In this month’s Chambers Newsletter, we cover the latest Global Practice Guides, articles, podcasts and videos from Expert Focus and all our upcoming events.
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Chambers Global Practice Guides and Chambers Expert Focus
Our Global Practice Guides are yearly online guides which include articles written by legal experts around the world in many areas of business law. The articles in our guides are in-depth commentaries from the best in their field, and because they come from lawyers in every continent, they allow the reader to compare the legislation and procedures described in these articles across different jurisdictions.
Chambers Expert Focus provides multimedia content (articles, videos and podcasts), featuring legal professionals offering fresh and concise insight into international legal practices.
Trending in Global Practice Guides
Collective Redress & Class Actions 2023
Published online on 7 November 2023
Although a still fairly recent development, the mechanism of grouping the legal interests of multiple individuals pursuing the same legal outcome has seen a sudden rise in recent years. What we now know as collective or class actions has become the preferred way in the judicial system to deal with large trial proceedings in a more cost-effective (as the financial burden is shared) and time-efficient manner, with the claimants in these collective proceedings being often seen as a representation of society at large, as they share the common objective to obtain justice for a collective of people who have suffered wrongdoing.
Class actions, which for years have been commonplace in the USA, are now also proliferating in Europe and prove to be a particularly good legal tool in defence of environmental issues. Besides providing an explanation on this complex legal framework, this guide also reports information about some widely publicised and known trials, such as the ‘greenwashing’ action against KLM Royal Dutch Airlines in 2022 and the ‘sewage into waterways’ investigation against Severn Trent Water in the UK early this year.
Let’s all kneel to the Queen of the Chambers Global Practice Guides: Litigation 2023! Counting a record number of 105 chapters, making it all around the biggest guide EVER in the history of the Chambers global practice titles, this is a publication which deserves particular attention as it opens with an informative presentation by leading expert Gary Born from legal firm WilmerHale in London, and contains legal commentaries from lawyers practising in Lebanon, Zambia, Vietnam, United Arab Emirates, Turks & Caicos, Cuba, Belize, Qatar, Texas and Jersey, to name a few.
Among the topics explored are how to initiate a lawsuit, settlements, appeals, alternative dispute resolution (ADR), arbitration in the current backdrop of the recession and the not yet defeated pandemic. You don’t have to be a royalist to enjoy and pay homage to Her Majesty Litigation 2023 which, year after year, continues to disseminate informative data on ‘everything litigation’ among its legal – and loyal – subjects (republicans included).
CHAMBERS RECOMMENDS: Austria – Trends & Developments chapter, written by Bettina Knoetzl and Katrin Hanschitz from KNOETZL, Austria.
What’s new in Global Practice Guides
Technology & Outsourcing 2023
Published online on 26 October 2023
The technology industry continues to evolve and surprises us with more advanced findings created to support service providers in parallel with the more traditional outsourcing services: call centres, support desks, data centres. While cryptocurrency and the metaverse are experiencing a temporary stall, although they might fiercely return in a few years, other innovations such as remote working and robotic process automation (RPA) are now widely utilised in manufacturing and warehouses with satisfactory and cost-effective results. It is clear to see that artificial intelligence (AI) is here to stay and is bound to proliferate and increase in value, requiring practitioners to remain current on the legislation applicable to it: intellectual property, data protection and privacy, compliance audits and employment law. Moreover, recent events such as the pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine have prompted some businesses to investigate whether they should still rely on global supply chains offshore, or they should instead consider bringing back activities onshore or nearshore.
Time will tell how – and in which measure – these new technological solutions will affect us, and if they will bring tangible benefits, but while we wait to find out, the Technology and Outsourcing 2023 e-guide might provide a welcome clarification on the present collaboration between automation and traditional outsourcing in our day-to-day life.
Insolvency 2023 is a collection of more than 60 articles from legal experts around the world outlining how insolvency laws are implemented in their country after dramatic factors such as the recession, labour shortages and the pandemic continue to impact the economy with disastrous effects. As individuals and/or companies might become insolvent following the economic crises, the book describes insolvency proceedings as they are applied to each jurisdiction, discussing topics such as creditors’ rights, international restructuring, debts, loans and best liquidation practices in the current era of digitalisation, battling against inflation and the rise in interest rates.
As experts predict harder times ahead for the economy on an international scale, it has become even more important for companies (and individuals) to try to identify crises as early as possible and take appropriate countermeasures to avoid filing for bankruptcy, perhaps by borrowing, negotiating with creditors or taking advantage of state subsidies. We hope that Insolvency 2023 will give you a useful general overview on how we could best navigate and stay afloat in this sea of financial uncertainty.
