News-Archive

Due to the resurge of the pandemic in Germany and the steadily growing number of risk areas within the country, employers face numerous questions regarding the handling of their employees’ travel activities within Germany.

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For consumers, it is a reliable orientation aid when making their purchase decision; for companies, it is a sign of transparency and product innovation. But caution is required: what are the legal framework conditions for labelling vegetarian and vegan products? What do companies have to take into account when naming products and to what extent may the names of so-called meat substitute products be based on their respective role models?

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The coalition agreement for the current legislative period already states that mobile work is to be promoted and a legal framework created. At the end of April this year, the Federal Labour Minister, Hubertus Heil, announced for the first time that there would be a draft law in the autumn. In an interview with the newspaper Bild am Sonntag (“BamS”) on 5 October 2020 entitled "More modern, more digital", Hubertus Heil made it widely publicly known that a draft law "Mobile Work Act" had been prepared by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (Bundesministerium für Arbeit und Soziales, “BMAS”).

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Oppenhoff has advised SDC Technologies, Inc., USA, on the acquisition of COTEC GmbH, located in Karlstein near Frankfurt, from its founder.

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On 28 September 2020, the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection [Bundesministerium der Justiz und für Verbraucherschutz, BMJV] published a first ministerial draft bill on the reform and standardisation of the law governing foundations. The meaning and purpose of the reform is to strengthen legal certainty. Unfortunately, the current patchwork of federal and federal state laws (as well as the acknowledged principles of customary law) only inadequately provide such certainty. In addition, a public register of foundations is going to be created, which should then create greater transparency in the foundation landscape. A definite need for action exists for all foundations that manage their administration from abroad.

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The meat industry has long been in the spotlight because of the precarious working and living conditions of the external Eastern European personnel frequently employed in it. For this reason, the Federal Government had already adopted a key issues paper on occupational health and safety in the meat industry in May 2020. As a result of the recent pandemic outbreaks in meat factories such as those in NRW, Baden-Württemberg and Schleswig-Holstein, the meat industry is considered to be a new corona hotspot.

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As the pandemic persists, it comes as no surprise that the virus and its effects on daily working life are not only keeping personnel departments and public administration on tenterhooks, but are also increasingly occupying the labor courts. Since a return to the norm in Germany is not foreseeable, these Corona-specific decisions will retain their relevance to the collaboration between the business parties for what currently looks like an unforeseeable time. Other decisions of the labor courts also require attention, however. In this "Focus on Labor Law ", we inform you of the most important recent judgements and provide you with the latest news on the currently popular topic of the "home office".

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In its session on 18 September 2020, the Bundesrat commented on the Federal Government’s draft bill of the German Corporate Liability Act [Verbandssanktionengesetz - VerSanG] in accordance with Article 76 II German Constitution [Grundgesetz - GG]. The Committee's recommendation to reject the draft bill in its entirety was not accepted. However, the Bundesrat does propose several rather far-reaching amendments and additions. These aim not least to protect the interests of small and medium-sized enterprises.

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Oppenhoff has advised Compagnie de Saint-Gobain Zweigniederlassung Deutschland on the acquisition of a majority stake in the Brüggemann Holzbau Group.

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We are pleased to send you the second issue of DEAL POINTS, Oppenhoff's newsletter on M&A and private equity. Whereas our publications in the first half of the year mainly dealt with acute issues concerning the COVID-19 pandemic, the improved situation now means that we can turn our attention again to future transactions in these special times.

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