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In its Judgment (27.2.2025) in Case C-203/22 (Dun & Bradstreet Austria) as regards the automated credit assessment, the Court of Justice ruled that the data subject is entitled to an explanation as to how the decision was taken in respect of him or her. The explanation provided must enable the data subject to understand and challenge the automated decision. In Austria, a mobile telephone operator refused to allow a customer to conclude a contract on the ground that her credit standing was insufficient. The operator relied in that regard on an assessment of the customer’s credit standing carried out by automated means by Dun & Bradstreet Austria, an undertaking specialising in the provision of such assessments. The contract would have involved a monthly payment of €10. In the ensuing dispute, an Austrian court found, by final decision, that Dun & Bradstreet had infringed the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). [1]. Dun & Bradstreet had failed to provide the custom...

Written by Efi Thoma * The cement industry plays a crucial role in the infrastructure development of both Greece and Cyprus. However, this essential sector also carries a significant environmental footprint. From quarrying raw materials to the energy-intensive production process, cement companies face increasing scrutiny and stringent legal obligations aimed at mitigating their impact on the environment. This article delves into the key environmental issues and the pertinent legal frameworks in Greece and Cyprus that cement manufacturers must navigate. Both Greece and Cyprus, as members of the European Union, are bound by a substantial body of EU environmental law. This includes cornerstone directives such as the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Directive, the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED), the Waste Framework Directive, and legislation addressing climate change and biodiversity. These EU regulations are transposed into national law in both countries, forming the bedrock ...

According to the Judgment of the European Court of Justice in Case C-20/24, a boarding pass may be sufficient to prove a confirmed reservation on a flight. Payment by a third party of the price of the package tour, including a flight, does not exclude the right to compensation in the event of long delay of a flight.  An air carrier offering charter flights concluded a contract with a tour operator. Under that contract, the carrier operated, on specific dates, flights for which that tour operator, after paying for the flights, sold tickets to air passengers. Two air passengers participated in a package tour, including a flight from Tenerife to Warsaw, the arrival of which was delayed by more than 22 hours. The contract relating to the package tour was concluded between a third company, on behalf of those passengers, and that tour operator. The passengers concerned claimed compensation from the air carrier under EU law. [1]  The latter refused to pay that compensation. It argued...

In its Judgment in Case C-247/23 |[Deldits] [1] the European Court of Justice ruled that the rectification of data relating to gender identity cannot be made conditional upon proof of surgery. In 2014, VP, an Iranian national, obtained refugee status in Hungary by relying on their transgender identity and producing medical certificates drawn up by specialists in psychiatry and gynaecology.  According to those certificates, although that person was born female, their gender identity was male. Following the recognition of their refugee status on that basis, that person was nevertheless registered as female in the asylum register, which is kept by the Hungarian asylum authority and contains identification data, including gender, of the persons who have obtained that status in Hungary.  In 2022, on the basis of the abovementioned medical certificates, VP requested, inter alia, that the asylum authority rectify the entry in respect of their gender in that register, on the basis of ...

The Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset, has called for further efforts to implement judgments from the European Court of Human Rights. Commenting on the  annual report for 2024  on the execution of the Court’s rulings, published today, the Secretary General said: “ This report shows what a concrete, positive impact judgments from the European Court of Human Rights have on the daily lives of the people of Europe. While a lot has been achieved, more needs to be done. The efficient execution of the Court's judgments is essential for the rule of law and democratic accountability in Europe .” The annual report from the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers shows that 992 cases were transferred from the European Court of Human Rights to Committee, which supervises their implementation by member states, in 2024. Of those 992 new cases, 194 were “leading” cases – often requiring action to be taken by states to prevent the same violations happ...

In its Judgments in Cases C-149/23 (Commission v Germany), C-150/23 (Commission v Luxembourg), C-152/23 (Commission v Czech Republic), C-154/23 (Commission v Estonia) and C-155/23 (Commission v Hungary), the Court of Justice ruled that five Member States are ordered to pay financial penalties for failing to transpose the Whistleblowers directive. They must pay a lump sum to the Commission; Estonia, if it has still not transposed the directive, must also pay a daily penalty payment. In several separate actions, [1] the Commission has requested the Court of Justice to declare that, by failing to adopt the provisions necessary to comply with the Whistleblowers directive [2] and, in any event, by failing to communicate those provisions to the Commission, Germany, Luxembourg, the Czech Republic, Estonia and Hungary have failed to fulfil their obligations [3] under that directive. It has also called for financial penalties to be imposed on all those Member States in the form of lump sums...

