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☆ EU court says public employees may be barred from wearing head scarf
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The case came to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) after an employee of the eastern Belgian municipality of Ans was told she could not wear an Islamic head scarf at work. The municipality subsequently changed its terms of employment to require its employees to observe strict neutrality by not wearing overt signs of religious or ideological belief. The hijab, the traditional head scarf worn around the head and shoulders, has been a divisive issue across Europe for years. The CJEU said a policy of strict neutrality that was intended to establish a neutral administrative environment may be regarded as being objectively justified by a legitimate aim. The court said authorities in member states had a margin of discretion in designing the neutrality of public service they intended to promote.

Persons: Lim Huey Teng, Philip Blenkinsop, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, European Union, Justice, Thomson Locations: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Rights BRUSSELS, Europe, Belgian

A number of companies have recently demanded that antitrust enforcers pay default interest on fines in annulled antitrust cases. Deutsche Telekom challenged the fine at the Luxembourg-based General Court, Europe's second highest, which cut it to 19 million euros in 2018, forcing the EU competition enforcer to repay the difference. Deutsche Telekom returned to the court after the EU competition enforcer refused to pay interest for the period between the payment and the reimbursement and got judges to back its fight. The Commission then appealed to the Luxembourg-based EU Court of Justice (CJEU). The case is C‑221/22 P European Commission v Deutsche Telekom AG.

Persons: Fabian Bimmer, Deutsche, Anthony Michael Collins, refunding, Foo Yun Chee, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: Deutsche Telekom, ITS, REUTERS, Companies Deutsche Telekom AG, Intel, Deutsche, European Commission, EU, Court of Justice, Deutsche Telekom AG, Thomson Locations: Hamburg, Germany, Slovakia, Luxembourg

The European Commission in its 2016 decision said Apple benefited from two Irish tax rulings for more than two decades that artificially reduced its tax burden to as low as 0.005% in 2014. "The judgment of the General Court on 'tax rulings' adopted by Ireland in relation to Apple should be set aside," he said in a non-binding opinion. "It is therefore necessary for the General Court to carry out a new assessment," Pitruzzella said. Her biggest legal victory to date came in September when the General Court upheld her decision against a 700-million-euro Belgian tax scheme for 55 multinationals. Vestager is currently investigating IKEA brand owner Inter IKEA's Dutch tax arrangement in a case dating from 2017, Nike's (NKE.N) Dutch tax rulings and Finnish food and drink packaging company Huhtamaki's (HUH1V.HE) tax rulings granted by Luxembourg.

Persons: Mike Blake, Margrethe Vestager's, Apple, Apple's, Giovanni Pitruzzella, CJEU, Pitruzzella, Michael McGrath, Court’s, Vestager, Stellantis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, EU, Apple, European Commission, of Justice, Justice, Court, Ireland, Dublin, Starbucks, IKEA, Inter IKEA's, Thomson Locations: La Jolla , California, U.S, Rights LUXEMBOURG, Ireland, Belgian, Luxembourg

☆ Setback for Apple as EU court advisor backs EU's $14 bln tax order
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Apple iPhone 15 series devices are displayed for sale at The Grove Apple retail store on release day in Los Angeles, California, on September 22, 2023. The tax case against Apple was part of EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager's crackdown against deals between multinationals and EU countries which regulators saw as unfair state aid. The General Court in 2020 upheld Apple's challenge, saying that regulators had not met the legal standard to show Apple had enjoyed an unfair advantage. Advocate General Giovanni Pitruzzella at the EU Court of Justice (CJEU) said CJEU judges should set aside the General Court ruling and refer the case back to the lower tribunal. "The judgment of the General Court on 'tax rulings' adopted by Ireland in relation to Apple should be set aside," he said in a non-binding opinion.

