Member News

Faegre Drinker | EU Court Issues Landmark Ruling on Transfer of Personal Data Outside European Economic Area

On July 16, the highest court in the European Union (EU), the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), issued a landmark judgment in the case of Data Protection Commissioner v Facebook Ireland Limited, Maximillian Schrems (Case C-311/18) (Schrems II). The decision upholds the validity of Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) for transfers of personal data outside the European Economic Area, while imposing significant obligations on the parties to such SCCs. However, the CJEU has invalidated EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, which is...

Read more

Member News

New Forecasting Model by RavenPack Analyzes News to Predict the Winner of the 2020 US Presidential Election

An alternative to polls, this new approach uses sentiment analysis and media attention to forecast election results. NEW YORK, NY - July 14, 2020 - RavenPack, a leading big data analytics provider, has launched a free and publicly available website, offering projections and analysis on the upcoming U.S. presidential election. RavenPack’s forecasting model combines three key inputs: The level of media attention received by a presidential candidate, which has been found to be highly correlated with election success The sentiment for...

Read more

Chapter News, COVID-19 News

EU Council updates the list of countries for which member states should gradually lift travel restrictions at the external borders

Following the first review under the recommendation on the gradual lifting of the temporary restrictions on non-essential travel into the EU, the Council updated the list of countries for which travel restrictions should be lifted. This list will continue to be reviewed and, as the case may be, updated every two weeks. Based on the criteria and conditions set out in the recommendation, as from 16 July member states should gradually lift the travel restrictions at the external borders for residents...

Read more

Chapter News

ECB Monetary policy decisions

At today’s meeting (July 16, 2020) the Governing Council of the ECB took the following monetary policy decisions: The interest rate on the main refinancing operations and the interest rates on the marginal lending facility and the deposit facility will remain unchanged at 0.00%, 0.25% and -0.50% respectively. The Governing Council expects the key ECB interest rates to remain at their present or lower levels until it has seen the inflation outlook robustly converge to a level sufficiently...

Read more

COVID-19 News, Member News

Thompson Hine | Best Practices for Critical Workers Traveling to and from “Hot Spot” States

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, many U.S. states and localities, such as New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Louisiana, have adopted interstate travel restrictions to maintain lower levels of spread and contain the virus. Many of these travel restrictions take the form of mandatory 14-day quarantine requirements for people traveling to and from COVID-19 “hot spots” – states that have increasing cases or increasing positivity rates. These rules are being enforced in unique ways. For example, some states...

Read more

Member News

Vulcan Insight | European Court of Justice Strikes Down Privacy Shield

In a landmark ruling, the European Court of Justice today struck down the 2016 EU-US Privacy Shield, a method of transferring data across the Atlantic, over concerns regarding the safety of European citizens’ data in the United States. The ruling cannot be appealed. The ECJ’s decision risks legal uncertainty for thousands of businesses in, or dependent on, the transatlantic data economy and could potentially lead to punitive tariffs from the Trump administration. Today’s ruling goes back to 2013, when Austrian privacy activist Max...

Read more

COVID-19 News, New York Related News

Updated COVID-19 Guidance for the Small Business Community in NYC

A message from NYC Small Business Services, based in NYC | Dear small business partner, We know the past few months have been challenging, but it’s up to us to keep our city safe and healthy. This week Mayor de Blasio urged New Yorkers to continue to wear face coverings indoors regardless of social distancing measures put in place. More information about face covering guidance can be found here. Testing and Tracing Getting tested is safe and by getting tested, you are helping to keep your loved...

Read more

Member News

Loyens & Loeff | European Commission recommends EU-wide State aid ban to companies linked to EU-blacklisted jurisdictions

On 14 July 2020, the European Commission recommended that EU member states do not grant financial support to companies with links to countries that are on the EU's list of non-cooperative tax jurisdictions. Restrictions should also apply where it has been established that a company or its owners have been convicted of serious financial crimes, including, among others, financial fraud, corruption, non-payment of tax and social security obligations. It is up for the member states to implement this non-binding...

Read more

Chapter News

ESMA responds to European Commission consultation on renewed sustainable finance strategy

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s securities markets regulator, has submitted a response to the European Commission’s (EC) consultation on the renewed sustainable finance strategy. The response covers a broad range of topics from strengthening the foundations for sustainable finance, increasing opportunities for citizens, financial institutions and corporates to have a positive impact on sustainability, to managing and reducing risks relating to environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors. In ESMA’s view, the future strategy on sustainable finance should aim...

Read more

Chapter News

Boosting the EU’s Green Recovery: EU invests over €2 billion in 140 key transport projects to jump-start the economy

The EU is supporting the economic recovery in all Member States by injecting almost €2.2 billion into 140 key transport projects. These projects will help build missing transport links across the continent, support sustainable transport and create jobs. The projects will receive funding through the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), the EU's grant scheme supporting transport infrastructure. With this budget, the EU will deliver on its climate objectives set out in the European Green Deal. A very strong emphasis is on projects reinforcing railways,...

Read more