The question of 'employment status', continues to concern many employers working within today's 'gig economy'. The UK Supreme Court recently provided guidance on the correct "label" to be bestowed on 'gig economy' workers. Pimlico Plumbers recently lost an appeal in the UK Courts against a finding that one of its plumbers was a "worker" for the purposes of relevant UK employment legislation – not a self-employed independent contractor ...
Background The UK referendum held on 23 June 2016 has resulted in a majority voting in favour of the UK leaving the EU. As of now the UK is still a part of the EU notwithstanding the vote on 23 June. It is now up to the UK parliament to decide if, and if so when, to formally start the process to leave the EU. The exit of a member state from the EU is dealt with in Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) which has only existed since 1 December 2009 ...
One of the many unresolved issues relating to Brexit is the issue of cross-border retailing. While there are certainly issues relating to online cross-border shopping (e.g., the imposition of VAT, additional charges for checks as well as delays caused by possible border/customs delays), there are certainly plenty of issues relating to cross-border bricks and mortar retailing as well. The border between Ireland and Northern Ireland ("NI") is a neat case study ...
Earlier this year the European Commission published a draft Withdrawal Brexit Agreement. It is a draft treaty to embody the key principles from the Joint Report of the Commission and the UK on the first three elements of the Brexit negotiations (i.e., People, Ireland and Money - the "PIM" Phase). The draft Agreement sets out a roadmap for the EU's vision of the withdrawal process.This is a negotiating move by the EU - it is not an agreed draft. It is a move by the EU in the Brexit chess match ...
The Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015 (the Act) was signed into law on 10 December 2015. The Act comprises of a framework designed to achieve a low carbon, climate resilient, and environmentally sustainable economy by 2050. The Act provides for two statutory plans which will guide policy in relation to greenhouse gas emission reduction and climate change adaption. The plans are: 1) National Mitigation Plan; and 2) National Adaption Framework (NAF) ...
The Gambling Policy Division of the Irish Department of Justice has joined 14 other gambling regulators from around the globe in signing an International Declaration expressing concern about gambling in video games. The regulators presented a united front in addressing the "blurring of lines between gambling and other forms of digital entertainment". The increasing presence of gambling in the video gaming world has been raised as a growing concern ...
The Planning and Development (Amendment) (No. 3) Bill 2021 is being expedited through the legislative process. It will provide for extensions to a number of time limits, including for the passing of development plans. Importantly however it will also allow for extensions, or additional extensions, to existing planning permissions to allow projects be completed. Planning permissions have a fixed duration, usually five years ...
A&L Goodbody's Dr Vincent Power writes why the COVID-19/Coronavirus crisis demonstrates why an international convention is needed to deal with various aspects of shipping (including the repatriation of crew and passengers) in the event of another pandemic or epidemic. Go to publication For more information on this topic please contact Dr Vincent Power, Partner or any member of A&L Goodbody's EU, Competition & Procurement team ...
The European Data Protection Board (EDPB) has adopted a statement on restrictions on data subject rights in connection with the state of emergency in Member States. The EDPB emphasises that, despite the international crisis, the GDPR remains applicable and allows an efficient response to the pandemic, while still protecting fundamental rights and freedoms. The EDPB’s statement was made in response to a Hungarian government decree dated 4 May 2020 ...
Increase in merger and acquisition deals notified in Ireland In recent months there has been 27 merger deals notified to Ireland's Competition and Consumer Protection Commission ("CCPC") which is up 42% from the 19 notifications as of the same date last year.This increase is following a pattern of sustained increases, for example, there had been 72 notifications across the whole of 2017 which was an increase on 2016's total of 67 ...
In our GDPR for Employers guide, we look at the key areas where employers will need to implement change and how to manage the impact of these regulations on the business ...
