In June 2020, the Wirecard-scandal hit the financial markets. The German financial service provider Wirecard AG (“Wirecard”), a DAX 30 company, filed for insolvency after revelations that an amount of EUR 1.9 billion was missing from its books and the auditors had refused to certify Wirecard’s balance sheet. The company’s stock fell more than 70 % in only two days. In the future, books and movies will certainly exploit this scandal: a crime thriller including fake banks on…
An updated (and reportedly final) text for Europe’s new collective redress regime has been adopted. The European Commission published the agreed text of the directive on representative actions for the protection of the collective interests of consumers and repealing Directive 2009/22/EC here. In this article, we consider what is being proposed in this latest draft and what we can expect to happen next. Recap: What has happened so far? On 22 June 2020, the European…
On 19 June 2020, a new Russian law (known as the “Lugovoy Law,” named after its author [1]) enters into force, introducing a number of changes into the Russian Arbitrazh Procedural Code. Most important, Russian state commercial courts (also called “arbitrazh” courts) will now have exclusive jurisdiction over disputes directly or indirectly involving those sanctioned entities that fall within the scope of Russian legislation (“Disputes”). Disputes also include disputes between foreign businesses if these sanctions…
This article discusses the amendments of the dispute resolution proceedings as included in the Dutch legislative proposal for the “Act on the adjustment of the dispute resolution proceedings and clarification of admissibility requirements for inquiry proceedings”. Introduction Shareholder disputes are, unfortunately, not uncommon in the Netherlands. A solution to deal with these disputes can sometimes be found amicably. If not, Dutch statutory law provides for the more formal measures, such as the so-called inquiry proceedings…
Although the imposition of fines is a significant – and, perhaps, the most obvious – risk for parties involved in a competition law violation, it is not the only risk associated therewith. Even if no fine – or a fine of EUR 0 – is imposed on a party, it may still wish to bring actions against the infringement decision to mitigate other potentially adverse consequences. The Dutch Trade and Industry Appeals Tribunal (College van…
In its decision of 18 February 2020, the Swiss Federal Supreme Court (SFSC) reiterated its position that Swiss procedural law requires a concrete substantiation of the facts underlying a party’s claim: a general reference to a detailed expert opinion was considered as insufficient substantiation (Case No. 4A_445/2019 (in German)). Below, we will provide a case summary and a short overview on the particularly rigid substantiation duty under the Swiss civil procedure rules. I. The Swiss substantiation…
Following the European Commission’s decision in February 2018 to fine shipping companies EUR 395 million, consumer rights champion Mark McLaren has launched a class action in the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal (the “Tribunal”).[1] The European Commission found that maritime car carriers fixed prices, rigged bids and allocated the market for roll-on, roll-off (“RoRo”) transport of vehicles. Estimated to be worth £150 million, the follow-on class action is brought on behalf of all persons who purchased…
In its decision of September 24, 2019[1], the Swiss Federal Supreme Court dealt with the question of whether an accredited court reporter can be excluded from attending court-led settlement discussions between parties in an ongoing court case. The Federal Supreme Court made it clear that there is no right for the press to be present during a court-led attempt to reach an amicable settlement between parties because this stage of the procedure does not aim…
The global outbreak of the Corona virus (Covid-19) is having a disruptive effect on businesses, individuals and the society at large. The outbreak also effects the ability of many businesses to (continue to) perform their obligations under commercial contracts. In this publication, we discuss the legal implications of the Corona virus outbreak on performance under commercial contracts which are governed by Dutch law. Specifically, we distinguish between commercial contracts that contain specific provisions on which…
Hungarians are not (yet) widely affected by the coronavirus, but the Hungarian economy is. The affected companies are primarily those engaged in the international trade and tourism, but not exclusively. Insurance companies and companies engaged in the medical sector are other examples of those heavily affected. The coronavirus raises privacy, employment, commercial and insurance issues as well. Experts from Baker & McKenzie Budapest have already covered privacy and employment aspects. In this article we look…