The Legal 500

The amendments adopted by the Parliament on July 1, 2011 to the Municipal Cleanliness and Tidiness Act bring revolutionary changes to the Polish waste management system. The Act is currently awaiting signing by the President. Once approved, the changes will become effective 12 months from the date the Act is published.

The Office for the Protection of Economic Competition (hereinafter the „Office“) issued the historically first decision concerning domestic cartel among suppliers competing for public contract (bid rigging) case. The case is interesting not only because it is the first such case in the Czech Republic, but could indicate how the Office will proceed in such cases and in the proving of such cartels.

Instrument for Discrimination of Suppliers?

The two basic means of dispute resolution in the Czech Republic are judicial proceedings and alternative dispute resolution. Arbitration proceedings, as a form of ADR, is thriving. According to statistics of the Arbitration Court attached to the Economic Chamber of the Czech Republic and Agricultural Chamber of the Czech Republic, one of the three permanent arbitration courts in the Czech Republic and the only one with general jurisdiction, in the year 2000 the mentioned court settled 196 disputes, while in 2009 it settled 1402 disputes (not including disputes settled amicably).

After years of uncertainty, in 2011 the Czech Republic finally passed an amendment to the Commercial Code explicitly allowing for the limitation of damages in agreements under Commercial Code between entrepreneurs and companies.

Insolvency proceedings aim mainly to find a complex solution to the financial standing of a debtor who has gone bankrupt according to one of the laws (Act No 182/2006 Sb., on Insolvency and the Methods of its Solution; hereinafter referred to as the “Insolvency Act” ) in the way set forth, especially in order to secure the claims of creditors. In practice, some institutes of the Insolvency Act are used in ways that contrast with its general purpose.

In almost every due diligence involving real estate in the Czech Republic, several legal is-sues emerge which are crucial for the existence (or non-existence) of ownership or other rights regarding real estate established in favour of certain subjects. The following legal issues are typically encountered in due diligence projects. It is important to understand and assess these issues correctly.

legal developments in the energy practice

On 1 January 2011 the new Tax Procedure Code took effect which will regulate tax proceedings in the Czech Republic . As tax proceedings concern almost everybody, as almost everybody pays tax, let us look at what the new Tax Procedure Code will bring.

The Operational Program Research and Development for Innovations (OPRDI) was implemented for public institutions in the industrial research and development sector. The aim of the program is to develop cooperation between universities and industrial enterprises, to support research and development at universities and research institutions, and to highlight supply and demand in the research and development sector. The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic (www.msmt.cz) is charged with managing the program. Knowledge of certain basic principles is useful when using subsidies in compliance with the stipulated rules.

The Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council 2006/123/EC of 12 December 2006, on services in the internal market ("Directive" or "Directive on services") substantially develops the freedom of establishment and freedom of cross-border provision of services under Articles 43 and 49 of the EC treaty. The Directive applies to all types of services except those which are expressly excluded. In the Czech Republic, the Directive on services was implemented by Act No. 222/2009 Coll., on Free Movement of Services that came into force on December 28, 2009.