Law & Justice

ECJ Official: Undocumented Migrant Cannot Be Imprisoned

February 04, 2016

Court of Justice of the EU ("ECJ") Advocate General Maciej Szpunar has advised that the ECJ should overturn the imprisonment of Ghanaian national caught in France attempting to take the train to London using someone else's passport, reasoning that the migrant was not trying to cross an external EU border and has not been asked to leave the bloc.
Official Warns EU on "Unfairly" Targeting US Companies

February 03, 2016

The Guardian reports that US Treasury official Robert Stack has voiced concerns that EU competition authorities are unfairly and disproportionately targeting US companies in their drive to recoup taxes they say should have been paid to EU member states.
Vestager: EU Could Investigate UK-Google Tax Deal

February 03, 2016

According to The Independent, European Commissioner on competition Margrethe Vestager has indicated that her office may investigate a settlement between internet company Google and UK authorities on tax payments to determine if the deal amounted to illegal state aid under EU legislation.
EU Issues Reports on Bulgarian, Romanian Judiciary

February 03, 2016

The European Commission has issued reports under the terms of its Cooperation and Verification Mechanism monitoring the effectiveness of measures seeking to counter corruption and to encourage the independence of the judiciary in Romania and Bulgaria.
European Regulators Eye Potential Action on US Data Use

January 29, 2016

The New York Times reports that European officials, including the head of France's privacy regulator and a leader of EU data-protection officials Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin, are considering legal action against US technology giants in case US and EU officials fail to reach a deal on online data protection by the beginning of February.
MEP: EU Uses Rule of Law Mechanism as Political Tool

January 27, 2016

In the opinion of Hungarian Member of the European Parliament ("MEP") György Schöpflin, the perceived inconsistency in the European Commission's use of its Rule of Law Mechanism, which it has activated in the case of Poland but not in the case of Hungary, demonstrates the Mechanism's political nature.
Tribunal Orders UK to Process Syrians' Asylum Claims

January 21, 2016

After hearing arguments regarding the harsh conditions of a Calais migrant camp and the fact that a European regulation on the protocol for registering and accepting refugees is "broken," the British Immigration and Asylum Tribunal has ordered that four Syrian migrants immediately be brought to the UK and that the country's Home Office process their claims.
EU Considers Proposed Refugee Rules Changes

January 20, 2016

The Telegraph reports that EU rules changes under consideration by the European Commission that would end the ability of countries to return asylum seekers to their country of original entry into the EU could upend UK Prime Minister David Cameron's negotiations over the return of powers over cross-border flows to national governments.
MEPs Seek Rules for Corporate Tax Restitution, Liability

January 20, 2016

Members of the European Parliament ("MEPs") have adopted a resolution calling for the EU Commission, upon finding that a corporation did not pay sufficient taxes, to require the company to pay back-taxes to the EU member state that "suffered" or to the EU budget, and to impose liability for illegal tax deals on "natural persons" rather than the businesses for which they work.
Head of EU Council Disagrees on EU Investigation of Poland

January 20, 2016

Politico reports that, despite his desire for the Polish Government to repeal laws affecting the country's Constitutional Court and the heads of public media entities, European Council President and former Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said he is not "enthusiastic" about an EU investigation of Poland using the bloc's Rule of Law Mechanism.