Covington & Burling LLP (LexBlog Belgium)

Belgium introduced an FDI screening mechanism anticipated to enter into force on July 1, 2023, adding yet another jurisdiction in the EU which has adopted national measures to implement the EU’s FDI Regulation (EU) 2019/452. The new Belgian regime may place additional compliance obligations on companies, and, for some investments, it will entail modifications to...

As part of “A Green Deal Industrial Plan for the Net Zero Age” to respond to the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) (see our alert), the European Commission (the “Commission”) adopted on 9 March 2023 its Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework for State Aid measures to support the economy following the aggression against Ukraine by...

As part of “A Green Deal Industrial Plan for the Net Zero Age” to respond to the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) (see our alert), the European Commission (the “Commission”) adopted on 9 March 2023 its Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework for State Aid measures to support the economy following the aggression against Ukraine by...

The European Commission (“Commission”) has repeatedly urged EU Member States to set up foreign direct investment (“FDI”) screening mechanisms. To date, 18 out of 27 Member States have adopted FDI screening powers, providing for the review of M&A transactions and other investments on national security and public policy grounds. Recently, Belgium and Ireland have each...

The European Commission (“Commission”) has repeatedly urged EU Member States to set up foreign direct investment (“FDI”) screening mechanisms. To date, 18 out of 27 Member States have adopted FDI screening powers, providing for the review of M&A transactions and other investments on national security and public policy grounds. Recently, Belgium and Ireland have each...

As the world struggles to adjust to the harsh new reality of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the most recent instalment of the Sixth IPCC Report slipped out almost unnoticed.  And that is worrying, since the assessment in this section of the Report is even starker than previous assessments – noting in particular that in order...

On October 11, 2021, the Covington Brussels office hosted a Webcast: “Fighting Inequality: Empowering Women and Girls” in honor of International Day of the Girl Child. London Partner Louise Nash moderated the impressive panel of women, comprising of Waris Dirie, founder of Desert Flower Foundation, and Kiera Chaplin, the President of Desert Flower Foundation France....

Next week will be a committee week in the European Parliament.  Members of the European Parliament (“MEPs”) will gather virtually and in person in Brussels.  Several interesting votes and debates are scheduled to take place. On Monday, the Committee on Foreign Affairs (“AFET”) will hold several debates on a series of draft reports on the...

On January 13, 2021, the Advocate General (“AG”), Michal Bobek, of the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) issued his Opinion in Case C-645/19 Facebook Ireland Limited, Facebook Inc., Facebook Belgium BVBA v. the Belgian Data Protection Authority (“Belgian DPA”).  The AG determined that the one-stop shop mechanism under the EU’s General Data...

On 13 December 2020, Belgium amended its rules regarding compassionate use and medical need programs to confirm that authorized programs can continue to operate after the marketing authorization for the concerned product has been granted but while the decision on reimbursement is still pending. The Law of 25 March 1964 (“Medicines Law”) regulates the use...

Next week, Members of the European Parliament (“MEPs”) will gather in Brussels for committee meetings.  Several interesting debates are scheduled to take place. On Monday, MEPs of the Foreign Affairs Committee (“AFET”) will have an exchange of views with China’s Ambassador to the EU, Ming Zhang.  It is likely that MEPs will discuss the outcomes...

Summary Next week will be a committee and political group week in the European Parliament. Members of the European Parliament (“MEPs”) will spend a good portion of their week with their political groups, where they will prepare for the plenary session, scheduled for June 17-19, 2020. They will discuss, among other topics, the upcoming Council...

As previously reported on this blog, on 1 April 2020 Belgium adopted a complete ban on exports of certain medicines and raw materials to non-EEA countries to avoid shortages during the COVID-19 outbreak. On 8 April 2020, Belgium reversed this ban, and instead installed a system of export controls. Coincidentally or not, the same day...

