We at FGvW are pleased to present you the first edition of our International Newsletter in 2023. The beginning of a new year should bring hope and optimism, and we are hopeful that, despite the ongoing challenges, the optimists will prove right in 2023.

In China, the Year of the Rabbit has just begun, and in Chinese Culture, the rabbit is the symbol of longevity, peace, and prosperity. With heavy earthquakes happening in Turkey and Syria, causing unbelievable destruction and suffering among the people, this is what is particularily needed in many parts of the world at this moment.

Also, war is still ongoing in Europe, with horrible effects on the people suffering from it and very bad effects on the economy as well. On the other hand, we in Germany were reminded just a few weeks ago that enemies do not have to remain enemies forever and how great friendship between peoples can be. On January 22, we celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Élysée Treaty, marking the beginning of a deep friendship between France and Germany, which followed after literally centuries of rivalry and wars. With profound gratitude we look back on this event and take it as a sign of hope that this friendship was possible back then and that it now lasts for over 60 years.

To end this newsletter on a lighter note, we would like to offer you some insights on German traditions during our "fifth season", the German carnival. For those of you who thought that Carnival was something that is original only to places such as Venice or Rio we can say: Yes, there is a Carnival in Germany, too! Have a look at our “Germany – Good to Know” article to learn more about it. And, as usual, you will find information on what’s new in the legal world and within our firm.

Thank you for your interest and all the best,

Friedrich Graf von Westphalen & Partner

Welcome to FGvW!
Last year, two new partners, one Of Counsel and twelve associates joined our firm. In 2023, we continue to grow: Already at the beginning of the year, we warmly welcome seven more lawyers to FGvW as well as our new head of marketing and several new assistants. Further, we have appointed one of our lawyers as a partner and four more lawyers as local partners. read more >

Legal changes in 2023
Companies face numerous political, social and economic challenges at the beginning of 2023. As in the past year, they are also entering "uncharted territory" in many legal respects. Some things are still under discussion, others are already being implemented. Read this article to find out what companies need to prepare for now. 

English speaking German Courts – the Chambers for International Commercial Matters
When it comes to cross-border litigation, the parties often choose international arbitration courts to decide the case because, as one of the reasons, the language of the proceedings of an arbitration tribunal can be chosen by the parties – and is, in most cases, English. This is now about to change with the introduction of chambers for international commercial matters in certain German courts before which English may be used as well. read more >

Copyright Law: The (un)free use of minimalistic designed works
The Frankfurt a.M. Higher Regional Court ruled in a judgment dated November 29, 2022, that a minimalistic designed tubular steel table framework with diagonally attached cross struts - also known as "Eiermann 1" - is not subject to a copyright infringement by another table with the struts attached on one level in a vertical position. read more >

Corporate Law: Receipt of e-mails in business transactions
In business transactions, an e-mail is considered to have been received if it is made available to the recipient on the mail server ready for retrieval during normal business hours. It is not necessary for the e-mail to actually be acknowledged. read more >

Corporate Law: Termination of managing director employment contracts
A notice of termination of a managing director employment contract during a contractually agreed minimum term can already be effectively declared during this minimum term if the notice period does not expire until after this term. The notice period shall commence upon receipt of the notice of termination. read more >

Corporate law: When is the judicial appointment of an emergency interim managing director necessary? 
The judicial appointment of an emergency interim managing director can only be considered as ultima ratio in case there are no other options available to eliminate the lack of managing directors of a limited liability company. read more >

Labor Law: Right to unavailability during free time
Employees are not obliged to read text messages during their free time. This was decided by the Schleswig-Holstein Regional Labor Court in a ruling dated September 27, 2022. read more >

Labor Law: Expiry of Vacation Entitlements
In a recent ruling, the Federal Labor Court decided that an employee's statutory entitlement to be paid annual leave is subject to the statutory limitation period, but that the three-year limitation period only starts to run at the end of the calendar year in which the employer instructed the employee about his specific holiday entitlement and the time of its expiration and the employee nevertheless did not take the leave of his own free will. read more>

Food Law: BiFi judgment of the ECJ on the substitution scheme – name of the product and name of the food have the same meaning
The ECJ has ruled recently that the term "name of the product" in the substitution ingredient scheme in Annex VI Part A No. 4 Regulation (EU) No. 1169/2011 ("LMIV") and "name of the food" in Article 17 LMIV have the same meaning. read more >

Labor Law: ECJ - Requirement of Collective Agreement Compensation for Temporary Employees with Lower Wages
The European Court of Justice ruled in a judgment dated December 15, 2022, that temporary workers may only be paid less than permanent employees if this unequal treatment is compensated for in the collective agreement. read more >

Labor Law: Discrimination - justification of a headscarf ban
The ECJ recently ruled that a prohibition in a company's work rules on expressing religious or philosophical beliefs by words, dress or otherwise does not constitute direct discrimination "on grounds of religion or belief", provided that this provision is applied generally and without distinction to all employees. read more >

Transparency register: No more excerpts for the public?!
The transparency register can be inspected not only by financial and tax authorities and those persons who have to fulfil special due diligence obligations to prevent money laundering, but - until now - by all members of the public. All that was required was electronic registration. This could change in the future. read more >

Trade Mark Law: Which national law is applicable in the event of infringement of an EU design?
This question had to be answered by the ECJ in its decision of spring 2022 on an action brought by BMW AG against an Italian-based company for infringement of a community design (EU design). read more >

German Carnival Traditions
While the eyes of inhabitants of Cologne as well as Baden-Wurttemberg tend to lighten up when talking about Carnival, those of us living in Berlin or Frankfurt often shake their heads due to lack of comprehension. Let us have a closer look at what this fuzz is all about. read more>

FGvW honored in WiWo ranking for Insurance Law
WirtschaftsWoche magazine has named Friedrich Graf von Westphalen & Partner as a top law firm for insurance law in its current ranking. Particularly recommended lawyer of our law firm is Mike Weitzel. read more >

Today, we introduce trademark lawyer Hendrikje Schilling from our Frankfurt office. read more >