Background
In 2016 various drivers brought claims against Uber for the national minimum wage, holiday pay and detrimental treatment for whistleblowing. To succeed, the drivers had to be workers for the purposes of the relevant legislation rather than independent contractors.
While there are (confusingly) slightly different worker tests in different statutes, for present purposes a worker is either:
an employee (ie, employed under a contract of employment); or
someone who works under a contract through which they undertake to perform work personally for someone who is not by virtue of that contract their client or customer.
In other words, workers agree to work personally and are not running their own business.
The Supreme People's Court recently promulgated Several Provisions on Evidence in Civil Litigation Involving Intellectual Property Rights. The 33-article provisions alleviate the burden of proof on IP rights holders and streamline the formal requirements for evidence sourced outside China. They also introduce penalties for evidence obstruction.
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the government commissioned the so-called 'social partners' (ie, the Chamber of Commerce representing employers and labour unions acting on behalf of employees) to negotiate and present a bill on working from home that Parliament can pass into law as the new standard on the matter. The new framework will cover various issues – from contractual provisions and co-determination by works councils to recommendations on occupational safety.
Amendments
Two fundamental proposed amendments to Chapter 10 of the EU-Mexico Trade Agreement are:
the introduction of the possibility to appeal decisions of arbitration panels. This amendment would transform arbitration proceedings into two-stage proceedings.
the requirement that arbitration panels be composed of arbitrators of both parties and different countries. This would result in a permanent court of arbitration whose purpose would be to resolve investment disputes.
Two-stage arbitration
According to theorists, two-stage arbitration provides more certainty to the parties involved since the resolutions issued have been thoroughly analysed. However, two-stage arbitration might threaten two guiding principles of arbitration – namely:
procedural speed; and
The EU Anti-tax Avoidance Directive (2016/1164/EU) has been transposed into Cypriot legislation and is:
retrospectively effective as of 1 January 2020 with regard to hybrid mismatches, exit taxation and tax residency mismatches; and
effective as of 1 January 2022 with regard to reverse hybrid mismatch arrangements, which exploit the different tax treatment of an entity or instrument under the laws of different jurisdictions.
Given the strengthening of the rules on corporate tax avoidance, individuals must consider better estate protection strategies and undertake legitimate tax and tax avoidance planning. Cyprus trust legislation allows for the establishment of trusts with advantageous tax regime and asset protection features. Family trusts are deeply embedded in estate planning, but the Cyprus holding company may also be utilised as a family investment company (FIC) as an alternative to a family trust. Therefore, is the FIC an ideal alternative tax and succession estate planning