By Giorgos Kazoleas, Lawyer in Cyprus Third-country nationals residing in areas controlled by the Government of the Republic legally and continuously for the last five years prior to the submission of the application and holding a valid residence permit in the Republic can apply along with the required original documents in order to obtain the status of long-term resident in Cyprus. It often happens that the Administration (in this case the Immigration Department) does not properly assess the facts and circumstances of the applicant and does not properly check the requirement for obtaining the status, resulting in a rejection decision. This decision is notified to the applicant and must contain clear justification for the reasons for the rejection of the application. It must also state that the applicant has the right to appeal against the rejection decision within 75 days from the notification of the decision. According to the Aliens and Immigration Law, [1]   in order to...

The European Commission decided to refer Spain to the Court of Justice of the European Union for having failed to remedy an infringement in relation to the free movement of capital ( Article 63 TFEU ) due to a discriminatory tax treatment of non-resident taxpayers.  When a payment for transfer of assets is deferred for longer than a year or is paid in instalments over a period longer than a year, resident taxpayers may pay the tax either when the capital gain accrues or proportionally deferred on a cash flow basis. However, non-resident taxpayers are not offered this possibility of deferral and must pay the tax when the capital gains accrue at the time of the transfer of the assets. On 2 December 2021, the Commission sent Spain a letter of formal notice followed by a reasoned opinion on 23 May 2024. In its formal replies, and in subsequent technical exchanges with national authorities, Spain has maintained that its tax legislation is in line with EU law. The Commissio...

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office in Athens (Greece) has filed indictments in the Court of First Instance of Athens against a total of 100 suspects of fraud involving agricultural funds, for an overall damage of €2.9 million to the EU budget.    At issue are three indictments filed in the past months, following investigations into schemes to defraud the EU of subsidies for the use of pastureland.  Between 2017 and 2020, stockbreeders, mainly from Crete, successfully applied to EU agricultural funds destined to help the sector, paid by OPEKEPE, the Greek Payment Authority of Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) Aid Schemes, which is responsible for the management of the funds from the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD). According to the investigation, the suspects submitted false declarations of ownership or falsified lease contracts of plots of land which in reality they did not own or ...

The Council of Europe has adopted the first-ever international treaty aiming to protect the profession of lawyer. This is to respond to increasing reports of attacks on the practice of the profession, whether in the form of harassment, threats or attacks, or interference with the exercise of professional duties (for example, obstacles to access to clients). Lawyers play a key role in upholding the rule of law and securing access to justice for all, including to vindicate possible human rights violations. Therefore, public confidence in justice systems also depends on the role played by lawyers. The  Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer  covers lawyers and their professional associations, whose role is vital in defending lawyers’ rights and interests as a profession. The Convention addresses entitlement to practise, professional rights, freedom of expression, professional discipline and specific protective measures for lawyer...

Erasmus University Rotterdam School of Law, department Law & Markets, is looking for a fulltime PhD researcher in Law, technology and the human body (5 years with 20% teaching tasks). Job description The selected candidate will be embedded within the Law & Markets department, home of a vibrant and diverse academic community. The overarching mission of the Department Law & Markets is to develop and deliver cutting-edge, high-quality research and teaching on legal institutions shaping markets and their implications for socio-economic justice and sustainability. The research group specifically studies legal and societal problems generated in the complex dynamics of international, European and domestic laws regulating technology, trade, industry, investment, money, and more generally markets. The focus is on how to make the law in any form socially, environmentally and financially sustainable, how to deal with technological innovation on an inclusive basis and how to combine p...

