The Court of Justice has recently decided that Flemish rules establishing a framework for the development consent for wind turbines infringe the EU rules on prior environmental assessment. The Flemish…
In an opinion of 4 June 2020, Advocate General Kokott has advised the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) to uphold a 2013 fine imposed by the European…
In the past months, many events including concerts, sports competitions, festivals, plays and musicals, have been cancelled or postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic and the related measures taken by…
On 23 April 2020, the Court of Justice of the EU (‘CJEU’) clarified earlier case law that obliges each airline to indicate in its initial online price offer(s), the airfare…
On 5 March 2020, the Constitutional Court annulled the extension of Doel 1 and Doel 2 because this extension infringed EU legal provisions concerning environmental assessments. Nevertheless, the Belgian energy…
Article 222 of EU Regulation n°1308/2013, which establishes a common organisation of the markets in agricultural products, gives the European Commission the power to adopt temporary derogations from the cartel…
To limit the spread of Covid-19, all indoor and outdoor private and public cultural, festive, recreational, leisure and sport activities /events are prohibited until at least 10 May 2020…
Queen’s song was clearly not about COVID 19 but the message remains the same: even if the music industry is struggling, the show must go on! It is undeniable…
On 16 April 2020, a new Act was adopted by the Belgian parliament to increase the transparency of managed entry agreements (‘MEA’) concluded between pharmaceutical companies and the National Institute…
Updated on Thursday 7 May 2020 -6pm On 23 March 2020, a Ministerial Decree on special measures in the context of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on the basis of Book XVIII…
Updated on Monday 11 May 2020 -11am The National Security Council has taken numerous measures in the fight against COVID-19 that were most recently formalised through the Ministerial Decree of…
On 19 February 2020, the European Commission released its White Paper on Artificial Intelligence (“AI”), which sets out policy options on how to achieve the double goal of (1)…
On 8 April 2020, the Belgian federal agency for medicines and health products (‘FAMHP’) adopted a consolidated version of its decision (the ‘Decision’) taking the following urgent measures for…
With national governments scrambling to take measures in order to counter the Covid-19 pandemic, we are again confronted with the fact that a EU common policy in the healthcare…
In its ruling of 30 January 2020, the Court of Justice of the European Union (‘CJEU’) has clarified for the first time the criteria governing whether a reverse payment settlement…
Advocate General Sánchez-Bordona has concluded in a recent legal opinion that several Flemish rules regarding wind turbines infringe the EU rules on prior environmental assessment. If the Court of…
The Belgian data protection authority (DPA) has approved a draft Act that prohibits life and health insurers from processing the health sensor data of their insurance holders. The Belgian…
Working on an offshore wind power project in the Atlantic Ocean for the Japanese government but headquartered in Belgium? Flying over from Russia to construct Belgian railways by order…
With e-commerce growing at an unprecedented rate all over the globe, in the past few years the Belgian legislator has taken several measures - both temporary and permanent -…
In the run-up to the entry into force of specific rules on country of origin labelling (“COOL”) for primary ingredients, the CJEU has recently clarified both the concept of…
On 30 January 2020, the new Book III on Goods was approved by the Belgian parliament (hereafter “Book III”). The new updated Belgian Civil Code will consist of nine…
Following the Belgian Competition Authority’s decision to impose a one million euro fine on the Belgian Order of Pharmacists for restrictive practices towards MediCare-Market, the Belgian Order of Pharmacists…
On 23 January 2020, the Constitutional Court annulled the law introducing a mobility allowance. This law allows an employee to exchange his/her company car for cash compensation, called the…
On 3 February 2020, the Belgian Act of 20 December 2019 amending various legal provisions concerning shortages of medicinal products (‘Act’) was published in the Belgian State Gazette. The…
While much has been written already regarding blockchain and its many exciting applications for the future, not much has been said on how you can adequately and legally protect…
Opportunities to support and develop energy projects in the DRC are abundant. To create a more stable environment, energy is the DRC’s first economic priority. Any company active in the…
Pests threaten plant health. To fight the increased risks owing to the further globalisation of trade and climate change, the European legislature has adopted measures concerning the determination and reduction…
On 1 January 2020, the new Incoterms® 2020 as published by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) will come into force. The Incoterms 2020 remain global standards that, if they…
The era of cryptocurrencies has come: whilst they were initially used as a specific means of payment and as a source of investments other functions are now being explored, such…
