Partnerblog
Brexit : impact pour les employeurs
A partir du 1er janvier 2021, les travailleurs britanniques seront des ressortissants de pays tiers. En pratique, les conséquences se feront principalement ressentir dans le domaine de la migration économique et de la sécurité sociale en cas d’emploi transfrontalier.
Les modes alternatifs de règlement des conflits en matière sociale : une plus-value pour les acteurs de la justice ?
Il existe de nombreux modes alternatifs de règlement des conflits en matière sociale. Apportent-ils une valeur ajoutée aux acteurs de la justice ? Marianne Gratia lève le voile concernant: Les différents modes alternatifs de règlement des conflits appelés communément les « MARCs » Quelques particularités des MARCs, et en particulier de la mediation Le recours aux MARCs dans le domaine des relations professionnelles
Birth leave will be extended to 15 days in 2021 and 20 days in 2023
The new Belgian government prioritises the promotion of gender equality and the fight against discrimination based on gender. One of the first steps in this agenda is the extension of birth leave, which is the leave that fathers or co-parents (it is a gender-neutral type of paternity leave) can take at the birth of a child.
The New B2B legislation put into practice: Are you ready?
There have been some major changes in the B2B landscape recently. On May 24, 2019, two new acts bringing some major changes to Belgian competition law and the legal framework of B2B relationships were published in the Belgian Official Journal. Firstly, the Act of April 4, 2019, which introduced new rules for B2B relationships relating to unfair market practices, abuse of economic dependence and unlawful contractual terms. Secondly, the Act of May 2, 2019, which introduced a number of changes to the competition rules (i.e., in Book IV of the Code of Economic Law). All of these changes are now in effect. The new rules on unfair market practices entered into force on September 1, 2019, the rules prohibiting abuse of economic dependence on August 22, 2020. And more recently, on December 1, 2020, the new rules on unlawful contract terms entered into force.
La motivation du licenciement en 109 questions et réponses
Que peut faire l'employeur pendant l’occupation d’un travailleur pour éviter que le licenciement soit considéré ultérieurement comme manifestement déraisonnable par le tribunal du travail?
Coronavirus - Réduction du temps de travail dans l’entreprise privée en difficulté
Face à la crise sanitaire, une entreprise en difficulté peut alléger ses coûts en réduisant temporairement le temps de travail du personnel. Ceci implique une réduction des cotisations sociales et une réduction des salaires (qui doit cependant être en partie compensée).
Travail à domicile et télétravail : une différence essentielle en matière de remboursement de frais
Le télétravail est une mesure importante dans la lutte contre la pandémie actuelle de COVID-19. Le cadre réglementaire existe depuis longtemps, mais il est aujourd’hui d’une actualité brûlante. Quelles sont les formes de « travail à domicile » qui existent exactement ? Et où se situent les différences en matière de remboursement des frais ? Un récent arrêt du 5 octobre 2020 de la cour de Cassation apporte un éclairage intéressant à ce sujet.
Le Pacte Vert pour L’Europe : opportunité pour les entreprises
La lutte contre le changement climatique et la transition vers une économie durable sont actuellement des priorités absolues de l’Union européenne. Récemment, l’Union européenne s'est fixée comme objectif d’atteindre la neutralité climatique d'ici 2050. Pour atteindre ces objectifs dans 30 ans, la Commission von der Leyen a publié le 11 décembre 2019 le pacte vert pour l’Europe (European Green Deal en anglais), un plan d'action comportant des initiatives politiques et des mesures visant à passer à une économie propre et circulaire, à restaurer la biodiversité et à réduire la pollution. Le pacte vert pour l’Europe décrit les investissements et les instruments financiers nécessaires pour y parvenir et clarifie la manière de garantir une transition équitable et inclusive.
Competition Rules for Vertical Agreements under Review : What’s to come for distribution relationships in the digital age?
Businesses distributing goods and services in the EU rely heavily on the Vertical Block Exemption Regulation (VBER) for legal certainty. It sets out the conditions under which distribution agreements are presumed to comply with the European competition rules. However, certain of its provisions are no longer adapted to recent market developments, notably the growth of online sales and the increased importance of new market players, such as online platforms. Recently, the European Commission proposed a number of changes to the VBER which is currently under review.
