Regardless of whether you are in the UK, or the type of technology you use, companies marketing ‘qualifying cryptoassets’ to customers in the UK will need to comply with the financial promotions regime of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the UK’s financial regulator.
EU Puts Red Light on Greenwashing: Agreement Reached on New Laws Targeting Greenwashing
This week, the European Council and Parliament reached provisional agreement on a new European Union (EU) directive to ‘empower consumers for the green transition’.
UK Supreme Court: Litigation Funding Agreements Are Damages-Based Agreements
On 26 July 2023, the UK Supreme Court handed down a judgment that will cause serious disruption (at least in the short term) to the litigation funding market. In R (on the application of PACCAR Inc and others) v. Competition Appeal Tribunal and others, the Supreme Court held by a majority that litigation funding agreements which entitled the funders to recover a percentage of the damages recovered were damages-based agreements and, as such, were unenforceable, as they did not meet the strict statutory conditions for such agreements.
One-Off Oil Spill Held Not to Represent a Continuing Nuisance
In the recent decision of Jalla & Another v Shell International Trading and Shipping Co Ltd & Another, the UK Supreme Court held that a one-off oil spill did not represent a continuing nuisance regardless of the continued presence of the oil on the claimant’s land.
Right to Repair
The European Commission recently published proposals for rules promoting the repair of goods. It is likely that there will be class actions in relation to right to repair. The EC has proposed that the legislation would be added into scope of the new Representative Actions Directive that would enable class action style claims where the new obligations have not been complied with.
EU Plans To Regulate Third-Party Funding in Litigation and International Arbitration
On 13th September 2022, the EU Parliament voted to approve a resolution proposing a directive (the “Directive”) on the regulation of third-party funding entitled “Responsible private funding of litigation”. If adopted in its current state, the proposal would regulate Third-Party Funders (“TPFs”) funding proceedings in the European Union.
Think before you claim “green”: the EU’s new Green Claims Directive
On the 23 March 2023, the European Commission proposed a new Green Claims Directive (the “Directive”). If adopted, the Directive will have a huge impact on businesses making green claims on the products they sell in the EU.
New Product Liability Laws Coming to EU – Update for Life Sciences Companies
The EU is currently overhauling its product liability laws. Prompted by the perceived risks of new technologies and a desire to make it easier for claimants to bring claims for medical device and pharmaceutical claims, the changes represent a major shift in the litigation landscape in the EU. They will have a profound effect for life sciences companies, especially when taken together with the EU’s new class actions mechanisms. As a result, businesses need to prepare for an increase in the already growing trend of EU consumer claims against life sciences manufacturers and suppliers.
New EU Class Actions Mechanisms to be Implemented by Christmas
New laws allowing groups of EU consumers to launch class actions against traders are to be implemented by 25 December 2022 and will apply from June next year. The EU’s Representative Actions Directive (EU) 2020/1828 represents a major overhaul of the European class actions landscape, introducing mechanisms for group litigation in every one of the EU’s 27 Member States, alongside a new cross-border mechanism for class actions.
Data Disputes: How the English Class Action Landscape is Shaping Up
The number of class actions brought in the UK is likely to grow considerably. In particular, we expect Claimant firms to continue making claims for misuse use of data where an issue affects a large number of individuals.