The Royal Decree-Law completes the transposition of Directive (EU) 2019/1158 regulating the work-life balance of parents and carers in the European Union. The Congress of Deputies last week gave its approval to Royal Decree-Law 2/2024 of 21 May which, among other measures, strengthens parental leave and improves the conditions for exercising the right to breastfeeding. […]
Read MoreCommission sends preliminary findings to Apple and opens additional non-compliance investigation against Apple under the Digital Markets Act
The European Commission has informed Apple of its preliminary view that its App Store rules are in breach of the Digital Markets Act (DMA), as they prevent app developers from freely steering consumers to alternative channels for offers and content. In addition, the Commission opened a new non-compliance procedure against Apple over concerns that its new contractual requirements for […]
Read MoreCJEU: Stateless persons of Palestinian origin registered with UNRWA should in principle be granted refugee status
UNRWA’s assistance or protection must, in particular be considered to have ceased vis-à-vis the applicant when that body finds itself unable, for whatever reason, to ensure dignified living conditions or minimum security conditions to any stateless person of Palestinian origin, staying in the sector of UNRWA’s area of operations, in which the applicant had his […]
Read MoreEuropean Commission presents the Common Implementation Plan of the Pact on Migration and Asylum
After a historic agreement was reached on the Pact on Migration and Asylum, work has started to translate the large and complex set of legislative acts into an operational reality over the next two years. This will be a common endeavour, with the Commission supporting Member States every step of the way. The Common Implementation Plan […]
Read MoreEU Justice Scoreboard 2024 shows that perception of judicial independence has improved
The European Commission has published the twelfth edition of the EU Justice Scoreboard, an annual overview providing comparative data on the efficiency, quality, and independence of justice systems among the EU Member States. Compared to last year, the public’s perception of judicial independence has improved, also in countries that had experienced systemic challenges. This year’s […]
Read More53% of the laws approved in Spain between 2019 and 2024 derive from European directives and decisions
53.6% of the laws approved by the Spanish General Courts during the IX legislature of the European Parliament originated from European institutions, according to a detailed analysis conducted by the European Parliament Office in Spain. Despite certain periods of lower legislative activity at the national level, such as the one following the Covid-19 pandemic in […]
Read MoreCJEU Judgment: the Court upholds the Commission’s decision authorising the solvency support fund for strategic Spanish undertakings
Ryanair had challenged that decision, relating to an aid scheme amounting to €10 billion. In July 2020, Spain notified the European Commission of an aid scheme to set up a solvency support fund. The beneficiaries were (non-financial) strategic Spanish undertakings experiencing temporary difficulties as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. That aid scheme provided for […]
Read MoreCJEU Judgment: McDonald’s loses the EU trade mark Big Mac in respect of poultry products
The General Court holds that McDonald’s has not proved genuine use within a continuous period of five years in the European Union in connection with certain goods and services. Supermac’s and McDonald’s, an Irish and American fast-food chain respectively, are involved in a dispute regarding the EU trade mark Big Mac. That trade mark had […]
Read MoreMore than 27 000 unitary patents registered in the first successful year of the unitary patent system
Over the first successful year of application of the Unitary Patent system, the European Patent Office (EPO) has already registered more than 27,000 unitary patents. This means that on average, almost one in four (23%) granted European patents apply across all participating Member States. This rate is also steadily increasing. The uptake rate reaches almost […]
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