Persons: Margrethe Vestager's, Apple, Apple's, Giovanni Pitruzzella, CJEU Organizations: Apple, Grove Apple, European Commission, EU, of Justice Locations: Los Angeles , California, Ireland

A 3D printed Facebook's new rebrand logo Meta is seen in front of displayed Google logo in this illustration taken on November 2, 2021. The Austrian law, enacted in 2021 and which obliges Big Tech to publish regular reports of illegal content, comes amid mounting concerns worldwide about hateful posts. The three companies, which have their European headquarters in Ireland, say they should only be subject to Irish rules. The Austrian court subsequently sought advice from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), which sided with the companies. We will study the judgment and continue to invest in the trust and safety of our users across our platforms," a Google spokesperson said.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, TikTok, Thursday's, Foo Yun Chee Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Google, Austrian, Big Tech, European Union, Digital Services, Justice, Meta, Thomson Locations: Rights LUXEMBOURG, Ireland, Member State

☆ Facebook and Instagram get ad-free subscription service in Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

People in the European Union, which includes 27 countries, the European Economic Area and Switzerland, will be able to pay 9.99 euros ($11) per month on the web or 12.99 euros ($14) per month month on iOS and Android to access the ad-free version of Facebook and Instagram. Meta said on Monday it will offer an ad-free subscription option for Facebook and Instagram in Europe after it faced a major challenge from regulators in the region this year. Meta said the introduction of the subscription service is aimed at addressing regulatory concerns. Meta pointed to this ruling as a reason for introducing the subscription offer. "In its ruling, the CJEU (European Court of Justice) expressly recognised that a subscription model, like the one we are announcing, is a valid form of consent for an ads funded service," Meta wrote.

Persons: Meta Organizations: European Union, European Economic, Facebook, General Data, Meta, of Justice Locations: Switzerland, Europe

A sign is pictured outside a Google office near the company's headquarters in Mountain View, California, U.S., May 8, 2019. Google turned to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) after the General Court in 2021 threw out its challenge to the fine levied by EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager in 2017. Google lawyer Thomas Graf said the European Commission had failed to show that the company's different treatment of rivals was abusive and that different treatment alone was not anti-competitive. "Qualifying every different treatment, and in particular different treatment of first party and third party businesses, as abusive would undermine competition. Commission lawyer Fernando Castillo de la Torre dismissed Google's arguments, saying the company had used its algorithms to unfairly favour its price comparison shopping service, in breach of EU antitrust laws.

Persons: Paresh Dave, Margrethe Vestager, Thomas Graf, Graf, Fernando Castillo de la Torre, Google's, Foo Yun Chee, David Evans Organizations: REUTERS, Google, Justice, European Union, European Commission, v, Thomson Locations: Mountain View , California, U.S

☆ German antitrust watchdog can add privacy breaches to Meta probe, EU court says
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRUSSELS, July 4 (Reuters) - Antitrust authorities can check whether companies such as Meta Platforms (META.O) comply with EU data protection rules during their investigations, Europe's top court said on Tuesday, a move likely to broaden regulators' scrutiny of Big Tech. At issue is whether the German antitrust agency overstepped its authority by using its antitrust power to address data protection concerns, which are the remit of national data protection authorities. Meta, owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, challenged the finding, prompting a German court to seek advice from the CJEU. The CJEU however said antitrust regulators must "take into consideration any decision or investigation by the competent supervisory authority pursuant to that regulation." The case is C-252/21 Meta Platforms and others (User conditions for a social network).

Persons: Foo Yun Chee, Charlotte Van Campenhout, Louise Heavens Organizations: Antitrust, Big Tech, Justice, European Union, Facebook, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, Luxembourg, German, Amsterdam

☆ Meta loses as top EU court backs antitrust regulators over privacy breach checks
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Meta Platforms on Tuesday lost its fight against a German data curb order that strikes at the heart of its business model as Europe's top court backed the German antitrust watchdog's power to also investigate privacy breaches. The ruling from the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) potentially hand antitrust authorities more leeway in Big Tech probes. At issue was whether the German antitrust agency overstepped its authority by using its antitrust power to address data protection concerns, which are the remit of national data protection authorities. Thomas Graf, a partner at law firm Cleary Gottlieb, was more cautious on whether antitrust authorities would want to go into the details of privacy law. "Are antitrust authorities going to become GDPR regulators?

