Belgium

Recent Articles

•  

  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...

  Read more
•  

  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...

  Read more
•  

  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...

  Read more
•  

  17.03.2023

  International

  In­ter­Di­git­al v Len­ovo – High Court sets glob­al FRAND li­cence terms

  The UK High Court has handed down its decision in the FRAND trial of the InterDigital v Lenovo litigation. It concerned InterDigital, an American company holding patents relevant to 3G, 4G and 5G technology and Lenovo, a Chinese ‘implementer’ of that technology. Lenovo has been ordered to pay InterDigital a royalty of $138.7 million (a rate of $0.175 per cellular unit) for its use of InterDigital’s 3G, 4G and 5G patents in its products. This is only the second decision of its kind in the UK (most such cases settle out of court).In short, the Court was asked to set global terms...

  Read more
•  

  17.03.2023

  Belgium

  Bel­gi­um levels re­strict­ive con­di­tions on the com­mer­cial­isa­tion of vir­tu­al coins among con­sumers

  As a result of a new regulation, any advertisement commercialising virtual coins in Belgium and distributed to consumers must take into account a number of obligations consisting of both substantive rules and mandatory disclosures. These new regulations, formulated by the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA), appeared in the Belgian Official Gazette on 17 March 2023 and will enter into force on 17 May 2023.Who must observe these rules?Any person who, for remuneration on a professional or occasional basis, advertises virtual currencies in Belgium, which are distributed to consumers....

  Read more
•  

  17.03.2023

  EU

  Mer­ger con­trol re­view be­low fil­ing thresholds – the ECJ Tower­cast judg­ment adds one more ar­row to the quiver

  On 16 March 2023, the ECJ decided that a M&A transaction, which was not subject to ex-ante EU merger control, can be reviewed – from an ex post perspective – as to whether the acquirer (through the acquisition) abused its dominant position within the meaning of Article 102 TFEU (prohibition of the abuse of a dominant position). This allows national competition authorities to apply Art. 102 TFEU to non-notifiable mergers. The judgment therefore provides competition authorities in the EU with a significant additional tool for their scrutiny of transactions, which are not reportable...

  Read more