EU Law
Latest business news about EU law, legal issues and the European Court of Justice
Retiring employee still due annual leave allowance
An employee ending his employment of his own will is nevertheless entitled to an allowance if he was not able to use up all or part of his right to paid annual leave, the EU Court ruled Wednesday.
Requiring removal of Islamic headscarf at work 'discrimination'
A company policy requiring an employee to remove her Islamic headscarf when in contact with clients is unlawful discrimination, according to the opinion of the EU Court's advocate-general.
McDonald's wins Mac trade mark dispute at EU Court
The EU Court ruled Monday that the repute of McDonald’s trade marks makes it possible to prevent registration of trade marks which combine the prefix 'Mac' or 'Mc' with the name of a food or drink.
Cross-border family disputes: new proposals to protect children
New proposals covering cross-border parental responsibility disputes were set out by the European Commission Thursday, relating to custody, access rights and child abduction.
MEPs vote in new rules on property settlement in divorces
MEPs approved Thursday new rules for deciding which country’s courts should settle property disputes in divorce or death cases involving international couples or registered partnerships.
Single language invoice requirement breaches EU law: EU Court
The obligation to draw up cross-border invoices exclusively in a particular language, failing which they are null and void, infringes EU law, the European Court of Justice ruled Wednesday.
EU Court backs UK limits on child benefits
The UK can require recipients of child benefit and child tax credit to have a right of residence in Britain, the European Court of Justice ruled on Tuesday.
EU Court rules again Spain's private copyright compensation scheme
A Spanish scheme for fair compensation for private copying finance by the state was contrary to the EU's copyright directive, the European Court of Justice ruled Thursday.
EU, US sign shared law enforcement data deal
The EU signed an 'umbrella' deal on protection of shared data with the United States Thursday, putting in place a comprehensive data protection framework for criminal law enforcement cooperation.
Germany need not recognise nobility of German 'count'
Germany is under no obligation to recognise noble titles awarded to himself by a German national while in Britain, according to a ruling from the European Court of Justice Thursday.
EU warns Poland on rule of law
The European Commission warned Poland on Wednesday of a "systemic risk to the rule of law" in a first step setting out the EU's concerns on various constitutional issues.
Poland taken to EU Court of Justice over biofuel restrictions
Poland is being referred to the Court of Justice of the EU for establishing restrictions in Polish law against certain imported biofuels and raw materials for biofuel, the Commission said Thursday.
Rubik's Cube trade mark invalid: EU Court judge
The EU trade mark representing the shape of a Rubik’s Cube must be declared invalid, according to the Opinion of the European Court of Justice' Advocate-General on Wednesday.
European Case Law Identifier
The European Case Law Identifier (ECLI) search engine was launched on 11 May 2016. It allows citizens, businesses, legal practitioners and academics to find information on case law published by national and international courts and tribunals more easily. By having easy access to previous cases, they are able to see how similar situations were treated on previous occasions and use this information for their own cases. The search engine provides access to around 4 million case law decisions from the Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Patent Office, and 7 Member States: France, Spain, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Germany, the Czech Republic and Finland.
Euro-MPs approve new powers for Europol
New governance rules approved by Euro-MPs on Wednesday will enable the EU police agency Europol to step up efforts to fight terrorism, cybercrime and other criminal offences, as well as respond faster to threats.
German 2012 energy law involved state aid: EU Court
The European Court of Justice's General Court confirmed Tuesday that a 2012 German law on renewable energy involved State aid, dismissing Germany's action against the Commission.
Hate crime: compendium of good practices
The compendium of good practices collates practices for combating hate crime from across the EU, with a step-by-step description of the practice broken down by country and category. The aim of the compendium is to help policymakers and practitioners such as law enforcement officers understand what is being done elsewhere in the EU to combat hate crime, and which elements could be adapted for use in their own national contexts. The owner of this compendium, European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), maintains this section of the website to enhance public access to information about and related to hate crime recording and reporting practices in EU Member States. The practices listed have been submitted by members of the Working Party on Improving Reporting and Recording of Hate Crime in the EU who alone are responsible for the content. FRA accepts no responsibility or liability with regard to the information on this section of the website.
EU trade mark applications continue upward rise
Applications for European Union trade marks continued their upward rise in 2015, with Germany leading the way from the Member States, and Paris from the regions. Almost 90,000 EU trade mark applications were received from the Member States in 2015.
Public confidence in judicial independence found wanting in several EU Member States
The independence of the judicial systems of EU Member States came under scrutiny on Monday with the EU's 2016 Justice Scoreboard showing persistently low levels of public trust in some countries.
Solving disputes online: New platform for consumers and traders
The European Commission launched on 15 February a new platform to help consumers and traders solve online disputes over a purchase made online.