Persons: Andreas Mundt, Benoit Coeure, Thomas Graf, Cleary Gottlieb, Graf, Max Schrems Organizations: Justice, European Union, Big Tech, Meta, Facebook, Data Protection Locations: Menlo Park , California, Luxembourg

☆ Meta hit with record $1.3 bln fine over data transfers
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Padraic Halpin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The fine, imposed by Ireland's Data Protection Commissioner (DPC), came after Meta continued to transfer data beyond a 2020 EU court ruling that invalidated an EU-U.S. data transfer pact. It tops the previous record EU privacy fine of 746 million euros handed by Luxembourg to Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) in 2021. "Without the ability to transfer data across borders, the internet risks being carved up into national and regional silos," Meta said. Europe's top court, the European Court of Justice, threw out the two previous pacts over concerns about U.S. surveillance. Unless U.S. surveillance laws gets fixed, Meta will likely have to keep EU data in the EU," he said in a statement.

☆ Top EU judge expects a wave of litigation from tech giants against new tech law
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Andrew KellyBRUSSELS, March 17 (Reuters) - Tech giants will likely challenge a new European Union law aimed at reining in their power with the first cases in a potential wave of litigation expected by year-end, one of the EU's top judges said on Friday. Those disagreeing with the label and requirements are likely to take their complaint to the Luxembourg-based General Court within months, its president Marc van der Woude said. But van der Woude said the DMA was still evolving. He said areas of dispute will likely focus on the gatekeeper designation, specifications of their obligations and during enforcement of the DMA. A contentious area is likely to be the requirement on gatekeepers to notify their acquisitions to the Commission and whether such deals meet the threshold for regulatory scrutiny, van der Woude said.

☆ American Airlines loses fight over Delta airport slots
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LUXEMBOURG, March 16 (Reuters) - American Airlines (AAL.O), which gave up rights to two airport slots to Delta Air Lines' (DAL.N) in 2013, on Thursday lost a court appeal to have the European Union cancel them for lack of use. American gave up the takeoff and landing rights at Heathrow and Philadelphia airports to get antitrust approval for its merger with US Airway. The European Commission picked Delta to take up the slots. The EU Court of Justice (CJEU), Europe's highest, dismissed American's arguments that Delta did not fulfil its obligation to use the slots regularly. American complained that Delta had not made appropriate use of the slots as required under grandfather rights, prompting the EU competition watchdog to issue a decision in 2018 backing its rival.

☆ OnlyFans loses UK VAT fight at EU top court
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRUSSELS, Feb 28 (Reuters) - OnlyFans, an online platform known for adult content, should pay UK value added tax (VAT) on the full amount paid by subscribers to content creators, not only its 20% cut of the fees, Europe's top court said on Tuesday, siding with Britain's tax authority. Founded in 2016 and with more than 150 million users, OnlyFans' popularity has soared as content creators look to earn money by selling directly to paying subscribers. OnlyFans operator Fenix clashed with UK tax authorities after they ordered it to pay VAT on all the money paid by fans between 2017 and 2020, not just the 20% it took from creators for services such as collecting and distributing fees. The company took its grievance to a UK tribunal which then sought advice from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), Europe's highest. The CJEU judgment is final and the UK tribunal now has to examine the case in accordance with it and make its final ruling.

☆ EU top court adviser backs FX borrowers, Polish bank stocks fall
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Anna Koper | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The country's KNF financial watchdog has warned that the banking sector could face a 100 billion zlotys hit in case of an unfavourable ruling. He added that if Polish courts grant remuneration to consumers the additional cost would be similar in the worst case scenario. Hundreds of thousands of Poles took out mortgages in foreign currencies, mainly in Swiss francs, attracted by lower interest rates. Many mortgage holders took banks to court, while banks started offering settlements to find an out-of-court solution. The total stock of foreign currency mortgages in Poland stood at almost 79 billion zloty in December based on the latest available KNF data, with Swiss franc mortgages accounting for over 52 billion zloty.

☆ A future European Super League could have 80 clubs - A22 CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationBERLIN, Feb 9 (Reuters) - A future European Super League could include as many as 80 teams, Bernd Reichart, the chief executive of A22 Sports Management, a company formed to sponsor and assist in the creation of a breakaway soccer league, said on Thursday. "The vast majority of them share the assessment that the very foundation of European football is under threat, and it is time for change," A22 said. "Feedback suggests a European football league that is open, based solely on sporting merit, multidivisional with 60 to 80 clubs and a minimum of 14 guaranteed European matches per club." Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus were among 12 clubs to announce a breakaway Super League in April 2021. "The walking corpse that is the European Super League twitches again with all the self-awareness one associates with a zombie," said FSA chief executive Kevin Miles in a statement.

