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Last year, by judgement dated 28 September 2021 (16 KLs 406 Js 59398/16 inter alia), the Regional Court [Landgericht, LG] of Braunschweig acquitted four high-ranking managers of the VW Group of the charge of breach of trust due to excessive works council remuneration. However, it is clear from the recently published reasons for the judgement that the judges nevertheless considered the objective fact for constituting a breach of trust pursuant to Sec. 266 (1) of the German Criminal Code [Strafgesetzbuch, StGB] to have been fulfilled.

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Unsere Arbeitsrechtsexperten Isabel Hexel und Johannes Peter Kaesbach haben das deutsche Kapitel für den IEL Guide to Whistleblowing verfasst.

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Everyone is currently talking about the implementation of the EU Working Conditions Directive in the German Act on Proof of Working Conditions Governing an Employment Relationship [Nachweisgesetz, NachwG]. The new obligations to provide information and proof also affect employee postings abroad. Companies will therefore also have to take action in this respect, which we have summarised below.

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Antitrust law currently entails innovations for e-commerce on an almost daily basis. Besides the advancing regulation of gatekeepers, the "rules of the game" of distribution-related antitrust law have also been modernised.

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In its judgement of 29 June 2022 (Case No. IV ZR 110/21), the Bundesgerichtshof ruled that the application of English inheritance law based on a choice of law in the testamentary disposition is contrary to German ordre public if this deprives children of their entitlement to a compulsory por-tion independent of their needs and there is a sufficient domestic connection. The BGH thus con-firms the previous decision of the Higher Regional Court of Cologne (judgement of 22 April 2021 - 24 U 77/20, ZEV 2021, 698).

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The European Commission submitted a proposal for a new directive on corporate sustainability requirements to the European Union in Brussels on 23 February 2022 (so-called "Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence and amending Directive (EU) 2019/1937"). Its purpose is to promote sustainable business behaviour in relation to supply chains, especially in activities with an impact on human rights and the environment.

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On 8 April 2022, for the first time since the start of the Ukraine war, the EU issued prohibitions on awarding and performing public contracts and concessions. The bans entered into force as part of the fifth package of sanctions against Russia and are applicable directly.

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Oppenhoff has advised the world's leading cable manufacturer Prysmian S.p.A. on its first sustainability-linked loan in the amount of €1.2 billion. The loan was provided by a consortium of Italian and international banks.

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The Düsseldorf Regional Court has ruled that, under certain circumstances, an insurance broker must accept being attributed with the unfair conduct of an advertising agency commissioned by him (judgement of 16 June 2021, 12 O 10/21).

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In cases in which the claimant names concrete indications to the effect that he may have been legally incapacitated when making a gift, an expert opinion definitely has to be obtained by the adjudicating court. The German Federal Court of Justice [Bundesgerichtshof, BGH] determined this in its ruling of 26 April 2022 – X ZR 3/20 - and thus overturned the previous decision of the Higher Regional Court [Oberlandesgericht, OLG] of Cologne of 18 December 2019 - I-25 U 14/19 - and referred the matter back to the previous instance. The BGH pointed out that, even without any legal incapacity, the state of a weakness of will or ability to be easily influenced could also justify a nullity on grounds of immorality, if this state was deliberately and purposefully exploited by the recipient of the gift. This is because the immorality can also result from the behaviour and motives of the recipient of the gift.

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At the end of June, the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection declared the alert level ("Alarmstufe") of the German Gas Emergency Plan - there is great concern about a gas supply stop and corresponding reductions. If the BMWK declares the emergency level, companies would basically be affected first. The strains will run through the entire supply chain. We have summarized what you can do to best prepare yourself. Our experts are always available for an in-depth discussion on these and other points.

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The EU Commission adopted another package of sanctions on 21 July 2022. The measures include new import bans, expanded restrictions on the export of certain sensitive technologies, as well as adjustments and corrections to existing bans and exemptions.