On 16 October 2019, the Belgian Competition Authority (“BCA”) imposed a fine of 225,000 EUR on the Order of Pharmacists (“Order”) for disciplinary sanctions restricting the pharmacists’ possibility to advertise…
Recently, the VREG started authorizing direct lines for electricity more easily. This brings new opportunities for companies near an electricity production site, such a wind farm or solar park. However,…
On 1 October 2019, the Belgian Competition Authority (“BCA”) published its new Guide on the exchange of information in the framework of associations of undertakings (“Guide”). With this Guide, the…
Since the European Court of Justice’s ruling C-300/07 of 11 June 2009, hospitals and other health institutions must abide by public procurement law to the extent that they are at…
In the life-sciences industry, many companies still make a distinction between the blue-collar and white-collar members of their workforce, often with significant differences in the applicable employment terms and conditions.…
On 19 December 2017, the legislative package on the implementation of the UPC was approved by Belgian Parliament. While the entry into force of this new legislation has been delayed…
A website operator who has embedded a Facebook “like” button on its website qualifies as a “joint controller” together with Facebook and so can be held liable for the collection…
In recent years, a significant part of the case law relating to state aids in the sport sector have revolved around infrastructures. Belgium has been a trendsetter on this topic,…
In a previous blogpost, we announced that the European authorities were in the process of developing EU-wide rules and procedures for operating civil drones. Recently, these rules were adopted in…
In June 2017, the European Commission opened formal investigations into Nike's, Sanrio's and Universal Studios' licensing and distribution practices to find out whether they restricted traders from selling licensed merchandise…
The general data protection regulation (GDPR) just celebrated its first anniversary. Although it seems that EU businesses and individuals are well aware of its existence, some controllers and processors are…
The Flemish Government has introduced new rules regarding sports agents, which introduce important obligations for agents active in Flanders, such as necessary registration and a mandatory guarantee deposit, and that…
In September 2018, the National Social Security Office (NSSO) caused a ‘minor earthquake’ by substantially broadening its interpretation of what is to be understood as ‘salary’ subject to social security…
After years of ‘blood, sweat and tears’, the European Parliament finally adopted the highly-controversial Directivee on Copyright in the Digital Single Market (“DSM Directive”) on 26 March 2019. Whoever thought…
On 28 May 2019, the Competition College of the Belgian Competition Authority (“BCA”) imposed a fine of one million euros on the Order of Pharmacists (l’Ordre des pharmaciens – Orde…
The long-awaited entry into force of the Belgian law of 11 July 2013 on security interests over movable assets on 1 January 2018, which introduces a new title XVII in…
The EU adopted the Second Payment Services Directive (PSDII) to level the playing field in the payment services industry by introducing the principle of “open banking”. The underlying idea of…
In a case with significant precedent value, the Ghent Commercial Court, under Article 7.1 of the 1980 Rome Convention, applied Turkish Agency Law to a dispute between a Turkish agent…
On 13 March 2019, the Mayor of Ghent decided to close Kompass Klub, which in 2018 was voted the best nightclub in Belgium, because of drug-related incidents. The club successfully…
As insurance coverage will be profoundly different when (all) cars on the road are autonomous, a lot of strategic and legal insight is required to overcome the challenges and grasp…
An Act of 7 April 2019 has introduced new measures in Belgium to deal with the unavailability of medicinal products on the Belgian market. The first measure is that a…
Autonomous vehicles, with varying degrees of autonomy, are on their way - although this will be slower than some had hoped or expected. This is notably the case for legal developments…
Companies employing more than 100 employees can obtain an exemption from the obligation to keep a register of temporary workers (i.e. an annex to the general personnel register) if, by…
In a judgment of 14 May 2019, the General Court of the European Union (Case T-795/17) has confirmed that registration of the “NEYMAR” mark by a third party is invalid.…
On 19 May 2019, the Ordinance of 25 April 2019 on short-term commercial leases enters into force for the Brussels-Capital Region. As a result, the three regions now each have a…
In its recent judgment of 14 May 2019, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has held that EU Member States must oblige employers to set up a…
On 21 March 2019, the Federal Belgian Parliament adopted an Act amending the Code of Economic Law ("CEL") regarding abuses of economic dependence, prohibited terms and unfair market practices in…
In a working world with rapid technological change and in which mobility is an increasing issue, telework is increasingly seen as a viable option and so more employees are demanding…
