Latham & Watkins LLP (LexBlog Germany)

19 results for Latham & Watkins LLP (LexBlog Germany)

  • StaRUG in Practice: German Scheme Expands Restructuring Options for Debtors

    The scheme offers a credible implementation alternative, but no “one size fits all” solution exists for German credits. By Daniel Splittgerber German credits in sectors such as real estate, automotive, and energy face a worsening macro backdrop. At the same time, the available toolkit for financial restructurings has expanded, offering multiple options without the need...

  • Filter Future? Updates on the Copyright Directive and Platform Liability

    Recent developments at the CJEU give some shape to the practical implications of Article 17 of the Copyright Directive. By Jean-Luc Juhan, Susan Kempe-Mueller, Deborah Kirk, Elva Cullen, Alex Park, Pia Sophie Sösemann, Victoria Wan, and Amy Smyth 7 June 2021 was the implementation deadline for the Copyright in the Digital Single Market Directive (EU)...

  • New German Law Aims to Strengthen Global Human and Environmental Rights

    The law imposes mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence obligations on companies in Germany as of 1 January 2023. By Paul A. Davies, Stefan Bartz, and Alexander Wilhelm On 25 June 2021, the Bundesrat, the legislative chamber of the German Federal States, approved the Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (Lieferkettensorgfaltsgesetz). The law now only needs to...

  • Online Marketplace Liability: the CJEU’s ruling … in 60 Seconds

    Although the decision appears on its face to be a positive development for online marketplaces, it is does not definitively resolve questions of liability. By Deborah J. Kirk and Elva Cullen On 2 April 2020, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) delivered its ruling in Coty Germany v Amazon — marking a...

  • ESG Rating on Trial in Germany

    A rating agency accepted a preliminary injunction regarding a disputed corporate sustainability rating. By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, Joachim Grittmann, and Alexander Wilhelm As reported by a number of German newspapers and the environmental press, a dispute between the US proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and the German industrial image processing...

  • German Government Adopts Climate Action Programme 2030

    The Programme includes a new CO2 pricing regime aimed at emissions caused by the building sector and by traffic and transport. By Jörn Kassow On 20 September 2019, the German government adopted the Climate Action Programme 2030, a plan to ensure that Germany achieves its climate protection goals for 2030, including a reduction of greenhouse...

  • German Government Commission Agrees to Phase Out Coal Power Plants by 2038

    The Coal Commission’s phase-out proposal includes a €40 billion federal spending package for affected states. By Jörn Kassow and Patrick Braasch A German government-appointed body, known colloquially as the “Coal Commission”, has agreed to end coal-fired power generation by 2038. In an effort to meet Germany’s climate goals under the Paris Agreement, the Coal Commission...

  • German GDPR Fine Proceedings Conclude Favourably for Defending Company

    Germany’s first GDPR fine offers lesson for companies planning a data breach policy. By Tim Wybitul, Wolf-Tassilo Böhm, and Isabelle Brams In November 2018, Germany’s first fine under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was imposed — and it was much lower than many expected. The favourable outcome of the proceedings for the defending company...

  • Potential Additional German Capital Gains Tax for Real Estate Investors

    Real estate investors with their corporate seat and management outside of Germany may be subject to German taxation on capital gains from share deals. Non-resident individuals (investing directly or through partnerships or funds) will primarily be affected. By Tobias Klass and Verena Seevers According to a German draft tax bill, the sale of shares by...

  • Leaving Germany? Cross-Border Migration of German Real Estate Companies

    Cross-border migration of German real estate companies is generally possible, however its admissibility must be determined on a case-by-case basis. By Christian Thiele International real estate investors continue to favour German real estate, however, the same does not always apply to German real estate companies. International real estate investors, for instance, often find German capital...

  • CJEU Offers Improved Protection for Luxury Goods in Coty Ruling

    By Jonathan Parker and Calum Warren Summary The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has handed down its much-anticipated judgment in Case C-230/16 Coty Germany GmbH v Parfümerie Akzente GmbH (Coty). The case concerns the legality of a prohibition of sales on third-party platforms discernible to the public within Coty Germany’s selective distribution...

  • German Energy Giant May Be Directly Liable for Climate Change Impact

    By Jörn Kassow and Patrick Braasch A German appeals court has indicated in a groundbreaking civil action that major CO2 producers may be directly liable for global environmental damage caused by climate change. Mr Saúl Luciano Lliuya, a Peruvian farmer, has alleged that RWE AG, Germany’s second-largest electricity producer, is responsible for the impact of...

  • Urban Mining Briefing Reveals Huge Global Potential

    By Jörn Kassow and Eun Kyung Lee Germany’s increasing shortage of natural resources and the corresponding mounting cost of extracting raw materials signals the need for alternative and innovative ways of collecting and recycling secondary raw materials. One promising method of securing potential secondary raw materials is “urban mining”, which aims primarily at reclaiming raw...

  • German Utilities Score Billions on Constitutional Challenge to German Nuclear Fuel Tax

    By Jörn Kassow and Alexander Wilhelm On 7 June 2017, the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany (FCC) published a recent decision that declared the German Nuclear Fuel Tax Act (Kernbrennstoffsteuergesetz – KernbrStG) void due to the lack of legislative competence of the federal legislator (Bundestag) to enact the law constitutionally. The FCC argued that neither the...

  • German Court Delays Implementation of Unified Patent Court Legislation

    By Deborah Kirk, Charles Courtenay, Christian Engelhardt, Yasmina Borhani and Andrea Stout Germany’s constitutional court, the Bundesverfassungsgericht, has requested that the German President hold off on signing the legislation ratifying the Unified Patent Court (UPC) and the Unitary Patent (UP) following a constitutional complaint from an unnamed individual. The court did not disclose the...

  • German Nuclear Phase-Out Legislation is Partly Unconstitutional

    By Alexander Wilhelm and Joachim Grittmann The Federal Constitutional Court of Germany (FCC) on December 6 ruled that while the phase-out of nuclear energy (enacted in 2011) is in compliance with the constitution, Germany’s energy suppliers which operate nuclear power plants have to be compensated “reasonably”. Although the German legislator is primarily obliged by the...

  • Managing Environmental Risk in M&A Transactions

    By Joachim Grittmann and Kristina Marx A rise in costly post-acquisition environmental disputes has meant buyers are increasingly evaluating a target’s environmental compliance before completing a transaction. The sheer variety of regulations concerning environmental protection, coupled with the speed and frequency of regulatory change, means companies are forced to continuously adapt their...

  • New EU Privacy Rules Will Apply to All Online Businesses with EU Customers

    European Union Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding has confirmed that we can expect to see a draft of the eagerly awaited new Data Privacy Directive in January. The new rules are likely to significantly strengthen the rights of individuals. According to a press release issued jointly last week by Reding and Germany’s Federal Minister for Consumer Protection, Isle...

  • Data Protection Authorities Ask for Privacy Laws for Smart Metering

    Federal and State Privacy Commissioners in Germany demand that the introduction of smart metering systems shall be accompanied with adequate provisions for the protection of personal data. The introduction of smart metering systems controlling energy consumption is being pursued vigorously both at a European and a German level with the goal to improve energy efficiency....

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