DECEMBER 2018

Cicero Corporate and Commercial Newsletter

A new edition of the Cicero Corporate and Commercial Newsletter was issued this Autumn dealing with the extremely topical question of cryptocurrencies.

This particular issue contains contributions by our colleagues in Australia, Belgium, Denmark, England, Ireland, Malaysia, Turkey, Russia and the United States and will hopefully prove to be a useful read for all those interested.

NOVEMBER 2018

Cicero Meeting in Dubai and New Admissions

Members of Cicero League of International Lawyers, to which SLAC is the only Italian representative, met in Dubai in November 2018.

In a move to expand the presence of the network in new regions of the world, a new members was admitted representing Kenya. Since now on, Aztan, Swaleh & Associates, based in Nairobi, will be part of the Cicero family.

A warm welcome to our new member!

OCTOBER 2018

ECJ’s recent ruling in ClientEarth Case

According to the European Court of Justice, that sat aside an earlier judgment of the General Court, “although the Commission must be able to enjoy a space for deliberation in order to be able to decide as to the policy choices to be made and the potential proposals to be submitted, the General Court was wrong to consider, in essence, that the protection of the Commission’s power of initiative and the preservation of that institution’s ability to exercise that power in a fully independent manner and exclusively in the general interest required, in principle, that documents drawn up in the context of an impact assessment may, generally, remain confidential until that institution has made such a decision”.

The decision of the Court raises interesting questions of transparency, public participation and democracy in the rule-making process that is typical of the EU, especially when issues of general interest (such as the protection of the environment) are at stake.

The full judgment (of 4 September 2018) can be read here.

SEPTEMBER 2018

Fourt Edition of EULoS Summer School

The fourth edition of the EULoS Summer School took place in Genoa between the end of August and the beginning of September 2018, in the training center of the Genoa Bar Association.

It was attended by 24 participants of 12 EU and non-EU countries and included a study visit to the Hydrographic Institute of the Italian Navy and a half-day workshop at the University of Genoa.

High-standing representatives of the International Maritime Organization and the European Commission, as well as leading practitioners and academics, were among the speakers.

AUGUST 2018

Morandi Bridge Collapse: Reaction by Genoa Bar Council

The Genoa Bar Council reacted to the Morandi Bridge Collapse by opening two information points, one in Genoa’s Courthouse and the other one in the local area.

Such points are intended to provide the citizens affected with a basic counseling service on access to justice and the legal remedies potentially available to them.

JULY 2018

Migration by Sea and Closure of Ports

Lorenzo Schiano di Pepe was among the speakers at a workshop jointly organized in Genoa by the Committee for the Rule of Law, the National Association of Judges and the Association of Journalists of the Liguria Region. The event was covered by the Italian public television – RAI Regional broadcast (watch it).

JUNE 2018

News from the European Court of Justice

The European Court of Justice informs that from 1 July 2018 requests for preliminary rulings involving natural persons will be anonymised also as a consequence of the entry into operation of the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The relevant press release of the Court can be found here.

MAY 2018

Members of Cicero

Members of Cicero – League of International Lawyers met in Riga (Estonia) on 17, 18 and 19 November 2018. Among the matters discussed and resolved upon, was the admission of new member firms from Germany and the Czech Republic, thus expanding the presence of the network in Central Europe.

APRIL 2018

Director duties addressed in latest issue of Cicero’s Commercial and Corporate Newsletter

The latest issue of the Corporate & Commercial Newsletter edited by Cicero – League of International Lawyers (available here) focuses on the issue of directors duties in general, covering areas such as the relevant corporate structure, fiduciary duties and duty of care, liabilities (including criminal), etc.

In an effort of comprehensiveness, 18 different jurisdictions have been covered (Australia, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, France, Greece, Ireland, Isle of Man, Italy, Jersey, Latvia, Netherlands, Russia, Scotland, Turkey and the USA).

MARCH 2018

Lorenzo Schiano di Pepe delivers seminar at King’s College London

Lorenzo Schiano di Pepe delivered a seminar on European Border Law at King’s College London – Dickson Poon School of Law – Center of European Law in London on 22 March 2018.

The program of the event is available here.

FEBRUARY 2018

The European Court of Justice delivers its ruling on the Roche-Novartis (Avastin) case

On 23 January 2018 the European Court of Justice issued a preliminary reference ruling, upon request of the Italian Consiglio di Stato, according to which the agreement between the pharmaceutical groups Roche and Novartis designed to reduce the use of Avastin in ophthalmology and to increase the use of Lucentis might constitute a restriction of competition “by object”. SLAC served as the advisor of the consumer organization Altroconsumo throughout the Italian proceedings as well as before the European Court of Justice. The full judgment can be read here whilst a press release of the Court is available here.

JANUARY 2018

Lorenzo Schiano di Pepe appointed to the board of Italian Flight Safety Agency

On 22 December 2017 Lorenzo Schiano di Pepe has been appointed, by Decree of the Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, to the board of the Italian Agency for Flight Safety (Agenzia Nazionale per la Sicurezza del Volo - ANSV). The relevant press release of the Italian Government can be found here. ANSV is the investigative authority for aviation safety of the Republic of Italy, established pursuant European Community Directive 94/56/EC later replaced by Regulation (EU) No. 996/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 October 2010.