Speaking at the Circular Economy Stakeholder Conference earlier this year, Commissioner Timmermans, the lead Commissioner on the EU Green Deal, explained how half of total greenhouse gas emissions come from resource extraction and processing and “more than 90% of biodiversity loss and water stress comes from resource extraction and processing”. These statistics demonstrate just how important it is that the necessary legislation is put in place to ensure the products we use and the way we use them support, rather...

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On 22 November 2022, the European Court of Justice ruled that the “public access” feature of the Luxembourg register of beneficial owners would be invalid in view of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and more specifically the fact that it would constitute a serious interference with the fundamental rights to private life and to the protection of personal data. We wish to inform you that on 22 November 2022 the European Court of Justice (“CJEU”) ruled...

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E-commerce is having a less successful impact in Belgium than in its neighbouring countries. This is partly due to the earlier in the day enforcement of stricter rules on night work. In Belgium, these rules already apply as from 20h. For e-commerce, being able to process and ship orders in the shortest timeframe possible is essential. The tardier introduction of night work in other countries leads to tough competition and is a pull-factor for organising e-commerce activities abroad. The labour...

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The World Cup is fast approaching! Over the course of the tournament, we will be publishing our own matchups, comparing various aspects of labor and employment law in some of the participating countries. In Part I of this series, we examined paid vacation and annual leave entitlements available to employees who might be taking some time off next week to enjoy the games. What about employees who are feeling under the weather and call in sick? What are the...

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The World Cup starts November 20, 2022 and will end in mid-December. Soccer1 fans from around the globe will be tuning in for the matches, or perhaps even attending in person. We thought we’d set up our own employment law matchups to coincide with some actual team pairings. The goal of this series is to compare and contrast various aspects of labor and employment law in the participating countries.2 So let’s get the ball rolling! Some of these games will take place...

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The rules on the use of information and communication technology ("ICT") in the financial sector were traditionally country and institution-specific to a great extent and predominately focused on the financial impact of ICT risks. Several recent EU legislative acts and guidelines of the European Banking Authority ("EBA"), the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority ("EIOPA")and the European Securities and Markets Authority ("ESMA"), such as the 2021 Guidelines on ICT and security risk management and the cloud outsourcing guidelines, have...

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What Is Greenwashing? Broadly speaking, “greenwashing” is an umbrella term that describes companies marketing their products or practices as being sustainable or environmentally friendly in ways that may be unsupported by data or perceived as misleading or even false. The term greenwashing was originally coined by environmentalist Jay Westerveld in 1986, when he criticized the hotel industry’s “save the towel” movement as misleading. Westerveld argued that the industry’s true goal was not to reduce waste and help protect the environment,...

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In a move that will strengthen EU-UK defence cooperation, the European Council this week adopted its decision to allow the participation of the UK in PESCO project, Military Mobility. A key NATO ally, the UK is now the fourth non-EU Member State to join the initiative after Canada, Norway and the US. Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has demonstrated how fundamentally important it is that the EU and its partners are able to move troops and military equipment swiftly...

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Initially published in the South China Morning Post | The unfolding trade, tech and cold wars between the US, China and their allies risk eroding the international rules-based architecture Without a system for connection and exchange, economies will shrink, cooperation will wither and global crises will mount When world powers and their economies clash, driven by national ideological differences and geopolitical goals, cooperation and coordination withers and trade – reliant on common norms, openness and engagement – shrinks. Economies shrink too, as...

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Part one of a two-part series Since the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) was enacted in January 2021, there have been many questions about what kinds of companies will have to report under the law and how beneficial ownership will be defined. On September 30, 2022, after months of development, the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued the final rule for beneficial ownership reporting under the Corporate Transparency Act. The final rule, which will ease compliance burdens on companies,...

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