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LANGUAGES: German and English
LANGUAGES: German and English
LANGUAGES: German and English
LANGUAGES: German and English
LANGUAGES: German and English
LANGUAGES: German and English
LANGUAGES: German and English
LANGUAGES: German and English
LANGUAGES: German and English
LANGUAGES: German, English and Spanish
LANGUAGES: German, English and Italian
Sprachen: Alle (aber nur passiv)
LANGUAGES: German, English and Turkish
LANGUAGES: German and English
LANGUAGES: German and English
Languages: German and English
LANGUAGES: German and English
LANGUAGES: German, English and Turkish
LANGUAGES: German and English
ONLY THOSE WHO THINK ENTREPRENEURIALLY CAN GIVE GOOD LEGAL ADVICE.
Your company and the commercial and legal issues, pitfalls and optimisation approaches arising from your business activities are the main focus of our consultancy. We think like you.
We advise our clients in all national and international matters of commercial law, company law, tax law, labour law, tenancy law, building law and commercial law.
Our mediators are also at your disposal in the areas of alternative dispute resolution, conflict management and mediation.
In future, the HGV toll is to be linked to the level of CO2 emissions.
The proposed legislation serves to implement the amended Eurovignette Directive, which came into force in March 2022. Among other things, it provides for a CO2 differentiation of the HGV toll for heavy goods vehicles by 25 March 2024 at the latest and the inclusion of all HGVs with a technically permissible total mass of more than 3.5 tonnes from 25 March 2027.
The CO2 differentiation of the HGV toll is an important measure for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in transport and for achieving the climate protection targets.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled on the VAT classification of e-charging in its judgment of 20 April 2023 (Case C- 282/22). The ruling applies at least to the two-person relationship between the charge point operator ("CPO") and the end customer, i.e. if no electromobility provider ("EMP") is interposed.
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In a landmark case, the Frankfurt Regional Court has extended the responsibility of domain providers and web hosts for the content of websites operated by third parties. The proceedings were successfully conducted by the Frankfurt law boutique WZM.
I have been part of the WZM team since May 2023. I was already able to actively support WZM during my legal traineeship.
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The Whistleblower Protection Act was now passed by the Bundestag on 11 May 2023 and confirmed by the Bundesrat on 12 May 2023.
Publication in the Federal Law Gazette is expected to take place in calendar week 20, so that the Whistleblower Protection Act will enter into force four weeks later - i.e. in mid-June 2023.
Two important deadlines apply:
As of 01.01.2024, comprehensive changes in the law are pending for partnerships. A civil-law partnership (GbR or BGB partnership) will then finally be recognised by law as having legal capacity (which was previously only recognised by case law). This will also make it easier to change to another form of partnership and to carry out transformations under the Transformation Act. Thus, in future, BGB companies can also be part of mergers and demergers.
In future, the HGV toll is to be linked to the level of CO2 emissions.
The proposed legislation serves to implement the amended Eurovignette Directive, which came into force in March 2022. Among other things, it provides for a CO2 differentiation of the HGV toll for heavy goods vehicles by 25 March 2024 at the latest and the inclusion of all HGVs with a technically permissible total mass of more than 3.5 tonnes from 25 March 2027.
The CO2 differentiation of the HGV toll is an important measure for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in transport and for achieving the climate protection targets.
As already agreed in the coalition agreement, the following changes will be made to the Federal Long-Distance Road Toll Act:
Introduction of a CO2 surcharge: On 1 December 2023, a new toll component ("partial toll rate") will be introduced for the costs of traffic-related CO2 emissions. This consists of a CO2 surcharge of 200 euros per tonne of CO2. In future, the toll rates will thus be made up of four cost components: Costs of infrastructure, air pollution, noise pollution and CO2 emissions.
Earmarking of toll revenues: The use of toll revenues will be newly regulated. The toll revenues are to be earmarked for the improvement of the federal trunk road infrastructure and for measures in the mobility sector - with a focus on the federal railways.
