Client Alerts
Draft law to watch: mandatory electronic mailboxes for professionals
The Romanian Senate adopted a draft law regarding the "electronic headquarters of economic operators" (the "Draft Law"). The Draft Law regulates the mandatory use by professionals of predefined electronic mailboxes (e-mails), as identification element and means of receiving correspondence....
Amendments to EU council regulation on the EU trade mark enter into force on 1 October 2017
On 23 March 2016, new regulations to the EU's Trademark Directive entered into force with Directive EU 2015/2424 of the European Parliament and of the Council. Based upon secondary legislation, a number of further provisions will be effective as of 1 October 2017 and shall facilitate the application of trade marks in Europe....
The national bank of Ukraine continues easing exchange control regulations
The end of winter brought a number of measures promoted by the National Bank of Ukraine (the "NBU") and aimed at easing and deregulating exchange control regulations. In particular, Ukrainian individuals have been de jure permitted to make foreign investments and freely use foreign bank accounts using funds other than those transferred from Ukraine. Even though the measure by the NBU is not a full scale liberalisation measure, the market still considers it to be a positive trend toward deregulation....
Revised Slovenian civil procedure – A step closer to faster dispute resolution?
The amended Slovenian Civil Procedure Act ("ZPP-E") will enter into force on 14 September 2017 and will govern all proceedings initiated after this date....
First successful investment treaty claim over subsidy cuts to renewable energy investments
Since 2013, several investment treaty claims have been filed in the field of renewable energy against European member states based upon alleged breach of the Energy Charter Treaty....
New warranty regulations for online shops ante portas
Under the current legal situation regarding cross-border business transactions, operators of online shops must provide individual platforms for each EU member state to fulfill all specific national legal requirements. Notwithstanding the technical capabilities of the internet today, it is still not possible to provide just one general online shop for the whole European area. According to the "Flash Eurobarometer 396, 2015" survey, 39% of businesses selling online but not cross-border quote different national contract laws as one of the main obstacles to cross-border sales....
Amendments to the Croatian foreigners act
On 30 June 2017, the Croatian Parliament adopted extensive amendments to the existing Foreigners Act in order to implement relevant EU legislation and clarify certain provisions subject to different interpretation in practice....
Vermeiden Sie einen Ausschluss wegen mangelnder beruflicher Zuverlässigkeit!
Auf Grund des Vorwurfs illegaler Preisabsprachen finden derzeit bei etlichen österreichischen Bauunternehmen Hausdurchsuchungen durch die Wirtschafts- und Korruptionsstaatsanwaltschaft bzw das Bundesamt zur Korruptionsprävention und Korruptionsbekämpfung sowie die Bundeswettbewerbsbehörde statt. Bereits diese Erhebungen bzw die daraus resultierenden Vorwürfe können – für sich alleine – vergaberechtliche Konsequenzen wie den Ausschluss des jeweiligen Unternehmens von laufenden Vergabeverfahren (aufgrund des Verlustes der beruflichen Zuverlässigkeit) nach sich ziehen (etwa wenn aus Sicht eines öffentlichen Auftraggebers eine "schwere berufliche Verfehlung" festgestellt wurde; einer rechtskräftigen Verurteilung bedarf es dazu nicht)....
New hurdles for consumers buying real estate?
Developers initially claimed that the government’s concerns about the market were misplaced and its pro-consumer approach would negatively influence their business. Experts differed, however, emphasizing that the lack of specific regulations was not only harmful for consumers but was also an exception among European legal systems. Prior to the Developers Act, when a developer was declared bankrupt consumers had to stand in the line of regular creditors and wait years for reimbursement (usually only a part) of their invested funds....
Class actions – Who wants to go first?
Recently, a Class Action Act was adopted which will take effect as of 21 April 2018. The Act aims at providing for an efficient joint pursuit of rights by injured parties that, until now, were discouraged by lengthy and expensive court proceedings....
An obligatory charge for certain types of plastic bags effective as of 01 January 2018
Earlier this year, National Council of the Slovak Republic passed the Act No. 90/2017 Coll. (the "Amendment") amending and supplementing the Act No. 79/2015 Coll. on Waste, as amended (the "Act on Waste")....
Drafts of the personal data protection act
Drafts of the new Polish Personal Data Protection Act ("PDPA Draft") and Provisions Implementing the Personal Data Protection Act (“Amending Act Draft”) were published on 14 September 2017. The Amending Act Draft amends 133 sectoral acts, in this client alert we describe changes to the Labour Law. The drafts are now subject to social consultations. The proposed regulations are to ensure the successful implementation of Regulation 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 ("GDPR")....