Latest blog articles
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Creativity needed more than ever in the creative industry
The Corona-crisis and the lockdown hits severely, and particularly the cultural and creative industries. Already a traditionally precarious industry not having deep pockets, COVID‑19 knocks out most core activities of the sector. Concerts... -
The coronavirus crisis has given rise to numerous initiatives by governments around the world to combat the pandemic by gathering, sharing, and transferring data, both personal and anonymized. A great deal of attention has been given to proposals for increased data gathering within the EU, and many...
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During my lunch break or in the evening, it is a pleasure to take a walk and visit the border crossing, because I want to know how our southern neighbours have cordoned off the border. The Dutch-Belgian border is about 300 meters away from me. Only recently I realised that my father once guarded...
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Cross-border non-coordination
Yesterday I was in Maastricht at the Belgian border which is no more than 1 km behind my house. I wanted to see it with my own eyes: the border was closed. The Belgian government has put up barriers to prevent us from entering their country. For five years we at ITEM... -
The corona virus is causing education to move from offline to online. In the Netherlands, the government and higher education institutions announced last Thursday (12 March 2020) that all in-person education has to be replaced by online education. Online means more reliance on technology. So here...
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Last November, the European Commission (EC) sent the Netherlands an advice stating that the Netherlands should amend its tax rules. The Dutch tax rules prevent that pension accrued in the Netherlands can be transferred when you move abroad. The so-called cross-border value transfer of pensions...
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This blog reports about recent visits to all departments and support groups. It also contains some highlights of the last few weeks.
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Is the design of a pair of jeans a matter of industrial property under design law, or should it also be considered as a ‘work of artistic creation’ under copyright?
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The protection of ‘offensive’, ‘scandalous’ and ‘immoral’ trademarks has been a subject of hot debate time and time again. To say that opinions on the matter are divided would be a great understatement. The US Supreme Court took a stance in its recent judgment on the protection of an ‘immoral’...
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Today, on Human Rights Day, the Peace Palace in The Hague will be the venue of the somewhat ironic spectacle of a Nobel Peace Prize laureate and global icon of human rights leading her country’s defence against allegations of genocide, the most serious violation of human rights possible.