The Court of Justice in its Judgment in Case C-472/23 (Lexitor) regarding the consumer credit agreements, ruled that, in the event of failure to comply with the obligation to provide information, a bank may be deprived of its right to interest.  This may be the case even where the individual seriousness of the infringement of that obligation and its consequences for the consumer are likely to vary from case to case. Lexitor is a Polish debt collection agency to which a consumer assigned rights arising from a credit agreement concluded with a bank. That company claims that the bank failed to fulfil its obligation to provide information to the consumer when the agreement was concluded. It brought an action before a Polish court seeking payment from the bank of a sum of money corresponding to the interest and charges paid by that consumer.  In supports of its claim, Lexitor submits, first, that the annual percentage rate of charge (APRC [1]) was overstated; in its view, one of th...

by Giorgos Kazoleas, Lawyer LL.M.* The institution of Justice is not an impersonal entity unaffected by human qualities and weaknesses. In practice, it is a number of  professionals,  judges, who perform, as is commonly said, a supreme function, which is, however, a daily, systematic and repetitive task consisting mainly of adjudicating cases and issuing judicial decisions. Due to the particular importance and practical consequences that usually accompany judicial decisions, the work of judges is reasonable to be the subject of conflicting interests and the judicial judgment to be exposed to the risk or threat of being influenced by various factors including persons, social, business and political formations. In the grand scheme of things, a court decision in some part of the planet may have absolutely no significance, but in the microcosm of the people it may affect, this decision may acquire enormous value. The main threat to influencing the administration of justice i...

written by Efi Thoma, Lawyer, LL.B. | LL.M. | IMES The  Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA)  is part of the European Union's broader effort to ensure a safe and resilient digital financial ecosystem. DORA applies to a wide range of financial institutions, including banks, insurers, investment firms, and CASPs (Crypto-Asset Service Providers)  which are directly related to the rapidly growing sector of crypto-assets. DORA  is a key regulatory framework adopted by the European Union (EU) to enhance the operational resilience of financial institutions and markets, particularly in the face of increasing reliance on information technology (IT) systems and digital tools. The EU Regulation, which was introduced as part of the EU's Digital Finance Package, aims to ensure that financial institutions can withstand and recover from a variety of disruptions, including cyber attacks, system failures, and other digital operational risks. DORA applies to a broad range o...

Written by Efi Thoma, Lawyer, LL.B. | LL.M. | IMES The EU Competitiveness Compass and the EU’s Climate Mitigation Projects are both integral to the European Union’s strategy for fostering a resilient and sustainable future. While the Competitiveness Compass focuses on strengthening the EU's global competitiveness, the Climate Mitigation Projects aim to address climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and promoting sustainability. More specifically, the EU Competitiveness Compass is a strategic tool developed by the European Commission to evaluate and track the EU's global competitiveness across key sectors. The goal is to ensure that the EU maintains and enhances its competitive edge in the global economy while meeting its climate goals. It is a part of the European Union’s broader economic and industrial policy to align competitiveness with sustainability. The EU Competitive Compass promotes innovation and digitalization acro...

Commission calls on the Netherlands and Portugal to correctly transpose the EU rules on the presumption of innocence and the right to be present at trial in criminal proceedings. The European Commission decided to open an infringement procedure by sending a letter of formal notice to the Netherlands (INFR(2024)2274) and Portugal (INFR(2024)2273), for failing to correctly transpose the Directive on the strengthening of the presumption of innocence and the right to be present at the trial in criminal proceedings ( Directive 2016/343/EU ).  The Directive is one of  six Directives  adopted by the EU to create common minimum standards ensuring that the rights of suspects and accused persons to a fair trial in criminal proceedings are sufficiently protected across the EU. The Commission considers that certain national transposition measures notified by the two Member States fall short of the requirements of the Directive.  In particular, the Commi...

By Efi Thoma, Lawyer, LL.B. | LL.M. | IMES Fintech plays an increasingly important role in addressing climate change, especially in the context of public-private partnerships (PPPs). These collaborations can leverage the power of technology to drive innovation in sustainable finance and environmental impact.  Below are several significant fintech-driven projects in climate-focused public-private partnerships that are shaping the future of climate action: Green Bonds and Climate Financing | Project: European Investment Bank (EIB) and Green Bond Platform EIB has partnered with fintech platforms to develop green bond issuance systems. Green bonds are a key financing mechanism for funding projects that have environmental benefits. In collaboration with fintech companies, the EIB and other financial institutions are working on improving transparency, increasing efficiency in the issuance process, and expanding the green bond market to ensure capital is directed towards...