On 23 January 2019, the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) issued its Opinion 3/2019 on the interplay between the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR; applying since 25 May 2018) and…
Despite its small size, Belgium is a real hotspot for music lovers. It has some world-class concert venues and is the home of countless – some of which are award…
On 15 April 2019, the Council of the EU formally adopted a draft directive on certain aspects concerning contracts for the supply of digital content and digital services. This was…
Employers often use warrants as a salary optimisation tool. If such warrants qualify as options within the meaning of Article 41, 3° of the Option Act of 26 March 1999,…
On 4 April 2019, the Belgian Parliament approved a Bill on the capacity remuneration mechanism (‘CRM’). This system aims to ensure the security of electricity supply after Belgium’s nuclear ‘exit’…
“Ordered before midnight, tomorrow delivered at your home”. Lightning-fast parcel delivery is one of the greatest advantages of living in the early 21st century. Companies are now literally ‘racing against…
In the life-sciences industry, many employees benefit from equity incentives granted by the parent company. Until recently, such equity incentives granted by a foreign parent company to Belgian employees were…
The construction sector is a fraud-sensitive sector. Belgian companies that are working with foreign subcontractors and foreign companies seconding their employees to Belgium to work on a project in Belgium…
The European Parliament, the European Commission and the Council of the European Union (‘EU’) have reached a political agreement on Wednesday 13 February 2019 to make the EU’s copyright rules…
In a judgment of 26 November 2018, the Court of Appeal of Ghent (case 2016/AR/759) ruled that the deposit of goods on consignment does not constitute a deposit but does…
In Belgium, a preliminary injunction (‘PI’) is rarely granted on an ex parte (or unilateral) basis. Adversarial debates are considered as a cornerstone of legal proceedings, and one is entitled…
The need for modern infrastructure in Africa is enormous. Financing is key, yet it remains one of the most important challenges. Understanding the local environment and regulations is crucial to…
Last week, the Flemish Government has submitted a draft decree proposing important changes for sports agents. Sports agents with any professional activity in the Flemish Region will have to be…
One year after the European Commission’s decision (EC) against the International Skating Union (ISU), the Belgian Competition Authority (BCA) has taken a decision against the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI). Both…
In October 2018, the pianist Yuja Wang and the percussionnist Martin Grubinger were forced to cancel upcoming concerts in Dortmund and Luxembourg, where they had intended to perform their arrangement…
The ground floor of many hotels provides room for retail space that can be let to businesses complimentary to the hotel: jewellery, car renting, floral shop, (luxury) clothing, etc. A…
Following a Belgian Council of State preliminary ruling request, the CJEU ruled on 20 December 2017 that, in accordance with the text of Regulation No 561/2006, a driver may not…
“Geo-blocking” is a phenomenon whereby companies refuse a sale to a customer based on geographical factors such as their nationality or location. Common geo-blocking practices are the denial of access…
More and more platforms are being constructed and installed in Belgium’s exclusive economic zone (or EEZ). Employing workers assigned to such offshore projects triggers complex questions regarding the applicable employment,…
EU Advocate General has taken the view that EU legal provisions concerning environmental assessments have been infringed. However, this opinion does not necessarily mean that the Doel 1 and Doel…
Blockchain technology has been receiving a lot of attention over the past few years, and more recently also from legal authors. It has been rightly said that blockchain raises several…
Bitcoin, the best-known cryptocurrency operated by a decentralised authority (and so not issued by any bank or government), is very much in the news. As a result, employees sometimes ask…
When we talk about the Internet of things (‘IoT’), it is self-driving cars and the consequent legal liability issues that immediately come to mind. But the IoT’s challenges are much…
The Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) issued a judgment on the interplay between medicines’ off-label use and competition law (Judgment of the Court of Justice of 23…
On 30 July 2018, with a few weeks’ delay, the Belgian legislator transposed the EU Directive 2016/943 on trade secrets (hereafter, the “Directive”) by adopting the law on the protection…
On 9 February 2019, a legislative package aimed at fighting medicines falsifications will enter into force across the EU. Pharmaceutical companies will, among other things, be required to affix a…
While previous generations engaged in endless discussions about whether chess should be considered as a ‘real sport’, today it is gaming that has become the subject of that same question.…
Until recently, non-EEA athletes wanting to work and stay in Belgium had to follow a double procedure. First, the future employer had to start a procedure at the regional level…
