The attached article, which was published in ‘Trends Magazine’, Belgium’s no.1 business and finance magazine, explains that many employers give ‘wearables’ such as Apple watches, Garmin watches and Fitbit bracelets to their employees so as to assess how much exercise their employees get, in order to help them improve their...

The first rulings of the Spanish courts and tribunals following the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) of 14 September, 2016 that declared the right of a temporary employee of the Public Administration to compensation of 20 days of salary per year worked for the...

The EU Blue Card is an important residence permit for highly qualified employees who would like to take up a job in an EU country (with the exception of the UK, Ireland or Denmark, where the Blue Card scheme does not apply). To be eligible for the EU Blue Card...

Pension scams continue to be a widespread problem. Whether in the form of unauthorised access to pensions savings, encouraging members to access their pension funds to free up money to invest in unsuitable investments, or encouraging members to transfer their pension funds to another scheme to invest in unsuitable investments...

On 21 December 2016, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued a ruling in relation to the guarantee scheme granted by the Belgian Government to three financial cooperatives ( Case C-76/15, Paul Vervloet and Others v Ministerraad). Background to the case The judgment of the CJEU follows...

In November 2016, a new independent arbitration centre was launched in Romania by the American Chamber of Commerce in Bucharest: the Bucharest International Arbitration Court (BIAC) will focus on business and commercial disputes in Romanian and English, appealing particularly to foreign investors and multinationals with a presence in Romania. It...

In an article for Leading Internet Case Law, Lorna Brazell discusses the recent case of Vereniging Openbare Bibliotheken v Stichting Leenrecht, in which the Court of Justice of the European Union considered how European copyright laws apply to the lending of eBooks by libraries. Read the full article here.

The judgment of Labour Court no. 33 of Barcelona dated 23 December 2016 declares null and void for discrimination the dismissal of an employee in a period of temporary incapacity due to an accident at work. It supports its decision with the judgement of the Court of Justice of the...

It is the first time that the National Markets and Competition Commission has taken into account the implementation of a Compliance Programme to lessen the fine imposed to a defaulting company within the framework of a sanctioning procedure. The National Markets and Competition Commission ( CNMC) gives a step forward...

The Italian Constitutional Court saves the “Spalma incentivi” Decree On 24 January 2016, decision n. 16/2017 of the Constitutional Court was filed, revealing the grounds for the decision confirming the validity of law decree dated 24 June 2014, better known as the Decreto “spalma incentivi” [Incentive Spread Decree] In essence...

The recent case of Jaevee Homes Ltd v Fincham (t/a Fincham Demolition) (2025) shows the potential pitfalls of discussing essential contract terms, such as the scope of work, price and payment obligations, in casual text conversations. Message exchange v written contract The dispute arose between Jaevee Homes Ltd, a property...

Emerging digitalisation trends, spending review, and carried interest tax reform As technology becomes increasingly embedded in products and processes, new forms of risk for businesses arise. Our digitalisation experts consider the emerging trends affecting business operations and strategy, including governance issues (posed, for example, by agentic AI and hyper-personalisation), structural...

For some US fund managers, Europe represents advanced innovation that's driving their interest in a range of sectors – and most notably in renewables, energy transition, green hydrogen and biotechnology. Meanwhile, spinouts from Europe's top universities are spurring a wave of investible innovation. Diversification and collaboration The "repatriation trade" of...

International legal practice Osborne Clarke has advised Silicon Valley based Liftoff Mobile, Inc. on the international aspects of its investment from one of the world's leading investment firms, Blackstone. Founded in 2012, Liftoff is a global performance-based mobile app marketing optimization platform and it has been included on the Inc...

International legal practice Osborne Clarke has advised Equitix and Bouygues, acting as the Uliving Consortium, on a £113M wrapped listed bond financing for the third phase of the University of Essex Student Accommodation Partnership. The bonds are listed on The International Stock Exchange and are wrapped by Assured Guaranty. The...

International legal practice Osborne Clarke has advised Bayerische Landesbank (BayernLB) on a new debt facility, which has enabled the Pensions Infrastructure Platform (PiP) to complete a £86 million long-term refinancing for a 32MW portfolio of onshore wind assets. The portfolio comprises of 45 onshore wind turbines across the UK and...

