Franchise contracts have played a pivotal part in shaping the Polish economy, ever more so since the country’s transition into free-market economy. In 2020, before COVID-19, there were more than 1300 franchise chains in Poland – from small diners and repair shops to such giants as McDonald’s. Unlike elsewhere across the EU (Italy, Holland, Latvia, … Continue Reading
Advertising is said to drive commerce. It comes with the territory, as the real trick is not just to manufacture, but to sell at a profit. A well-planned and skilfully executed advertising campaign can add to a product’s or service’s success. While most entrepreneurs compete fairly and ethically, in terms of advertising as well as … Continue Reading
In this alert, we will comment on how to recognise and defend yourself against acts that the Unfair Competition Act (the Act) does not clearly define as unfair competition, but that obviously hurt your business. The Unfair Competition Act contains a rather lengthy list of acts that are explicitly named unfair competition torts. They fall … Continue Reading
In the previous blog entry, we gave a taste of what unfair competition could be like in practice where taking advantage of rival-generated resources is concerned, and what to watch out for to defend your business. In this part, we want to briefly discuss how to ensure your business’s compliance to protect yourself against unfair … Continue Reading
Amid today’s economic downturn concerns, competitive rivalry on the market is undoubtedly gaining momentum. The majority of entities compete on merits, though there are situations where current market situation may give rise to a number of problems previously either unknown or put aside by many entrepreneurs. Some businesses may resort to unfair methods geared to … Continue Reading
The amendments to Polish corporate law are coming into force on 13 October 2022. Unlike certain foreign legal frameworks, Polish law had, so far, only fragmentary provisions regulating relations between companies within the same group. The new law addresses this area and brings about fresh opportunities, obligations and challenges related to the operations of groups … Continue Reading
In July 2020, Polish Parliament passed an amendment to the Act on Control of Certain Investments of 24 July 2015, which entered into force on 24 July 2020 (the Amendment). That Amendment has extended the scope of government’s control over the acquisition of stakes in Polish entities. Investors from outside of the EEA, EU, or … Continue Reading
The European Green Deal is one of the key items of European Union’s policy. Policies aimed at the reduction of the volume of waste, increase in sustainability and drive towards greater circularity are important components of the European Green Deal. An important aspect of it is dealing with the volume of packaging waste as well … Continue Reading
Poland’s government is proposing a new law that would make parent companies liable for their subsidiaries’ violations of the competition protection law if the parent company “exercised decisive influence” on the subsidiary. Currently, Polish law could be described as being extremely strict in not recognizing “piercing the corporate veil” between parent companies and their subsidiaries. … Continue Reading
The amendment of the Commercial Companies Code (hereinafter “CCC”) to introduce holding law has already been discussed in our material Commercial Law Revolution in Poland – New Holding Law and Enhanced Corporate Oversight Mechanisms. However, as a continuation of this topic, we would like to touch upon one of its elements – the introduction into … Continue Reading
On February 1, 2021, a new draft act on freedom of speech on social media platforms appeared on the Polish Ministry of Justice website. Works on the draft act, originally announced by the ministry in December last year, gained momentum in mid-January amid Twitter and Facebook blocking Donald Trump’s accounts, which the Polish government viewed … Continue Reading
On January 12, 2021, the Council of Ministers adopted a draft law amending the Law on Prevention of Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism and certain other acts, which was submitted by the Minister of Finance, Funds and Regional Policy (the “Draft”). The Draft aims to implement EU legislation preventing the use of the financial … Continue Reading
Toward the end of September 2020, a draft amendment of the Act on Competition and Consumer Protection (the Draft) was up for public consultation in Poland. The provisions of the Draft are currently being agreed upon. The objective is to incorporate into the Polish legal framework Regulation (EU) 2017/2394 of the European Parliament and of … Continue Reading
The past few months have seen increased activity from the Polish Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK), which resulted in fines for a number of entrepreneurs. We summarise below what we consider the most significant measures taken by UOKiK in 2020.… Continue Reading
The need to regulate the so-called “holding law” within the commercial law has raised much controversy for some time now. Unlike certain foreign legal frameworks, the Polish law had been functioning with merely fragmentary regulations in that regard – legal scholars had been debating the purpose of introducing such solutions to the Polish Commercial Companies … Continue Reading
As previewed in our prior post, Poland’s simplified restructuring proceeding (uproszczone postępowanie restrukturyzacyjne) is now in effect. The enabling legislation – with only minor changes from the description in our prior post affecting such restructurings – was finally adopted on 19 June 2020, signed into law on 23 June 2020 and took effect the same … Continue Reading
Updated on June 23, 2020 Like various other EU member states (e.g. Hungary, Czechia), Poland has finally adopted a new act intended to screen foreign direct investments in Polish companies. The new law (the “Amendment”) amends the Act on Control of Certain Investments of 2015 (more on this available here), but it will also materially extend … Continue Reading
Poland’s Parliament (the Sejm, the lower House of Parliament) is close to passage of an extraordinary debtor restructuring relief law as part of its fourth COVID-19 crisis legislation. The measure, referred to as Shield Law 4.0 (Tarcza 4.0) would: Create a “simplified restructuring proceeding” that would permit any debtor to commence this proceeding if faced … Continue Reading
The COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent restrictions of face-to-face contacts have caused quite a stir among entrepreneurs, for instance when signing agreements and official documents. This has prompted many of them to seek all sorts of digital solutions in lieu of physical presence.… Continue Reading
On April 15, 2020, the Chair of the Polish Competition and Consumers Protection Authority (UOKiK), Mr. Tomasz Chróstny, delivered a speech defining UOKiK’s main focus areas amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic. In a 90-minute address, Mr. Chróstny defined the areas of particular attention for UOKiK in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis.… Continue Reading
During a webinar organized by Polityka Insight on April 15, 2020, the Polish Competition Protection Authority (UOKiK) Chair, Mr. Tomasz Chróstny, stressed that UOKiK will now pay particular attention to counteracting payment delays, relying on the powers vested in it by the Act of March 8, 2013 on Counteracting Excessive Delays in Commercial Transactions (formerly … Continue Reading
In order to counteract the effects of the COVID-19 epidemic and the effects of economic slowdown, the Polish government has announced another PLN 100 billion (EUR 22 billion) support package for Polish business. The main goals of the program are supporting the liquidity of enterprises and maintenance of employment.… Continue Reading
The Polish government is putting the finishing touches to legislation aimed at supporting entrepreneurs in the time of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The new legislation is divided into several parts and deals with aid through public sources, such as financing of maintenance of employment, microloans to SMEs, deferring payments of certain amounts due … Continue Reading
By virtue of the Regulation of the Minister of Health dated March 21, 2020 on Declaring the State of Epidemic within the Republic of Poland following COVID-19 infections, a number of restrictions have been enacted which have a bearing on the functioning of certain companies. The raging epidemic and the associated interaction and mobility restrictions … Continue Reading