How to manage and access the e-mail accounts of ex-employees ?
If an employee leaves the company, can the mailbox remain active for a while and does the employer have access to the e-mails therein? A recent decision of the Data Protection Authority (DPA) clarifies. In this decision, the DPA decided to impose an administrative fine of EUR 15,000 on a company that only closed e-mail addresses linked to former employees (surname and first name) after 2.5 years.
Data protection litigation: preparing to defend yourself – or attack
If people were to look, they would probably conclude that you do not fully comply with data protection rules. Top of the line security always fails somewhere, typically at the human level, and the same reasoning applies to data protection compliance: even if you build your processes, systems and procedures with data protection rules in mind, you cannot prevent every mistake. However mature your organisation may be in data protection terms, there is always a weakness – and non-compliance is then a likely consequence. This provides regulators, competitors and data subjects with opportunities to attack you. Conversely, there may be cases where you wish to use weaknesses of a competitor or adversary against them. Either way, you need to give careful thought to data protection litigation, both as a risk you have to manage and as an opportunity on which you can capitalise. We will examine below practical considerations based on our own experience in cases before the Belgian Data Protection Authority (BDPA), the case law of the BDPA’s Litigation Chamber (and appeals before the Market Court) and commercial disputes in which the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other data protection rules come into play.
Stibbe organises a webinar on the implications of the groundbreaking Schrems II
On 29 October at 11 am, Stibbe organises a webinar on the implications of the groundbreaking Schrems II decision which annulled the U.S. Privacy Shield and questioned the standard contractual clauses. We will elaborate on the remaining options for international personal data transfers outside of the E.U.”
Le nouveau "congé parental corona" est arrivé : chômage temporaire pour absence de services de garde d'enfants.
Le régime de congé parental corona a cessé de s'appliquer le 1er octobre 2020. Cependant, alors que la deuxième vague du coronavirus menace de mener à la fermeture (partielle) de plusieurs écoles et institutions, de nombreux parents sont inquiets. Le nouveau gouvernement De Croo avait toutefois déjà prévu une première mesure sociale comme solution dans l'accord de coalition.
Proxy Decrees adopted during COVID-19 crisis: practical points of attention for the in-house lawyer
The ongoing COVID-19 crisis has affected all aspects of our daily lives. For in-house lawyers, it is important to keep an overview during these turbulent times. In any case, the regulator does not make things any easier for in-house lawyers with the multitude of regulatory initiatives in response to this crisis. The various federal initiatives are discussed below. On 30 March 2020, the two laws of 27 March 2020, empowering the federal executive power to take measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus (hereafter: “Special Proxy Law I” and “Special Proxy Law II”, collectively the “Special Proxy Laws”), were published in the Belgian Official Journal. These Special Proxy Laws gave the federal executive power the power to amend existing laws in certain matters and under certain conditions by royal decree until 30 June 2020, in order to respond adequately and in a timely manner to the various challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. This article reflects on the practical points of attention in this respect, and explains the impact of the proxy decrees on the daily practice of in-house lawyers.
The EU Copyright Directive: the three most controversial provisions
In April 2019, after years of debate and a rather controversial EU legislative process, the Directive (EU) 2019/790 on copyright and related rights in the Digital Single Market (hereafter referred to as the Copyright Directive) was finally adopted. The purpose of this directive was to adapt copyright protection to the digital age in order to create an internal market for digital content and services. Three specific targets were set: (1) to adapt exceptions to reflect the digital and cross-border environment (2) to ensure wider access to content, and (3) to achieve a well-functioning marketplace for copyright.
Rgpd : Importance de la transparence et impact sur la validité de la preuve
Plus de deux ans après l’entrée en application du RGPD, le principe de transparence qu’il consacre conserve une grande importance. Il est crucial de mettre à jour de façon régulière la notice d’information pour veiller à l’adapter à l’évolution de l’entreprise et de la jurisprudence des autorités nationales de protection des données.