Latest blog articles

As the title suggests: Beyoncé already knew that good faith can determine the fate of one’s actions. This is also true for registering trade marks. One should hence avoid bad faith practices, as defined by Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).

SMECC stands for School, Minimum standard, Education, Child-friendly policy and care-Continuum. Imagine SMECC as a flat drawing of a house. The regulatory backstop is the minimum standard in family litigation for competent parenthood – far on the horizon, however, a necessary fundament of human...

The statutory pension of civil cervants in Belgium is on de verge of a reform. The legislative proposal ‘mixed pension’ will soon be introduced by law, after being the centre of intense debate for nearly a year. What exactly does ‘mixed pension’ mean?

Christian Louboutin vs Van Haren Schoenen - The CJEU is to decide as to whether or not the red colour on soles of Louboutin shoes represents an aspect of a shape of the product, in which case it would not be protectable.

Last week, the Dutch and Belgian ombudsmen called on their governments to take action in the context of pensions problems for unemployed cross-border workers, aged 65, and living in Belgium. In response to this call, a possible solution by Expertise Centre ITEM is elaborated in this blog.

This blog...

Asylum seekers usually do not cross borders with a bag of documents. They have lost their personal belongings or have been confiscated by smugglers. Oral statements are therefore the only proof of origin. ^{(Dutch only)} 

The ECtHR’s Satamedia judgment juxtaposes issues of data protection and freedom of expression relating to the (re-)publication of public tax data.

On 9 April 2011 a gunman killed 6 people in a shopping mall in the Dutch town of Alphen aan den Rijn. A group of victims now claims damages from the gunman’s parents, claiming that they should have prevented their son from this horrendous act. The claim will fail: on the facts of the case, there is...

On Tuesday, the Grand Chamber of the Court of Justice of the European Union declared the Commission’s US Safe Harbour Decision invalid. The Court’s ruling in Case C-362/14   of the Austrian Internet activist Maximillian Schrems v the Irish Data Protection Commissioner is a milestone in the...

Two weeks ago, in Case C-409/13 Council v. Commission, the Court of Justice of the European Union established that the European Commission is entitled to withdraw a proposal for a legislative act where it fears that the European Parliament and the Council will amend it in a manner which would...