Regulation On December 6, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU announced that a provisional deal has been reached on a proposal to "minimize the risk of deforestation and forest degradation associated with products that are imported into or exported from the European Union." The agreement sets out mandatory due diligence rules for companies that want to place relevant products on the EU market, and proposes penalties for non-compliance including fines "proportionate to the environmental damage and the...

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The Biden administration’s Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust Division recently secured its first criminal conviction for a labor-side violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act after VDA OC LLC (VDA) entered a guilty plea. The conviction follows a pair of highly publicized losses the DOJ suffered earlier this year in its first two criminal trials involving no-poach and wage-fixing accusations. While VDA’s guilty plea shows the DOJ’s commitment to criminally prosecuting labor-side Section 1 claims, questions still remain...

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Beneficial ownership transparency. The U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued a final rule establishing a beneficial ownership information reporting requirement pursuant to the bipartisan Corporate Transparency Act. The rule, Jan. 1, 2024, requires most corporations, limited liability companies, and other entities created in or registered to do business in the U.S. to report information about their beneficial owners – the individuals who ultimately own or control the company – to FinCEN. Reporting companies created or registered before Jan....

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On 12 December 2022, the Council of EU member states announced it has reached unanimity which is required to adopt the directive implementing the minimum taxation (Pillar Two) at EU level. Save for a last-minute surprise, formal approval should follow shortly. The directive should be transposed into member states’ national law before 31 December 2023 and some member states have already presented concrete implementation plans. For groups with a consolidated turnover of at least EUR 750 million, the transitional rules...

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On December 9, 2022, the European Commission (EC) published its draft Digital Markets Act (DMA) Implementing Regulation, which will be open for public comment until January 6, 2023. The package is designed to give guidance on the practical aspects of gatekeeper designation and sets out the information required from gatekeepers and their procedural rights. The designation process draws heavily from the EU’s merger control framework and envisages a similar pre-notification phase (including mirroring the EC’s “Form CO” for merger...

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The EACC, in partnership with the International Property Tax Institute (IPTI), wants to keep its members up to date with the latest developments in property taxes in the USA and Europe. IPTI has put together below a selection of articles from IPTI Xtracts; more articles can be found on its website (www.ipti.org). United States Working From Home Could Eventually Eliminate $522 Billion in US Office Value, Study Finds New York Could See Largest Drop Remote working is expected to wipe out about $522...

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When I say that a person is a great communicator, what do you think of? As a communication coach for international startups and professionals there is no one size that fits all, especially for those who are non-native English speakers. Many things affect our communication style whether it be language background, culture, industry, personalities, and our families. Over my many years of coaching I’ve witnessed who gets heard and why. It has been proven in many studies that we listen to...

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Loyens & Loeff is pleased to announce that Robin Moser has been appointed equity partner, effective January 1, 2023. Robin joined Loyens & Loeff in 2019 and heads the Litigation and Risk Management department in the Zurich office. He focuses on domestic and international dispute resolution and has broad experience in representing clients in court, before federal and cantonal authorities and arbitral tribunals. Robin also has substantial experience in handling commercial disputes, asset recovery and enforcement matters, M&A disputes and criminal cases...

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On 6 December, the Council of the EU and European Parliament came to a provisional agreement on a proposal to minimise the risk of deforestation and forest degradation associated with goods that are either imported or exported to the EU. As such a large consumer and trader of commodities that play a very substantial role in global deforestation, this move by the EU has been warmly welcomed by many. According to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), an area...

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Getting an advanced handle on cybersecurity and the attendant fallout from breaches is important, and failure to do so can be very costly on many levels. Not only do breaches regularly result in an onslaught of litigation, bad press and loss of customers and revenue, but companies often are exposed to fines and penalties by state, federal, and international regulators. Even though cybersecurity is frequently cited as one of the top-of-mind issues in C-suites, it’s easy enough to push...

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