Recent advice bij the 'BRC Onrechtmatige Bedingen' on Belgian B2B Law

Last week, the Special Advisory Committee on unfair terms (‘BRC Onrechtmatige Bedingen’), a Belgian advisory body, published its advice on the rules relating to unfair terms in the Belgian B2B law. This advice was requested by the Minister of Economy and forms part of the legislator's planned evaluation of the B2B law of 4 April 2019.

The advice provides valuable insights (including relevant considerations, analyses of clauses and recommendations) on several key topics:

• the requirement for clauses to be drafted in a clear and comprehensible manner;
• the prohibition of clauses that create a manifest imbalance between the rights and obligations of the parties;
• clauses that are unlawful (black list) and those presumed to be unlawful (grey list).

Although the BRC’s advice is non-binding, it will be used by the legislator in evaluating the B2B law.

For a detailed read, check out the full advice here.


𝐀𝐧𝐲 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬? Our commercial team is happy to help!


#commerciallaw #onrechtmatigebedingen #unfairterms #B2B #contrastupdate

In the Picture - Oxford University Press publishes brand new edition of our book on Vertical Agreements in EU Competition Law

This month’s newsletter doesn’t flag a legal development. Because we are so proud, we instead wanted to let you know that Oxford University Press has just published the fourth edition of our book on Vertical Agreements in EU Competition Law.

𝐖𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞? Go and have a look at our latest #inthepicture and check out our cartoon here.

You can order your own copy of the book here.

#CompetitionLaw #EULaw #VerticalAgreements #contrastpublications

Happy Easter!

at 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐭, we want to wish a wonderful Easter! May your baskets be filled with chocolate. 🐰

#easter #lawfirm #contrastvibes

Let's celebrate Administrative Professionals Day!

We are truly fortunate to have a wonderful administrative support team at 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐭. Let’s be honest, it’s not obvious working for a bunch of lawyers 😊. And yet, we can always rely on their support when aiming to make a difference for our clients and the members of our legal team. And for that, we owe them a genuine “thank you” ! 👏

#contrastvibes #teamwork #officeteam #lawfirm

M&A Chronicle - What's next?

🏛 𝐖𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐩 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐌&𝐀 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 – 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐍𝐞𝐱𝐭?

Over the past 7 weeks, our corporate and M&A team has shared some highlights from significant judgements from the 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐌&𝐀 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐞, published in TRV-RPS : Revue pratique des sociétés - Tijdschrift voor Rechtspersoon en Vennootschap. Thank you for following along and engaging!

If you missed any of the highlights, you can catch up on our LinkedIn page. You can find the two editions of the M&A Chronicle, providing a comprehensive overview of 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐩𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐌&𝐀 𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐰 from 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝟐𝟓 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬, and our related annotations, on our website: https://lnkd.in/ez4HCPiN

But we are not stopping here!

📊 𝐋𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝: 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

As we gear up for the next big project – restarting the market research for the 𝟔𝐭𝐡 𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌&𝐀 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐲 this summer – we invite you to be part of this collaborative project!

Are you an M&A professional active in Belgium and interested in participating (again)? Leave your contact details on this form so we can connect: https://lnkd.in/efm_czcH

Any ideas or suggestions? Share any must-cover recent trends/topics for this edition in the comments below or send us an email at survey@contrast.law.

Keep an eye on our page for any updates in this regard and stay tuned for the launch of the research phase this summer!

#MergersandAcquisitions #MA #Kroniek #Chronicle #Survey #mandasurvey #sharepurchaseagreements #CaseLaw

M&A Chronicle - Weekly case highlight #7

“The court considers the combination of the limitation in duration and territory to be unlawful […] Consequently, the court reduces article 1 of the non-competition agreement to three years after the signing of the non-competition agreement, within the Benelux, France, and England.”