SummarySummary Companies Top EU court dismisses HSBC challenge over cartel participationUpholds annulment of Euribor cartel fineHSBC separately challenging reduced Euribor fineBRUSSELS, Jan 12 (Reuters) - HSBC (HSBA.L) on Thursday failed to overturn a court ruling that it had participated in a cartel to rig benchmark Euribor rates in 2007, but Europe's top court confirmed that a 33.6 million euro ($36 million) fine had been scrapped. The European Court of Justice, Europe's highest court, rejected HSBC's attempt to clear its name by challenging a 2019 lower court decision that it had colluded with others to try to manipulate key Euribor (euro interbank offered rate) rates. The European Commission, the bloc's executive body, ruled in 2016 that HSBC and six other banks had tried to distort Euribor, a benchmark for rates on financial products, fining the lender 33.6 million euros. Three years later, a lower tribunal scrapped the fine because of insufficient reasoning, but dismissed the bank's attempt to shake off the ruling that it had taken part in a cartel. The European Commission subsequently imposed a slightly lower fine of 31.7 million euros in 2021, which HSBC is separately challenging.

☆ HSBC wins appeal against $36 mln Euribor cartel fine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BRUSSELS, Jan 12 (Reuters) - HSBC (HSBA.L) has won an appeal against a decision by European antitrust regulators to fine Europe's second-largest bank 33.6 million euros ($36 million) over its role in a cartel to manipulate benchmark Euribor interest rates in 2007. HSBC, penalised alongside JPMorgan (JPM.N) and Credit Agricole (CAGR.PA), challenged the decision and in 2019, a lower tribunal scrapped the fine because of insufficient reasoning. The European Commission subsequently re-imposed a slightly lower fine of 31.7 million euros in 2021. HSBC, JPMorgan and Credit Agricole opted against settling with European regulators and, following a full investigation, JPMorgan was fined 337.2 million euros and Credit Agricole was ordered to pay 114.7 million euros. EU, U.S. and British regulators have fined banks billions of euros for manipulating benchmark interest rates and the foreign exchange market.

☆ Amazon may be responsible for allowing Louboutin knock-off ads, EU court says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Online retailer Amazon (AMZN.O) may be deemed responsible for advertising of counterfeit Christian Louboutin shoes which found its way on to its platform, Europe's top court said in a preliminary ruling on Thursday. The EU court said it is now up to the two national courts to decide whether this is indeed the case. Louboutin brought two cases against Amazon in a Belgian and a Luxembourg court in 2019, saying the company regularly displayed advertisements for red-soled shoes put on the market without Louboutin's consent. Both courts had sought the guidance of the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). Thierry Van Innis, Louboutin's lawyer, said the European court had followed the designer's arguments "in every detail".

☆ EU court rules Airbnb must provide rental info to tax authorities
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Short-term accommodation services company Airbnb (ABNB.O) must provide information in rental contracts to tax authorities and withhold tax under a national regime, the European Union's top court ruled on Thursday. The Italian court subsequently sought guidance from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). "EU law does not preclude the requirement to collect information or to withhold tax under a national tax regime," the EU court said in a statement. But an Airbnb spokesperson said the company was already supporting the correct payment of host income tax by implementing the EU's agreed common tax reporting framework. "We will continue to make progress on the EU's bloc-wide approach to income tax reporting while we await the final decision of the Italian court," the Airbnb spokesperson said.

☆ FIFA and UEFA did not breach EU laws in blocking European Super League, but proponents aren’t for giving up
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Sammy Mngqosini | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —The decisions taken by soccer bodies FIFA and UEFA to block the European Super League (ESL) are in line with European Union (EU) competition laws, according to an EU Opinion issued on Thursday. “The FIFA-UEFA rules under which any new competition is subject to prior approval are compatible with EU competition law,” Advocate General Athanasios Rantos at the EU Court of Justice (CJEU) said. The ESL was set up in 2021 by 12 European clubs with the intention to break away from European football governing body UEFA to create their very own competition. FIFA also welcomes the Advocate General’s recognition of FIFA’s exclusive rights to market international competitions organized by FIFA. Fans of Chelsea Football Club protest against the European Super League outside Stamford Bridge on April 20, 2021.

