23 June 2017: Seminar on the new legislation and jurisprudence regarding digital criminal investigation

Short Reads - On 25 May 2018, the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into effect. The GDPR replaces the EU's prior directive governing the processing and transfer of personal data, which was in place since 1995. As a regulation, the GDPR is directly applicable in all 28 EU member states and thus removes the need for national implementing legislation. However, the GDPR allows member states discretion in certain areas, as a result of which national legislation may still be implemented. In the Netherlands, the GDPR Implementation Act came into effect on 25 May 2018.

Short Reads - On 20 July 2018, the Court of Appeal of Gelderland published another interim judgment in the ongoing proceedings between TenneT, the grid operator in the Netherlands, and ABB in relation to the gas insulated switchgear (GIS) infringement. After the Dutch Supreme Court had confirmed in a judgment of 8 July 2016 [see our August 2016 Newsletter] that the passing-on defence is available under Dutch law, the Court of Appeal of Gelderland decided to appoint independent economic experts to provide input on the calculation of overcharge and the existence of pass-on.

Short Reads - On 7 June 2018, the Belgian Court of Cassation, ruled that a decision of the Pharmacists Association Appeals Council (Appeals Council) prohibiting pharmacists from using Google Adwords to offer over-the-counter (OTC) products violated Belgian competition law because the Appeals Council did not sufficiently justify why such a prohibition was necessary for health reasons. The Appeals Council must now issue a new decision.

Short Reads - On 27 June 2018, the District Court of East-Brabant ruled on the limitation periods of a damages claim brought by Vestel in relation to the alleged cathode ray tubes (CRT) cartel. The District Court found that the damages claim is not time-barred under Turkish law.