Compulsory toll for trucks with more than 3.5 tonnes: On 1 July 2024, the toll obligation will be extended to trucks with more than 3.5 tonnes tzGm. Craftsman vehicles under 7.5 tonnes tzGm are exempt from the toll.
Emission-free vehicles: Until 31 December 2025, emission-free vehicles are exempt from the toll. From 1 January 2026, they pay a 75 percent reduced toll rate for the costs of the infrastructure - plus the toll rates for air pollution and noise pollution.
The responsible Federal Ministry of Digital Affairs and Transport expects additional revenue of 26.6 billion euros from 2024 to 2027 as a result of the CO2 differentiation in the area of trucks weighing 7.5 tonnes or more. The additional revenue from the toll extension to trucks weighing more than 3.5 tonnes is expected to amount to 3.9 billion euros from 2024 to 2027. Of this, 1.8 billion euros will come from CO2 differentiation.
(Source: Federal Government of 14.06.2023, retrieved from https://www.bundesregierung.de/breg-de/aktuelles/lkw-maut-co2-2194574)
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled on the VAT classification of e-charging in its judgment of 20 April 2023 (Case C- 282/22). The ruling applies at least to the two-person relationship between the charge point operator ("CPO") and the end customer, i.e. if no electromobility provider ("EMP") is interposed. The ECJ clarifies:
- The combination of the executed bundle of services of the CPO is a single complex service in the VAT sense.
- This composite service constitutes a "supply of electricity" within the meaning of Art. 14 (1), Art. 15 VAT Directive. From the perspective of the recipient of the service, the transmission of electricity is the characteristic and dominant element of the CPOs single service. The provision of the charging device is a minimal service that is necessarily linked to the main service. The provision of the app as well as the other services are also to be regarded merely as ancillary services. Such ancillary services serve exclusively as a means to optimise the use of the main service and do not pursue any purpose of their own.
The ECJs ruling brings clarity to the VAT treatment of charging processes, but only insofar as they take place without the interposition of an EMP. However, the ECJ did not rule on the question of the VAT treatment of e-charging in a three-person relationship.
In our view, the principles laid down in the ECJ ruling must also apply in the three-person relationship. Against the backdrop of the so-called fuel card ruling (ECJ case C-235/18; ECJ case C-185/01), however, special attention must then be paid to the formulation of the service relationships (e.g. explicit structuring of the supply relationships as "chain transactions", transfer of the insolvency risk of the end customer to the EMP, warranty of the EMP vis-à-vis the customer for defective electricity supplies, etc.).
In a landmark case, the Frankfurt Regional Court has extended the responsibility of domain providers and web hosts for the content of websites operated by third parties. The proceedings were successfully conducted by the Frankfurt law boutique WZM.
The background: A German investment fund represented by WZM was recently alerted by Stiftung Warentest to a website offering questionable financial products. In the imprint, the funds distribution company was wrongly named as the operator. However, neither the investment fund nor its advisory and sales company had anything to do with this internet presence. Although criminal proceedings were immediately initiated against the unknown operator of the website and the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) started its own investigations, the operator could not be identified at first - the website was registered with Google as a domain host, the actual operator of the website remained hidden.
Both enquiries by the fund advisor and out-of-court interventions were fruitless, Google only provided auto replies. As a result, the internet giant was successfully obliged by way of an interim injunction to no longer make the internet domain in question available with the wrong imprint. It is particularly piquant that Google apparently believed that it could also ignore the online hearing of the Regional Court of Frankfurt am Main with auto replies as well.
With an interim injunction dated 19.06.2023, the Regional Court of Frankfurt am Main has now prohibited Google from operating the website in question with the incorrect imprint.