☆ FIFA, UEFA rules compatible with EU competition rules, EU court adviser says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, Dec 15 (Reuters) - Soccer bodies UEFA and FIFA's rules giving them the right to block clubs from joining a breakaway league and penalise players who do so are compatible with EU antitrust laws, an adviser to Europe's top court said on Thursday. The case centres on the dispute between UEFA, FIFA and the European Super League last year but could also impact other sports, clubs and players tempted by lucrative deals offered by rebel bodies and seeking to cash in during relatively short careers. The Super League took its case to a Spanish court which subsequently sought guidance from the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). "The FIFA-UEFA rules under which any new competition is subject to prior approval are compatible with EU competition law," Advocate General Athanasios Rantos at the EU Court of Justice (CJEU), Europe's highest, said. While the Super League is free to set up its own independent football competition outside the UEFA and FIFA ecosystem, it cannot at the same time continue to participate in FIFA and UEFA football competitions without their prior authorisation, he said.

☆ Google must remove 'manifestly inaccurate' data, EU top court says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LUXEMBOURG, Dec 8 (Reuters) - Alphabet unit Google (GOOGL.O) must remove data from online search results if users can prove it is inaccurate, Europe's top court said on Thursday. The case before the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) concerned two executives from a group of investment companies who had asked Google to remove search results linking their names to certain articles criticising the group's investment model. They also wanted Google to remove thumbnail photos of them from search results. A German court subsequently sought advice from the CJEU on the balance between the right to be forgotten and the right to freedom of expression and information. The same court in 2014 enshrined the right to be forgotten, saying that people could ask search engines like Google to remove inadequate or irrelevant information from web results appearing under searches for their names.

☆ Blow for EU crackdown on tax deals as Fiat wins appeal
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] New Fiat Panda and Fiat 500 mild-hybrid cars are seen in piazza Maggiore, in Bologna, Italy, February 4, 2020. REUTERS/Flavio Lo ScalzoLUXEMBOURG, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Fiat Chrysler on Tuesday won its fight against an EU order to pay 30 million euros ($30 million) in back taxes to Luxembourg, dealing a major setback to EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager's crackdown on sweetheart deals between EU countries and multinationals. In her 2015 decision, Vestager said Luxembourg had granted Fiat Chrysler, now part of Stellantis (STLA.MI), an unfair tax advantage by endorsing artificial and complex methods that artificially lowered the company's taxes. Judges faulted the EU competition watchdog for its analysis of the reference system used to determine whether Luxembourg had given a selective advantage to Fiat. Vestager's high profile cases include her record 13-billion-euro tax order for Apple (AAPL.O) and Amazon's (AMZN.O) Luxembourg deal.

☆ General headscarf ban at work is OK, Europe's top court says
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The case concerned a Muslim woman who was told she could not wear a headscarf when she applied to do a six-week work traineeship at a Belgian company. The woman took her grievance to a Belgian court, which subsequently sought advice from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThe Luxembourg-based CJEU said there should not be any direct discrimination in such a ban. read moreIn Germany, headscarf bans for women at work have been contentious for years, mostly with regard to aspiring teachers at state schools and trainee judges. France, home to Europe's largest Muslim minority, prohibited the wearing of Islamic headscarfs in state schools in 2004.

REUTERS/Francois LenoirWASHINGTON/BRUSSELS, Oct 7 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday signed an executive order to implement a European Union-United States data transfer framework announced in March that adopts new American intelligence gathering privacy safeguards. Judges with experience in data privacy and national security will be appointed from outside the U.S. government. European privacy activists have threatened to challenge the framework if they did not think it adequately protects privacy. Austrian Max Schrems, whose legal challenges have brought down the previous two EU-U.S. data flow systems, said he still needed to analyze the package. "At first sight it seems that the core issues were not solved and it will be back to the CJEU (EU court) sooner or later," he said.

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