Following the venerable principle that “justice delayed is justice denied”, the European Council has called for “further reduction of the intermediate measures which are still required to enable the recognition and enforcement of a decision or judgment”, and the Commission has also emphasised that the traditional exequatur required to enforce debt collection is an obstacle to the free circulation of judgments, entails unnecessary costs and delays for the parties, and discourages companies and citizens. However, even EU law cannot break the classic division between trial in the Member State of origin and enforcement in the Member State of enforcement. Efficiency of enforcement remains a national matter. This in-depth commentary and analysis on the three main EU regulations facilitating cross-border debt collection compares them amongst themselves and with the solutions relating to recognition and enforcement in the enacted but not yet enforced Recast Brussels I Regulation. In country-by-country analyses written by local experts, the implementation of these measures in 13 Member States is accompanied with evaluation of national summary procedures. Emphasis throughout is on the analysis of legal remedies safeguarding the rights of parties, as access to remedies is among the chief factors determining the speed and success of proceedings.
COBISS.SI-ID: 4663851
This article deals with the EU certification mark, which is a new development in EU trade mark law introduced by amendments to Regulation 207/2009 on EU trade marks. The article describes the basic purpose of certification marks, which is to certify the characteristics of goods and services, and compares them with other types of marks (ordinary and collective trade marks). The conditions that need to be met in order to obtain an EU certification mark are emphasised. In this context several issues are discussed, especially those regarding the ownership of certification marks and the related rules under which the trade mark owner is prohibited from performing business involving the supply of goods or services of the kind certified, ambiguities surrounding the concept of the certifying body, the co-existence of an ordinary mark, and the restrictions regarding the use of certification marks. The authors believe that a certifying body as a term used in the amended Regulation 207/2009 should encompass the owner as well as third parties authorised to monitor the use of EU certification marks, and that the co-existence of a mere "plain" ordinary mark registered for the same goods or services as certified or a filed application thereof should be a reason for refusal of registration or its invalidity.
COBISS.SI-ID: 5565739
This article outlines some of the ambiguities arising from the endeavours of EU legislators to tackle the problem of direct and indirect price discrimination based on nationality or residence of the customer - in this article referred to as geographical price discrimination (GPD) under EU free movement law. It is submitted that prohibiting direct and indirect GPD on the sale of goods and services with an unclear system of derogations potentially covers a variety of established pricing practices (including uniform prices and de minimis price differences). While it is submitted that Article 20(2) of the Services Directive should be repealed, a cautious approach towards interpreting and applying Article 4 of the new Geo-Blocking Regulation is suggested in order to avoid disproportional restrictions of parties' contractual freedom, especially in respect of traders with insignificant market power.
COBISS.SI-ID: 5697323
Greater efficiency in civil dispute resolution is very much dependent on organized but fair fact-finding. Under European law, however, no clear-cut categorization of means of evidence exists as yet, and significantly diverging interpretations persist of what is considered ‘evidence’ in the sense of the foundational Council Regulation (EC) No. 1206/2001 (EER). The EER fails to provide comprehensive rules for many other aspects of evidence taking, pointing instead to national legislation for solutions. As long as evidentiary rules remain different from country to country, there is an inherent risk of conflict of laws between different systems in the course of cooperation between courts in cross-border matters, leading to mistrust amongst judiciary and other participants in the proceedings. This book explains and analyses how the law of evidence works in Europe today. The authors draw on the vast base of relevant information collected in twenty-seven Member States by national reporters.
COBISS.SI-ID: 5010219
New Public Procurement Act (PPA-3) presents reform of public procurement as required by directive 2014/24/EU and directive 2014/25/EU. It brings nomotechnical in substantive changes. All public procurements, both in the general and infrastructural area, are henceforth regulated with the same act. Substantive changes exercise greater flexibility in public procurement procedures and new procedures are normalised. Definition of contracting authorities in the general area has not been substantially amended, however they have more autonomy in choosing public procurement procedure. On the other side the circle of contracting authorities is narrower on infrastructural area. Thresholds for publication on the public procurement portal and on the Official Journal were also amended. Commentary pays special attention to new and amended rules and addresses the ambiguities of the previose regulation.
COBISS.SI-ID: 284270592
Directive 2007/36/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 July 2007 on the exercise of certain rights of shareholders in listed companies was revised by Directive (EU) 2017/828 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2017. The changes relate to encouraging the long-term participation of shareholders. The article discusses all four sets of issues governed by the amended directive, namely: identification of shareholders, providing information and facilitating the exercise of shareholders´ rights, transparency of institutional investors, asset managers and voting advisors, shareholders´ rights and information regarding the remuneration policy for directors, and transparency and the approval of business with related parties. A new amendment to the Companies Act (ZGD-1) will have to be adopted for the implementation of the directive in Slovenia at the latest by the middle of next year.
COBISS.SI-ID: 16109137
The book systematically, comprehensively and in-depth addresses the very dynamic and rapidly developing field of EU private international law in the broader sense. Consequently, it covers all central components of this field: international jurisdiction, conflict of laws and the recognition and enforcement of foreign judicial decisions. In this regard, legal acts of the European Union are analysed, which affect the regulation of such relationships, the importance of which is significantly increasing in the time of globalisation, as well as the relevant case-law of the Court of Justice of the EU. In addition to the general theoretical foundations of private international law, the book deals with a comprehensive and in-depth treatment of several regulations and institutes of EU law and international law. Due to the wide scope and depth of the contents, the book will have a significant impact on the work of the judiciary, notaries, and lawyers in both private and public sector, who often encounter an international element and the complicated rules of EU law and international law.
COBISS.SI-ID: 295160320
The amendment ZGD-1J was adopted in March 2017 and has introduced important innovations for many corporate law institutes in the Slovenian legislation. In order to comply with European company law, the chapter on balance sheet law has been changed, in particular the rules on the preparation and publication of annual reports, whereas a number of changes apply to both companies and sole proprietors. The authors of the program group prepared this scientific work with the aim to present as comprehensively as possible all the most important legislative solutions that were introduced into the umbrella law in the field of commercial law. Presented solutions will help everyone who is influenced by changes in the legislation.
COBISS.SI-ID: 290180096
This book provides a systematic approach to legislation and legal practice concerning energy resources and production in Slovenia. The book describes the administrative organization, regulatory framework, and relevant case law pertaining to the development, application, and use of such forms of energy as electricity, gas, petroleum, and coal, with attention as needed to the pervasive legal effects of competition law, environmental law, and tax law. Its succinct yet scholarly nature, as well as the practical quality of the information it provides, make this book a valuable resource for energy sector policymakers and energy firm counsel handling cases affecting Slovenia.
COBISS.SI-ID: 5017387
Servitization is one of the economic megatrends in modern society, a process that creates value by adding services to products, ranging from renting and maintaining expensive capital goods to producing smart objects and rapid prototyping. This article explores some of the EU law implications and challenges of servitization from the competition and consumer law perspective; it also considers servitization in cross-border trade, highlighting the close connection between servitization and globalization. EU law may on the one hand act as a driver for servitization, by helping to pave the way for more innovative solutions, while at the same time preventing the negative implications of servitization for European society and economy. However, when regulation lacks clarity or is not timely adopted, it may be a barrier to new business models, thereby restraining the competitiveness of EU industry and growth. The article emphasizes the importance of suitable regulation of servitization.
COBISS.SI-ID: 5226539