This decision could be groundbreaking for the future: If the ruling is upheld, domain providers would no longer be able to rely on the fact that only the operator of a website is responsible for its content and that the domain host bears no responsibility for the content of websites (or, in view of data protection concerns, does not have to disclose the operator data).
It remains to be seen whether this development will result in a new trend-setting case law that could also have an impact on operators of social media platforms. WZM will follow further developments closely.
Frankfurt am Main, 22.06.2023
We would like to congratulate our colleague Britta Sturm on the great success of her participation in the 24-hour run in Hochheim am Main from 17 to 18 June 2023.
Through her and the commitment of many teams, runners and helpers, a total of more than 140,000 euros were raised for a good cause.
A great success for a good cause.
We would like to congratulate our colleague Britta Sturm on the great success of her participation in the 24-hour run in Hochheim am Main from 17 to 18 June 2023.
Through her and the commitment of many teams, runners and helpers, a total of more than 140,000 euros were raised for a good cause.
A great success for a good cause.
As WZM, it is very important to us to motivate our colleagues in the context of such campaigns, so we are proud to have supported Britta Sturm and her team "Ei-Laaf-doch" in this run with a motivational donation.
Whether in sports or in the professional world, motivation is an important building block in team building and thus ultimately to success.
The female soccer players of Goethe Uni Frankfurt, supported by WZM, took an excellent 5th place at the European University Championships 2022 in Lodz, Poland, defeating among others the university selection from Switzerland and Norway in exciting matches.
Congratulations to the team!
https://www.eusa.eu/events/games/lodz-2022
The female soccer players of Goethe Uni Frankfurt, supported by WZM, took an excellent 5th place at the European University Championships 2022 in Lodz, Poland, defeating among others the university selection from Switzerland and Norway in exciting matches.
Congratulations to the team!
https://www.eusa.eu/events/games/lodz-2022
The TSG Neu-Isenburg womens team, which we have supported since the 2019/2020 season, has started the new season of the regional league with WZM.
Away at SC Freiburg, a 3:1 defeat after a hard fight was a respectable result.
Picture: Mandy Goodyear
In difficult times such as these, it is all the more important to encourage solidarity and help those who suffer from the consequences of the corona pandemic.
For this reason, our team has decided to support Kinderhilfe Diekholzen in their action "Comforted Teddy". We hope that this cuddly friend will help the children with their recovery.
We would like to thank all the helpers, nurses and doctors who do a great job every day and especially those who make not so pleasant situations a little more beautiful with this fantastic initiative.
In difficult times such as these, it is all the more important to encourage solidarity and help those who suffer from the consequences of the corona pandemic.
For this reason, our team has decided to support Kinderhilfe Diekholzen in their action "Comforted Teddy". We hope that this cuddly friend will help the children with their recovery.
We would like to thank all the helpers, nurses and doctors who do a great job every day and especially those who make not so pleasant situations a little more beautiful with this fantastic initiative.
Since the season 2019/2020 we have been supporting the women's football team of TSG 1885 e.V. Neu-Isenburg, which has risen to the third highest German league in 2019 as the current Hessen champion.
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Since the season 2019/2020 we have been supporting the women's football team of TSG 1885 e.V. Neu-Isenburg, which has risen to the third highest German league in 2019 as the current Hessen champion.
A Merry Christmas 2019 to the Bärenherz Foundation for seriously ill children. WZM waives Christmas gifts and presents for our clients from now on. This year this will be in favour of a donation to the Bärenherz Foundation. This foundation supports institutions for the relief of families with seriously ill children who have a limited life expectancy. We would also like to thank our clients, who have also made a donation on our initiative.
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A Merry Christmas 2019 to the Bärenherz Foundation for seriously ill children. WZM waives Christmas gifts and presents for our clients from now on. This year this will be in favour of a donation to the Bärenherz Foundation. This foundation supports institutions for the relief of families with seriously ill children who have a limited life expectancy. We would also like to thank our clients, who have also made a donation on our initiative.