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On 30 June 2022, the Council of the European Union and the EU Parliament agreed on the draft regulation proposed by the EU Commission on distortive foreign subsidies. Based on this agreement, the new regulation could already enter into force this year. Due to the introduction of a new mandatory screening mechanism, the regulation will have a considerable impact on transaction practice in M&A processes and in procurement procedures.

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In the second half of this year there are once again going to be important labour law reforms that will keep HR departments on their toes. We have summarised the most important innovations for you in this Focus on Labour Law. We also report on a multitude of other important decisions of the labour courts of relevance to company HR work.

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Oppenhoff has extensively advised the long-established Munich-based bank August Lenz & Co. AG on the sale of its Payment Services division to Raisin Bank AG. With this acquisition, Raisin Bank is expanding its business areas as a banking-as-a-service provider further.

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Oppenhoff was named Law Firm of the Year for data security and privacy law in this year's Best Lawyers ranking. In addition, Dr. Marc Hilber was named "Lawyer of the Year" for IT law and Till Liebau as "Lawyer of the Year" for private equity.

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The Administrative Court [Verwaltungsgericht, VG] of Magdeburg has ruled that the subsequent conclusion of a professional liability insurance in order to obtain uninterrupted insurance coverage does not meet the requirements of Sec. 34d (5) sentence 1 No. 3 German Industrial Code [Gewerbeordnung, GewO] (judgement of 18 January 2022, 3 A 96/21 MD).

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The legislative reform planned for 1 August 2022 to implement the EU Directive on Transparent and Predictable Working Conditions has considerable implications and triggers a need for action by companies. New minimum requirements for determining working conditions and the expansion of the employer's obligation to provide evidence of material working conditions - which will be subject to fines in the future - require the adaptation of employment contracts and work processes in HR.

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Oppenhoff has elected Marco Degginger, Caterina Hanke, Dr. Philipp Heinrichs and Hanjo Prondzinski as junior partners with effect from 1 July 2022.

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With its FAQs on asset freeze and prohibition to make funds and economic resources available, the EU Commission has almost incidentally announced a far-reaching and practically highly relevant change to its previous interpretation of the sanctions regulations. By aggregating minority shareholdings of sanctioned persons, prohibitions on disposal and provision may apply in future to a large number of previously non-sanctioned companies.

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The EU Commission adopted its sixth sanctions package against Russia and Belarus on 3 June 2022. The measures supplement the restrictions stipulated in the first five sanctions packages and are intended to further weaken the Russian economy in its key supporting function in Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. The central element is a partial embargo on Russian oil. Additionally, existing financial sanctions and trade restrictions are being expanded.

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In the course of the corona pandemic and the associated increasing digitisation of work processes, the question frequently arises, especially in personnel matters, as to which employment law transaction still even need to be made in writing at all, or whether a short e-mail exchange, for example, is sufficient to quickly and easily process certain matters.

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The EU has fundamentally reformed the rules of antitrust law regarding distribution: After a heated debate, the new Block Exemption Regulation (Vertical-BER) entered into force on June 1, 2022. Since then, the new Vertical Guidelines of the EU Commission also apply. Companies have time until May 31, 2023 to review their distribution agreements in light of the new rules and adapt them if necessary.

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For the first time since the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, the Sanctions Regulation (EU) 2022/576 has stipulated regulations for public procurement. The provisions are already in force and, from 11 October 2022 onwards, companies will have to ensure that there is no so-called connection with Russia also in their existing contracts. This also applies to the supply chain; otherwise there is a risk of the con-tract’s termination. In order to address this situation, public contracting authorities have recently started demanding so-called self-declarations, in which bidders are to declare that they have no connection with Russia.

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Green hydrogen is thought to play a key role in the success of the energy and transport transition. It takes considerable effort to establish a functioning hydrogen economy sys-tem, however. The draft of the so-called delegated act to the Renewable Energy Di-rective, referred to as the RED II, which has now been published, has caused an uproar in the H2 industry.

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