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
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
Much attention has been paid recently to the latest government-sponsored, draft civil procedure amendment, which, piggybacking on the e-bidding solutions regulations, proposes amendments to the COVID-19 acts introducing temporary solutions regarding, among others, the functioning of civil courts. The draft has just been submitted to the Sejm. However, it must have been intensely debated previously, … 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
On 28 October 2020, the Supreme Court’s Emergency Control and Public Matters Chamber acknowledged an emergency complaint lodged by the Prosecutor General and revoked an order for payment issued against a consumer under a blank promissory note securing repayment of a bank loan. The Supreme Court ruled that the order for payment, issued by the … Continue Reading
On September 19, 2020, most provisions of an extensive amendment to the Construction Law took effect. The amendment introduces very important changes from the investors’ point of view, both those considering and already pursuing their investments, and those whose projects have long been completed. The new regulations were introduced via the Act of February 2020 … 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
Part 1: Publication of the Offshore Wind Bill and Next Steps After many months of deliberation, on 15 January 2020, the Ministry of State Assets published the long-awaited Offshore Wind Bill, the publication of which marks the beginning of the legislative process entailing a 30-day stakeholder feedback period, which is due to end on 14 … Continue Reading
Will the concept of “piercing the corporate veil” be accepted in Polish law? Is the Polish lawmaker ready to break one of the major rules of the Polish companies’ law? The Polish government is working on a law introducing shareholders’ liability to the creditors of a company. We have already touched upon the issue of … Continue Reading
WIBOR (Warsaw Interbank Offered Rate) is one of five critical financial benchmarks in the European Union (Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/482). WIBOR is the interest rate benchmark for the vast majority of złoty-denominated commercial loans, more than 98% of Polish mortgage loans, 26% of the total nominal value of Polish bonds, and € 366 billion … Continue Reading
Between 23 and 26 May 2019, more than 400 million European citizens will have the right to vote in the European Parliament elections. This is where the similarities between the CEE countries seem to end. Voters in the Czech Republic will be voting on 24 and 25 May 2019, in Slovak Republic on 25 May … Continue Reading
On March 26, 2019, the Polish Data Protection regulator (Urząd Ochrony Danych Osobowych – UODO) announced the first administrative fine imposed on a Warsaw-based company for failure to meet the informational obligation toward the data subjects whose data it processed, in violation of article 14 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The fined company … Continue Reading
When two do the same, it is not the same. This old saying is true especially when comparing legal regulations in different countries. Businesses that are present in various jurisdictions sometimes tend to expect the same, when, at first glance, the regulation seems to be similar.… Continue Reading
The long-awaited amendment to the Renewable Energy Sources Act (RES) is now in effect. Before the holiday season, on June 29, 2018, the President signed into law the long-awaited amendment to the RES. It was published later that day (fast track), thus the provisions regarding RES installation were effective as of July 1, 2018, with … Continue Reading
The Polish government has announced details of the high-speed rail network to be built in connection with its Central Communications Port (CCP) project. The PLN 40 billion (€9.25 billion) planned rail network is even more ambitious than the PLN 35 billion (€8.10 billion) airport project. With a target date of 2027, the CCP involves: Construction … Continue Reading
On July 1, 2018 the so-called split payment mechanism was introduced into the Polish legal system. Split payment refers to the splitting of invoice payments in B2B relations between a supplier’s current bank account and a VAT account, which is automatically opened by banks as an account directly linked to current accounts. Funds constituting the … Continue Reading
President Duda has signed the new law on the Central Communications Port (CCP) (see our summary of the new law here and it will take effect on 20 June 2018. However, questions remain on the scope of Poland’s mega-investment project. Prime Minister’s Volte A key element of the plan for CCP is that the existing Warsaw … Continue Reading
The Polish government is rapidly moving forward with plans for Poland’s new mega-airport. Proposed implementing legislation has been prepared and circulated for initial comments, an extensive concept document has been prepared, the office of the project’s plenipotentiary at the Ministry of Infrastructure has taken shape, an advisory council for the project has been appointed, and … Continue Reading
On 8 March 2018, the European Commission (EC) published its long-awaited new FinTech Action Plan. The EC understands FinTech to be technology-enabled innovation in financial services, and the strategy covers developments related to new technologies which are changing the financial industry and the way consumers and firms access services. At the same time, the action … Continue Reading
One of the many questions asked by our clients is: “Does Polish law recognise the concept of ‘piercing the corporate veil?’” Is it possible to disregard the separate legal personality of a company or corporation and make shareholders liable for the debts of the company? This question has been asked since the introduction of the … Continue Reading
