Handling Tax Disputes in Europe Handbook 2020 Edition

Handling Tax Disputes in Europe 2020 is a valuable tool to support you in the current economic climate in Europe. Where it is difficult to increase taxes locally or introduce new taxes, many governments rely on tax law enforcement to mitigate public budget deficits. For this reason, taxpayers in Europe are experiencing more frequent and more aggressive tax audits.

Continue Reading →

France: COVID-19 – Plan to relax the lockdown – How should companies organise themselves?

On 28 April 2020, the Prime Minister gave an outline of the plan to gradually relax the lockdown from 11 May onwards. On 3 May 2020, the Ministry of Labour published a National Deconfinement Plan for companies to ensure the health and safety of employees, link here. Companies which have not already done so must take steps to adapt working conditions to these new recommendations.

Continue Reading →

Final Text of the EU Conflict Minerals Regulation

On 24 January 2017, the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade (INTA) approved the final compromise text of the EU’s long awaited Conflict Minerals Regulation. This paves the way for the text to be formally adopted by the EU institutions in the coming months, with the Parliament expected to vote on the legislation in early March 2017.

Continue Reading →

The Reopening Playbook: What US Employers Should be Thinking About Right Now

With signs that the virus is peaking in the US, and with some state Shelter-in-Place Orders scheduled to be lifted in the coming weeks, employers are turning their attention to planning for how best to bring employees back to work. As with the initial outbreak, US employers can look to other corners of the world that are ahead of us in terms of the curve of the virus to help construct a blue print for reopening.

Continue Reading →

United Kingdom: Where are we at with the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme?

The UK’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) has entered its second week of operation, its first week having seen the release of yet more updated guidance. Anecdotally, HMRC’s online portal appears to be bearing up, although some problems have been reported, such as calculations for variable pay. Nevertheless, there remain critical uncertainties within the scheme, which could lead to claims being rejected or (more likely) susceptible to retrospective audit and a demand for reimbursement. Whether you have already furloughed employees or are considering doing so, there are steps to take to mitigate risk, tailored to your organisation’s key objectives.

Continue Reading →

Buying Distressed Tech Start-ups

For the past few years, Silicon Valley has anticipated a period where plentiful venture capital funding dries up and startups with not-yet-profitable businesses must make it on their own. This article, first published on Bloomberg Law, is the first of a two-part series for buyer and investors on how to structure transactions for distressed start-ups. It will cover mergers and acquisitions transactions.

Continue Reading →

Germany Intends to Introduce a Duty of Care for Products

The German Federal Government has agreed on a draft bill amending the Circular Economy Act (Kreislaufwirtschaftsgesetz. In addition to transposing waste legislation adopted under the European Union’s Circular Economy Package into national law, Germany also intends to use this opportunity to introduce, among other things, a so-called “duty of care” (Obhutspflicht) which will require distributors in case of distance sales to ensure that the goods remain usable if returned by the customer and do not become waste.

Continue Reading →