Assistant lawyer Natālija Ķīse compiled the material.
Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG)
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings: Council greenlights new regulation
Adopted: 19 November 2024
The Council adopted a regulation on environmental, social and governance (ESG) rating activities. To increase investors’ trust in sustainable financial products, the new regulation seeks to make grading practices in the EU more uniform, transparent, and comparable. ESG ratings evaluate a company’s or financial instrument’s sustainability profile by evaluating its exposure to sustainability-related risks as well as its effects on society and the environment.
Trade & Consumer goods
Council passes a prohibition on goods manufactured using forced labour
Adopted: 19 November 2024
The Council adopted a regulation that forbids goods manufactured with forced labour from being sold in the Union market. According to the text, any product manufactured with the use of forced labour cannot be placed on the Union market, made accessible for purchase, or exported from the Union market.
Transport & logistics
Maritime safety: The Council adopts new legislation to promote modern, safe, and clean shipping within the EU
Adopted: 18 November 2024
The Council adopted four new pieces of legislation as part of the so-called “maritime safety” legislative package to support modern, clean, and safer shipping in the EU. These include amendments to the relevant directives on ship-source pollution, compliance with flag state requirements, port state control, and the investigation of accidents in the maritime transport sector.
See the revised directives in the press release.
Technology
The Council approved a declaration on a shared understanding of how international law should be applied in cyberspace
Approved: 18 November 2024
The declaration recognises the growing scope, intensity, sophistication, and impact of malicious cyber behaviour, including ransomware, which poses a serious danger to the way European economies, society, and way of life operate.
Competition & regulatory
The Commission fined Meta €797.72 million for abusing its dominant position by tying Facebook Marketplace to its social network Facebook
Published: 14 November 2024
By connecting its online classified ads business Facebook Marketplace to its personal social network Facebook and enforcing unfair trading conditions on other online classified ads service providers, Meta violated EU antitrust laws, and the European Commission fined the company €797.72 million.
European Commission: Booking.com must comply with EU Digital Markets Act to ensure fair competition
Published: 14 November 2024
Booking Holdings Inc. (BHI), appointed gatekeeper on May 13, 2024, is liable for ensuring that Booking.com, its online intermediation business, conforms with all the requirements of the Digital Markets Act (DMA). In practical terms, this implies that hotels, vehicle rental businesses, and other travel service providers that rely on Booking.com to connect with their clientele can start to take advantage of new opportunities. For example, the DMA forbids so-called “parity” provisions.
The General Court upholds the EUIPO ruling that Chiquita’s trademark for blue and yellow ovals on fresh fruits is invalid
Delivered: 13 November 2024
An American company „Chiquita Brands“ registered a figurative mark with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) for various foodstuffs, including fresh fruits. A French company sought to have the mark invalidated, arguing it lacked distinctiveness. The EUIPO declared the mark invalid for fresh fruits, including bananas, because it found the mark was not distinctive and Chiquita had not proven that the mark had acquired distinctiveness through use. Chiquita Brands appealed the decision to the General Court of the European Union, but the court upheld EUIPO’s ruling, confirming the invalidity of the mark for fresh fruits.
Commission finds Estonian State aid to agricultural company Tartu Agro AS to be incompatible State aid
Decided: 25 November 2024
According to the European Commission, Estonia provided support that was not compliant with EU State aid regulations by leasing agricultural land to Tartu Agro AS, a private firm based in Estonia that produces milk, meat, and grains, at a price lower than the market value. The recipient must now reimburse Estonia for the incompatible State assistance, including interest.
