton was associate dean of the Yale School of Management between 2007 and 2010, and from 2011 to 2012 served as deputy assistant attorney general for economics within the antitrust division at the U.S. Department of Justice.

In 2019, the economist launched a project on the digital economy at Yale’s Tobin Center for Economic Policy.

Commenting on her appointment, Tobin Center Executive Director David Wilkinson said: “Fiona’s extensive knowledge and direct policy expertise on the risks associated with dominant digital platforms make her the ideal pick for the European Commission.

He added: “She launched and contributed extensively to our Digital Economy Project, which has already produced high quality digital market research and policy analysis and will continue to be a priority for the Tobin Center.”