Until 1 March 2023, the Italian Code of Civil Procedure (ccp) did not allow arbitrators to grant interim measures. According to the former article 818 of the ccp: "The arbitrators cannot grant attachments or other interim measures, except if otherwise provided by the law". The main reasons behind this prohibition...

This month we lead with four developments relevant to the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) and then move on to four more relevant to all public service pension schemes. It will be no surprise to see that recent consultation responses and the Pension Schemes Bill receive a special mention. If...

Where a professional funder finances a claim, it will typically obtain a share of any damages recovered, but not play any part in the active management of the claim. The central issue in this case, Paccar Inc & Ors, R (on the application of) v Competition Appeal Tribunal & Ors...

UK Knowledge Collection | Real estate law reform, AI in the UK, and contract formation Many legal reforms affecting the built environment sector were anticipated at the start of the year – including building safety, planning changes, Martyn's Law, and renters' rights. Our real estate experts take stock and consider...

Not the bargain the parties entered into Over the coming weeks and months, contractual obligations will fail to be performed for a number of different reasons. The legal effects will differ depending on the reason, whether or not the parties have explicitly foreseen and allocated that type of risk in...

International legal practice Osborne Clarke has advised LemFi, the international payments pioneer, on its acquisition of UK credit fintech Pillar Labs. The acquisition will accelerate their shared mission of empowering immigrant communities with fair, fast and accessible financial services. Founded in 2021, LemFi was built to provide access to financial...

Revised Product Liability Directive adopted by Commission On 28 September, the European Commission announced the adoption of two new proposals to adapt new liability rules for products and artificial intelligence (AI). These aim to ensure that liability rules are fit for purpose and make it easier for consumers to bring...

European Parliament committees approve Product Liability Directive to better protect consumers against defective products On 9 October 2023, the European Parliament's Legal Affairs Committee and Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee approved their position on the regulation of economic operators' liability for damage caused by defective products. The new Product...

Blue Guide updates | Measures to ease transition to UK product safety markings | New regulation for medical devices

New regulations signal next step for precision bred plants in England As reported last month, the draft Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Regulations 2025 that will implement the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act 2023 for precision bred plants in England have been published. Our recent Insight further explores the changes being...

Procurement Act 2023: Exclusion and Debarment – are you at risk? Is your business bidding for a public contract in the UK? Confused by the new exclusion grounds and not sure whether you have anything to declare? Our new tool demystifies the exclusion grounds at the click of a button. You...

Ofcom publishes its strategy on AI On 6 June 2025 Ofcom released its strategic approach to AI for the period 2025-2026. The report focuses in part on the integration and regulation of AI within the telecoms sector, outlining key initiatives and areas where AI can significantly impact telecoms services and...

Concerns continue as to how UK umbrella tax legislation will work New "umbrella" legislation is likely to be published in July and come into force in April 2026. It has been reported in June 2025 that HMRC wants it to involve no fault joint and several PAYE and NICs liability...

Competition authorities across Europe are currently taking a closer look at the challenges of applying competition law in an online world. While the European Commission’s Digital Single Market initiative looks at the broad principles of how tech, media and comms businesses should be regulated, competition authorities are faced with rapidly...

The German Federal Cartel Office (FCO) recently concluded its investigation into the terms and conditions for online banking commonly used by German banks. The FCO found that restrictions on consumers from sharing their PIN or TAN (transaction authentication number) with third parties could impede the development of the alternative payment...

According to a recent decision of the German Federal Court of Justice, prohibiting authorised dealers from using price comparison websites may be a “hard-core” breach of competition law. Within its selective distribution system, market leader ASICS had prohibited dealers from using price comparison websites. In addition, dealers were not allowed...

In the first couple of months of the year some of the key topics that we predicted would shape Competition Law in 2018 are already beginning to bear fruit. It is no great surprise that ramifications from the Coty judgment are starting to be felt as courts begin to grapple...

