La loi du 4 avril 2019 modifiant le Code de droit économique a introduit dans ce dernier un certain nombre de nouvelles règles visant d’une part à sanctionner l’abus de dépendance économique d’une entreprise
Le principe du réseau sélectif des produits Sthil (tronçonneuses, débroussailleuses, élagueuses, sécateurs à batterie) est légitime afin d’en préserver la qualité et d’en assurer le bon usage. Toutefois, les modalités restreignent de façon disproportionnée la concurrence (en l’occurrence, exiger une remise en main propre de ce type de produits et donc en imposant soit un retrait en magasin, soit une livraison en personne au domicile de l’acheteur, ce qui interdit de facto la vente des produits à partir des sites Internet des distributeurs).
The Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) issued a ruling on 21 December 2016 (Case C-618/15) concerning jurisdiction to block sales on foreign websites. The CJEU ruled that a distributor can file a claim in his ‘domestic’ court for the damages suffered from online sales organized by websites operated in other Member States. This case involves a mix of selective distribution, online sales and the interpretation of the Brussels I Regulation (n° 44/2001).
On 8 January 2016, the Financial Services and Markets Authority (“FSMA”) initiated a consultation on a draft regulation governing the distribution of certain derivative financial instruments to retail clients. The FSMA, which has over the years been pointing out the particularly risky nature of these derivatives, noted that a great deal of these instruments were being distributed to retail clients in Belgium by means of dedicated electronic trading platforms. In that respect, the draft regulation sets up a proper groundwork and aims at tackling the issue by pursuing two main cumulative objectives.
Imagine that an internal study has demonstrated that your current distribution set-up in Europe is seriously out of date. High-end products have to be offered in optimal conditions, and right now that simply is not the case. A good indicator is that your costs for repairs under warranty have never been so high. So you bite the bullet and decide to reorganise your distribution system throughout Europe, with the goal to make it better and more efficient.
De uitsluiting van de bank- en verzekeringsagenten uit het toepassingsgebied van titel II van boek X van het Wetboek van Economisch recht betreffende de precontractuele informatie bij commerciële samenwerkingsovereenkomsten ingevolge de wet van 2 april 2014 maakt volgens het arrest van 15 oktober 2015 van het Grondwettelijk Hof geen schending uit van het gelijkheidsbeginsel en het beginsel van niet-discriminatie.
In Belgium, shopkeepers are limited in their right to trade on Sundays or after 8pm. The Belgian liberal party has introduced a proposal to amend the Statute of 10 November 2006 regarding opening hours in commerce, crafts and services, in order to allow shops to open until 10pm.
Een recent arrest van het Hof van Beroep te Brussel verduidelijkt de mogelijkheid voor een bijkomende schadevergoeding voor de handelsagent bovenop de hem toegekende uitwinningsvergoeding.
Picture this: you started working with a new distributor a year ago. However, the sales have not really lived up to expectations. The distributor has already been heard grumbling to the effect that he never would have entered into the distribution agreement if he had been aware of the market forecasts at the time of the negotiations.
In an Order of 4 December 2014, the Court of Justice provided guidance on the compliance of long-term exclusive purchasing or "single branding" clauses in distribution agreements on the basis of preliminary questions from a Spanish civil court. The Court of Justice decided that long-term exclusivity clauses may not have the effect of restricting competition if the parties to the agreement have a limited market share and the duration of the exclusivity clause is not manifestly excessive of what is common in the relevant market.