In this piece by Zeynep Sener and Yegan Liaje from LINER LAW in Istanbul we find out how Turkey has increasingly become an attractive market to local and foreign investors worldwide. The article describes how the Turkish Ministry of Trade has been encouraging commercial opportunities in its beautiful and welcoming country thanks to the implementation of new legislation early this year, including a list of general obligations for marketplaces and sellers which covers unfair commercial practices, the registration of brands for marketing purposes, how to obtain an e-commerce licence and the documentation required to regulate taxation. Already internationally famous for its original art, natural landscapes and cuisine, Turkey has found its due place on the international business stage with the potential to be a market leader.
Energy Transformation in Poland – Rapidly Progressing Legislative Changes
Any seller would know how important – and often challenging – it can be to reach their commercial target. The target that Poland has set for itself, however, is altogether unique. Poland faces the great challenge to keep up with the energy transformation in Europe which expects countries in the EU to achieve zero emissions by 2050. As the country now understands it has to switch the current energy provisions (including a high proportion of fossil fuels) to renewable energy sources (RES), Bartosz Piatek and Krzysztof Szyszko from PwC’s energy team guide us through the journey Polish authorities are undertaking to meet the EU’s energy targets; they describe the recent key changes that have occurred in their country including the introduction of new regulations, the organisation of supply lines, the creation of community energy centres and the creation of renewable energy sources such as wind farms, photovoltaics and biomethane plants.
There is still, of course, room for improvement but as Poland reorganises its energy network surely this transformation is set to become an exciting discovery.
Is it the End of Advertising-Supported Free Internet? A New Balance Between Privacy and Business is on the Way
Rocco Panetta from Italy’s PANETTA Studio Legale alerts us of how the implementation of data protection, required to avoid the manipulation of private information, might signify the end of free internet streaming. Following the latest announcement on Meta and X we might soon be witnessing, the author tells us, the well-known social networks heading to the sunset. After suffering a steep decline in sales and realising that online advertising was not enough to sustain their costs, newspapers in Italy – like all over the world – have decided to charge readers a subscription fee to compensate for the loss in revenue achieved with personalised banners, a practice that social networks have soon followed.
These and other possible routes are outlined by the author in this article, which nevertheless reassures us that social networks are not only speeding up our communication, but also shielding our personal data from privacy breaches. Having read this truly revelatory piece, you will never look at Facebook in the same way again.
Investment Trends and Incentives in the Real Estate Sector in Greece
Over the past few years, factors such as the economic recession and a surge in tourism have contributed to a significant increase in real estate investments in Greece. Less complex bureaucratic practices including digital negotiations have also convinced people to consider buying properties in the sunny and picturesque Hellenic Republic, already so popular with holidaymakers. Areas of real estate developments which have been explored in the country include office buildings, rehabilitation units and data centres, largely encouraged by favourable interest rates, new regulation and local financial incentives.
Lawyers Lambros Belessis and Eleni Gerasmidou from Bernitsas Law Firm discuss how Greece has upgraded from being the perfect summer destination to the ideal environment to live in luxury and make business, and talk about the challenges to be aware of while dreaming of new personal and commercial ventures in the beautiful peninsula.
Listen to our informative Chambers Expert Focus podcasts which include legal experts sharing their knowledge and analysing key themes and market trends.
Last Friday, 17 November, we hosted our annual Chambers Latin America Awards.
The ceremony celebrated the achievements of firms and individuals from the past 12 months including outstanding work, impressive growth and excellence in client service. You can view the full list of winners here.
Congratulations again to all those shortlisted and who won.
Chambers UK Bar Awards
On Thursday, 30 November, Chambers and Partners is looking forward to hosting our annual Chambers UK Bar Awards, which will celebrate achievements of sets and individuals over the past 12 months including outstanding work, impressive strategic growth and excellence in client service.
Looking ahead to the new year, on 24 January 2024 we will be hosting our annual Chambers Africa Awards. This virtual event will celebrate the work of firms and individuals based on the most recent Chambers Global Guide. The ceremony reflects achievements over the past 12 months including outstanding work, impressive strategic growth and excellence in client service.
To view the full shortlist and register for this free event, click here.
Chambers Forum: Chengdu
On Friday, 1 March 2024, Chambers and Partners will be returning to Chengdu to host our Chambers Forum: Chengdu. The event will be hosted by the Head of Greater China Region Research, Dennis Li.
Join us for a full day of relevant legal discussions from industry experts on a variety of topics including but not limited to:
Securities regulatory compliance
Capital market/equity market non-litigation category
Medical compliance and Investigations
Antitrust compliance category
To view our speaker list and register for this free event, click here.