The judgement of the 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐆𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐭 of 5 February 2018 offers an interesting and comprehensive application of the principles established through the (landmark) rulings of the Court of Cassation of the past decade. The non-competition obligation in question had a duration of 5 years and a territorial scope covering the entire European Union. Considering the concrete activities of the target company and their geographical scope, the court found the non-competition obligation to be excessive and decided to limit the duration and the geographical scope thereof, in line with the jurisprudence of the Court of Cassation.

👉 Want to learn more about this judgement and other key Belgian M&A cases from 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝟐𝟓 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬? You can find them all here, together with our related annotations.

📊By the way, did you know that 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟓𝐭𝐡 𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌&𝐀 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐲 (https://lnkd.in/efJUPcN7) shows that more than 80% of the examined acquisition agreements contained a non-competition covenant, and that the duration of the non-competition clause is typically three years? We will be organizing a 𝟔𝐭𝐡 𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌&𝐀 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐲 this year. Leave your contact details on this form to participate and help us find out whether this trend has continued.

Follow along with our corporate and M&A team as we highlight more interesting case law in the coming weeks!

𝐀𝐧𝐲 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬? Please contact the authors (Bart Bellen | Ine Schockaert | Kristof De Wael | Karlien De Ryck | Maarten Cnudde | Charlotte Van Weehaeghe | Ward De Byser | Marthe Wouters).

#MergersandAcquisitions #Kroniek #Chronicle #Survey #mandasurvey #sharepurchaseagreements #CaseLaw #noncompete

contrast on campus @ Arteveldehogeschool

Last week, our counsel Eva Alboort and paralegal Marthe Wouters immersed law practice students from Arteveldehogeschool into the world of litigation from both a lawyer’s and a paralegal’s perspective, emphasising the role and importance of paralegals in a modern law firm.

On top of that, they also organised an interactive and practical workshop with tips and tricks for students to get a head start in their future internships and entry into the work field!

A big thank you to everyone attending and especially to Barbara Vande Putte for inviting us again. It is always a pleasure to head down to this beautiful campus in Ghent. We are looking forward to future collaborations!

#contrastoncampus #studentcorner #guestlecture #workshop #paralegal #litigation #arteveldehogeschool

Are you our next summer intern in our competition team?

We do not only offer a safe haven for many insects in our new eco-friendly insect hotel, but also like to host talented interns at 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐭 during the summer months.

Are you also buzzing to join us in the summer? 🐝 One spot for an internship in our Competition & EU team for the month of August just became available again.

Don't miss this unique opportunity! Send in your application here.

#contrasttalent #lawinternship #competitionlaw #insecthotel #ESG #sustainability
 

Another important day for the Omnibus proposal

Today, the European Parliament voted on and adopted the ‘stop-the-clock’-proposal of the European Commission to postpone the application of the CSRD by two years for ‘wave 2 and 3 companies’ within its remit and to delay the transposition and application of the CSDDD by one year. The postponement will allow European co-legislators to further discuss the substantive changes to the CSRD and CSDDD included in the Omnibus proposal.

As the European Council already announced its support of the stop-the-clock-proposal last week, its formal approval is expected soon. The Directive will thereafter enter into force the day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. Member States will have until 31 December 2025 to transpose the provisions into national legislation.

Stay tuned to be updated on further Omnibus developments. In the meantime, feel free to reach out if you would like a deeper dive!

#ESG #Sustainability #CSRD #CSDDD #Omnibus #CorporateResponsibility #contrastupdate #VCDO

New edition of Vertical Agreements in EU Competition Law

We’ve just unboxed the 4th edition of our book on vertical agreements, and we’re kind of proud. Pictured are Herlinde Burez (co-author of the chapter on motor vehicle distribution), Evi Noël (project coordinator with an unparalleled attention to detail) and Filip Tuytschaever (on the book cover).

Thanks to our co-author Frank Wijckmans, to Oxford University Press for making it happen, and to our readers for encouraging us!

𝐀𝐥𝐬𝐨 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝? You can order your copy here.

#verticalagreements #competitionlaw #EUlaw #contrastpublications