Sind grundlegende Änderungen des wettbewerbsrechtlichen Rahmens erforderlich, um in Deutschland und Europa international wettbewerbsfähige Digitalunternehmen zu ermöglichen? Wie können Skalierungs- und Kooperationsbedürfnisse deutscher und europäischer Digitalunternehmen im europäischen Wettbewerbsrecht besser berücksichtigt werden? Besteht Anpassungsbedarf für Fälle der Kooperation und für Standardisierungsbestrebungen, etwa im Bereich der Industrie 4.0? Besteht Anpassungsbedarf beim...

COVID-19 (Coronavirus) und seine Auswirkungen haben Deutschland und den Rest der Welt fest im Griff. Nur wenige Branchen bleiben von den gravierenden wirtschaftlichen Auswirkungen weitestgehend verschont. Der Rest spürt die starke Verzahnung der Wirtschaftsteilnehmer, -bereiche und -regionen. Unternehmen und die Wirtschaft stehen vor bislang ungeahnten Herausforderungen. Gleichzeitig müssen Unternehmen gesetzliche...

Expert legal advice for the sports industry Osborne Clarke's global sports law team represents a diverse range of clients in the sports sector including sports federations, athletes and teams, event organisers, sports rights-holders, broadcasters, social media platforms, sponsors, marketing agencies, betting agencies, tech providers, and stadium developers. With a strong...

Welcome to the latest edition of Osborne Clarke’s private equity and venture capital update. We hope that you find it interesting. If you would like to discuss any of the content, or have a subject that you would like us to cover in a future edition, please let one of...

In an important development in the insolvency and financial sphere in Spain, Murcia Commercial Court No. 2 handed down Ruling 91/2025 of 6 May, approving the restructuring plan of the Rator Group promoted by its creditors. Pre-bankruptcy restructuring The ruling led by financial institutions and an industrial investor demonstrates the...

Poland's Ministry of Digital Affairs is proposing a new law aimed at limiting minors' access to harmful online content. The new draft includes regulatory implications for digital media operators, streaming platforms, internet service providers, and content creators. Proposed restrictions The proposed law focuses on preventing minors from accessing harmful content...

The government appears to have realised that its plans relating to guaranteed hours and "day one" employment rights, among other things, are likely to have a very complicated impact on the UK labour market – including the use of agency workers and contractors. A new timetable was published on 1...

The Bournemouth Transport Limited Pension Plan has agreed a buy-in with Just Group plc (Just) with a total premium of around £5 million. The Scheme entered a Pension Protection Fund (PPF) assessment period on 29th July 2022 when Bournemouth Transport Limited went into administration. Bournemouth Transport Limited, a small local...

A. Introduction The acquisition of a company in distress provides for special opportunities, but also contains special risks. Osborne Clarke is happy to be your trusted advisor to guide you through these risks and highlight opportunities from a legal point of view. In general, the sale and acquisition of companies...

The UK and EU are yet to decide on the details of how to link their emissions trading schemes (ETSs) that they signalled in May at their first mutual summit since Brexit – but it is already clear that importers will be significantly less affected by each jurisdictions' carbon border...

On 26 November 2019, Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of 23 October 2019, on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law, also known as, the "Whistleblowing Directive", was published. This new Directive will ensure that whistleblowers can internally report and denounce to public authorities, through channels that guarantee their...

The debate on the legalisation on medical cannabis has intensified around the world in recent years. Countries like Portugal, Norway, the United Kingdom and Canada have regulations that authorise cannabis for specified medical uses. Likewise, the World Health Organization (WHO) has recognised the therapeutic properties of the substance through an...

Osborne Clarke in Amsterdam has advised Vaultier7, a UK based investment fund dedicated to partnering high growth category creators and disrupters in the converging sectors of Beauty & Personal Care, Health & Wellness and Lifestyle, on an investment in Gisou, a luxury, honey bee-inspired hair-care brand founded by the influencer...

The issue arises as to whether the Inheritance and Gift Tax benefit applicable to the acquisition of family businesses (be it inter vivos or mortis causa) should be reduced in the amount of cash or cash equivalents and financial assets registered as part of the company's assets. One could also...