As previously reported on this blog, on 1 April 2020 Belgium adopted a complete ban on exports of certain medicines and raw materials to non-EEA countries to avoid shortages during the COVID-19 outbreak. On 8 April 2020, Belgium reversed this ban, and instead installed a system of export controls. Coincidentally or not, the same day...

1. Summary On 1 April 2020, the Belgian Federal Authority for Health and Medicinal Products (“FAMPH”) adopted a Decision to avoid shortages of medicines and raw materials used in the treatment of COVID-19.  It applies for one month from 1 April, renewable.  On 2 April 2020, the authority provided further details in a news post...

Summary Next week, there will be a plenary sitting of the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium. Although the Treaties provide that the European Parliament’s plenary sessions must take place in Strasbourg, France, due to the extraordinary circumstances caused by coronavirus COVID-19, the plenary session will exceptionally take place in Brussels. Several significant debates and votes...

Summary Next week, Members of the European Parliament (“MEPs”) will meet in Brussels for Committee Meetings.  Several interesting debates, hearings and votes are scheduled to take place. On Thursday, the Committee on Constitutional Affairs (“AFCO”) will vote on a recommendation to the European Parliament to consent to the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement (also known as the...

Summary Next week will be a mini-plenary week in the European Parliament.  Members of the European Parliament (“MEPs”) gather in Brussels for Committee meetings and Plenary Sessions. On Wednesday, MEPs will discuss the state of play and rising tensions between Eastern Mediterranean Member States and Turkey due to Turkey’s drilling operations off Cyprus that intensified...

On 14 February 2019, the General Court (“GC”) annulled the European Commission’s (“Commission”) decision of 11 January 2016 declaring Belgium’s system of excess profit rulings as an aid scheme incompatible with the Internal Market.  The Commission had ordered the Belgian authorities to recover around € 700 million from at least 35 companies that had benefited...

As people head off on their summer breaks, regulators in Europe, particularly Germany, are increasingly focused on the breakdown of the division between home and work life and how this division is changing as mobile devices become used for work-related emails. Regulators are considering new rules that would limit an employer’s ability to require employees...

On November 6 and 7, 2014, the International Forum on Business Ethical Conduct (“IFBEC”) will host its annual conference in Brussels, Belgium.  The IFBEC Annual Conference is designed to encourage an interactive dialogue that promotes and enhances global, industry-wide ethical standards within the aerospace and defense industry.  The Conference will include a range of speakers...

EU Member State green energy schemes that only support locally produced renewable energy are compatible with EU law.  This is the main conclusion of the Court of Justice of the European Union in its judgment of 11 September 2014 (CJEU, Joined Cases C-204/12 to C-208/12, Essent Belgium NV v. Vlaamse Reguleringsinstantie voor de Electriciteits- en...

Christian Louboutin SA’s registered trademark on red-soled shoes is one of the most litigated intellectual property rights in the fashion industry in recent years.  In a decision on the validity of the trademark in March, the Brussels District Court held against Louboutin and declared the trademark void in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. Louboutin had...

Article originally published in the Life Sciences Handbook, 2012 1. What is the regulatory framework for the authorisation, pricing and reimbursement of drugs, biologicals and devices (as they are termed in your jurisdiction)? Legislation The main legislative acts regulating medicinal products are the: „„ Medicines Law 1964. „„ Royal Decree of 14 December 2006 on...

The EU Art 29. Working Party finished its 80th plenary meeting in Brussels last week.  This week, the Party released a series of new policy opinions produced during the plenary.  The highlights included: A declaration that, in WP 29’s opinion, New Zealand’s data protection regime is now “adequate” for the purposes of international data transfer.  This opinion will now be...

Article originally published in Concurrences, N° 3-2009 (September 2009) PROCEED WITH CAUTION ACROSS THE IP/COMPETITION INTERSECTION DG Competition’s release of its long-awaited Final Report on its Pharmaceutical Sector Inquiry on 8 July 2009 was somewhat of a damp squib compared to the fireworks surrounding the publication of its Interim Report some eight months earlier. The release...