Germany

Recent Articles

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  07/05/2024

  International

  Energy and climate change: The most significant climate change litigation decision yet?

  In Verein KlimaSeniorinnen Schweiz and Others v. Switzerland (application no. 53600/20), the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) issued arguably the most impactful and far-reaching ruling on climate change by any European court. The decision has the potential to impact individuals, businesses, and governments in a radical way by casting the law (and courts) rather than governments (and parliaments) as the ultimate body responsible for deciding whether public authority action and inaction are appropriate in the context of climate change. Furthermore, if NGOs determine that a public authority...

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  07/05/2024

  Germany

  Obligation to include a "No Russia clause" in supply agreements

  For some export transactions, re-exportation to Russia must be contractually prohibited. Model clauses present conflicts with German law on general terms and conditions.Companies must keep abreast of the sanctions against Russia, especially when it comes to export transactions, and as far as possible prevent any attempts by their customers to circumvent these sanctions. Companies have been aware of this for a long time. What is new, however, is that since 20 March 2024, companies are legally required to explicitly prohibit re-exportation to Russia or re-exportation for use in Russia in...

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  02/05/2024

  Germany

  "Automatically disadvantaged?" – Discrimination in the use of AI in the workplace

  Despite the enormous potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in the workplace, evidence shows that AI harbours the risk of perpetuating discriminatory decision-making patterns. There are increasing calls for regulatory measures to be introduced to counteract this.AI is making ever greater inroads into our working environment. Soon it will be hard to imagine life without it. However, the increasing integration of AI systems in the workplace is also presenting employers with greater challenges. It is not uncommon for algorithm design to reinforce such disadvantages in hiring or promotion decisions,...

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  02/05/2024

  Germany

  Data Act and Cloud Service Providers (Part 1): Contract drafting and information obligations

  The Data Act means cloud service providers need to take action. Part 1 of our article provides an overview of contract drafting and information obligations. With the new Data Act, the European Union (EU) wants to create a single European market for data, open up competition around data-driven business models and make it easier for customers to switch providers. This comes after attempts at self-regulation by the industry, which have not led to the success that the EU hoped for. The EU's digitalisation and data strategy therefore also includes facilitating the process of switching cloud service...

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  01/05/2024

  Europe

  Flushed and failed: General Court shuts the lid on invalidity attack against toilet seat design

  IntroductionEarlier this year, we reported on a Belgian court ruling relating to the validity and infringement of designs for cat litter trays (read about it here). This time, in a decision which will be of greater relevance to our feline friends’ human companions, the EU General Court has dismissed an appeal seeking to invalidate a design for toilet seat lids (Nextrend v EUIPO - Xiamen Axent Corporation and Axent Switzerland, Toilet seats (elements of - ) Case T-82/23). The decision re-states some key principles of design law on the impact of technical constraints for functional products,...

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  29/04/2024

  International

  On your radar | Key employment issues to be aware of internationally

  We are delighted to share with you our latest and largest edition of On Your Radar, with contributions from 35 countries. As ever, you will find employment law updates covering a diverse range of topical developments, for example:Several countries report changes to their rules on hiring foreign workers – Hungary, Serbia and Romania.Belgium explains that companies with over 50 employees must appoint a person of trust who plays an important role in protecting employees against psychosocial risks in the workplace including sexual harassment. At a time when employers are looking for ways...

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