Seminar: Retail regulation under the Services Directive

Seminar
NL Law

Stibbe, together with Bureau Stedelijke Planning, will host a seminar on retail regulation under the Services Directive in Amsterdam on Tuesday 3 September 2019. The seminar will have a particular focus on branching rules in light of recent court decisions.

Services Directive

With the judgment of the European Court of Justice of 30 January 2018, and the Council of State's follow-up judgment in the Visser Vastgoed case of 20 June 2018 in Appingedam, it has been established that the Services Directive applies to zoning plans that regulate retail trade. This suggests that it may be more difficult to include branch rules for retail in zoning plans and provincial regulations. This could have a major impact on the Dutch retail structure, and thus on inner cities, district shopping centres and peripheral retail locations.

In the meantime, the Council of State has published additional case law on the significance of the Services Directive for branching rules. In addition, the final judgment in the Visser Vastgoed case has recently been published, giving a clearer picture of the impact of the case in Appingedam and how provinces and municipalities must now deal with it. 

In our seminar on the morning of Tuesday 3 September, we will discuss the concrete steps on the path to establishing branch rules that are Services Directive-proof.

For whom?

The seminar is intended for and of interest to developers of commercial real estate, retailers, and Ministry of Economic Affairs and Public Health officials of municipalities and other authorities.

Practical information

Date: 3 September 2019 (09:00 - 13:30)

Location: Stibbe, Beethovenplein 10, 1077 WM Amsterdam

For registration or for more information, please send an e-mail to: Stibbeevents@stibbe.com