Recent Articles

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  20.03.2023

  Luxembourg

  Vote du pro­jet de loi in­troduis­ant un dis­pos­i­tif re­latif à la pro­tec­tion contre le har­cèle­ment mor­al au trav­ail : quid de l’im­pact sur les em­ployeurs ?

  En date du 9 mars 2023, la Chambre des Députés a adopté le projet de loi portant modification du Code du travail en vue d’introduire un dispositif relatif à la protection contre le harcèlement moral au travail (ci-après le « Projet de Loi ») déposé en date du 23 juillet 2021. La date d’entrée en vigueur n’a pas encore été communiquée, mais celle-ci devrait être imminente.Le Projet de Loi introduit un nouveau Chapitre VI intitulé « Harcèlement...

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  20.03.2023

  International

  UK An­nounces it will be­come a party to the Singa­pore Con­ven­tion on Me­di­ation

  It has been announced that the UK will become a party to the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation (the “Singapore Convention”), as an “important signal of [the UK’s] intentions to remain a world leader in this area and as a clear indication of the UK’s commitment to mediation”.The Singapore ConventionThe Singapore Convention was adopted by the UN in December 2018, opened for signatures in August 2019 and in force by September 2020. It currently has 55 signatories, 10 of whom have ratified. It creates a...

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  20.03.2023

  Europe

  Out with the old, in with the new? Con­sid­er­a­tions for pat­entees in opt­ing out of the Uni­fied Pat­ent Court

  So far in this series of blog posts, we began with an article that highlighted some of the key changes between the current European system of patent prosecution and enforcement and the new Unitary Patent and Unified Patent Court (UPC), set to become operational from 1 June 2023.  In part two, we considered the interesting procedural features of the UPC and how they might influence a patentee’s decision to opt in or out of the regime.In this part three, we discuss some of the practical and strategic considerations that patentees should weigh up when deciding whether to opt out of the...

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  20.03.2023

  United Kingdom

  Men­tal health in a cost-of-liv­ing crisis

  The Mental Health Foundation recently published a report saying that they expect the effects of the cost-of-living crisis on public mental health to be on a scale similar to the COVID-19 pandemic. Over a quarter of employees say that financial concerns affect their ability to do their job, according to research by the Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development (“CIPD”), and nearly a third say cost-of-living financial worries have negatively impacted their productivity. In addition, the Health and Safety Executive (“HSE”), report that stress and poor mental health...

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  20.03.2023

  Belgium

  Bel­gi­um: first phase of tax re­form pro­ject

  NL FR

  Belgium's Minister of Finance, Vincent Van Peteghem, recently detailed his plan for the first phase of Belgian tax reform, which is scheduled to come into effect on 1 January 2024.The following article examines several key measures and their practical impact on businesses and individuals, if these measures are adopted in their present form.For individualsIncrease of the tax-free portion from EUR 10,160 to EUR 13,500 The proposal foresees an increase in the tax-free portion from EUR 10,160 to EUR 13,500 (which is the tax-free amount). This increase in the tax-free portion would only benefit workers...

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  20.03.2023

  United Kingdom

  The Su­preme Court has held that Ukraine can de­fend USD$3 bil­lion con­trac­tu­al claim on grounds of duress

  SummaryIn a highly anticipated judgment, the UK Supreme Court has unanimously dismissed the summary judgment application made by the Law Debenture Trust Corporation plc (the “Trustee”), acting on behalf of the Russian Federation (“Russia”), regarding the Trustee’s contractual claim against Ukraine concerning the non-payment by Ukraine of Eurobonds with a nominal value of USD$3 billion (the “Notes”). The case will now proceed to trial, although Ukraine must amend its defence to: (i) focus on duress of the person or of goods resulting from the alleged...

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