Earlier this week, the UK Cryptoassets Taskforce published its Final Report on cryptoassets and distributed ledger technology (DLT). The Taskforce – which includes representatives from HM Treasury, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Bank of England – was established in March 2018 to analyse and assess the risks and potential benefits of cryptoassets and DLT and “set out the path forward with respect to regulation [of these areas] in the UK” ...
The European Commission has today adopted the Privacy Shield. The Privacy Shield is intended to provide a framework for EU-US data transfers. What is the Privacy Shield? European data protection law restricts the transfer of personal data outside the European Economic Area (EEA) unless the country to which the data is transferred ensures an adequate level of data protection ...
The High Court judgment in Friends of the Irish Environment v. An Bord Pleanála (delivered in 2018 by Meenan J) decided that if a Section 5 referral is made by a third party, then the owners and occupiers of the lands must be identified and served with notice of the referral, and given an opportunity to make submissions in accordance with basic fair procedures ...
The High Court has delivered judgment in the case of Minch v The Commissioner of Environmental Information (CEI) (16 February 2016) concerning the scope of access to environmental information ...
For the first time, the Irish High Court has been asked to make a blocking order in regard to the illegal live streaming of Premier League games. Instead of watching Premier League games through legitimate and licensed services, some people were seeking to do so free of charge ...
Allied Irish Bank PLC -v- Moloney & anor [2016] IEHC 346 Twomey J, 20 June 2016, concerned an application by Allied Irish Bank (AIB) for summary judgment in the sum of €10.8m. The defendants contested the application claiming that they had a binding oral agreement with AIB, whereby it was agreed that the defendants would sell the properties charged to AIB, and the outstanding loan would be written off. The fact of the borrowings was not disputed ...
As part of Budget 2019, the Irish Minister for Finance announced that Irish betting tax will increase from 1% to 2% of turnover. Betting intermediary tax will also increase from 15% to 25%. The tax increases will take effect from 1 January 2019. Parties in support of this increase have suggested that additional revenue generated by this increase should be directed towards gambling addiction services ...
The Minister of State in the Department of Justice and Equality, Mr. David Stanton, has expressed an intention to bring forward the long awaited Gambling Control Bill (the GCB) by the end of 2017. The Government's Legislation Programme for Autumn 2017 notes that work is underway on the GCB. However, there has been no further information on when the draft of the GCB will be published, which is the next substantive step ...
Background The UK invoked the exit procedure under Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union in March 2017. Unless the UK's decision is withdrawn or the period is extended, this will become effective in a little over 80 days ...
Earlier this year members of Fianna Fáil (the main opposition party to the Government) introduced the Gambling Control Bill 2018 as a Private Members' Bill. The Gambling Control Bill 2018 is largely based on the General Scheme for a Gambling Control Bill which was published by the Irish Government in 2013. The General Scheme was essentially an outline of what was to be included in the Bill once drafted ...
Law firms have a lot more male than female partners, though the situation is changing Business Plus June 17, 2023 Gender pay gap reporting has highlighted that across the largest law firms there is a substantial pay gap between men and women when the earnings of equity partners are included. In general terms, commercial law firms have more female than male solicitors in their ranks, but there are much more men than women at the top table ...
The US Second Circuit Court of Appeals, overturning an earlier court ruling from a lower court, has held that the US Government cannot compel Microsoft to hand over emails stored on a server in Dublin in a narcotics case. The decision is a milestone victory for privacy rights and will be greatly welcomed by US technology companies storing data abroad ...
"Slavery remains a reality in the modern world. Children, men and children are being exploited in our towns, communities and businesses every day. The victims are hidden from view and many people may never know this cruel practice is taking place on their streets and under their noses". Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP, Home Secretary, October 2018 ...
The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016 ("CDM 2016") come into force on 1 August 2016. The legislation includes transitional provisions, so that, where a project has already started by 1 August 2016, the Client must appoint a Principal Designer before 1 August 2017 (unless the project ends before that date). In the meantime, the existing CDM Co-ordinator must comply with the duties of a Principal Designer ...
