Nordic Institute of European Legal Studies (NIELS) https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html Växjö District Court (Land and Environment Court): The decision of Värnamo Municipality to build a new sports stadium to be used by a top-tier football team is annulled for failing to conduct a comprehensive environmental impact assessment News About EFTA Court: ESA’s infringement action against Norway concerning two financial directives is admissible, and well-founded CJEU: Certain low-value modifications to a public contract can be made without a new public procurement procedure, provided they do not alter the ‘overall nature’ of the contract, subject to strict conditions Danish Competition and Consumer Authority: Market-sharing cartel between two kiosks at Himmelbjerget is unlawful. One undertaking is given leniency, and the other is fined. CJEU: AG Ćapeta: Denmark’s housing law on ‘transformation areas’ (‘ghettos’) is direct discrimination under the Race Equality Directive and cannot be justified CJEU: AG Szpunar: Publishing unedited criminal conviction data for profit does not qualify as ‘journalistic purposes’ under the GDPR, and national law in Sweden breaches the GDPR by limiting data subjects’ remedies to defamation claims Stockholm District Court: Non-contract liability is found and damages are to be award with regard to the police’s wrongful interpretation of national law during COVID-19 that led to the temporary closure of Astrid Lindgren’s World CJEU: AG Richard de la Tour: Strict time limits apply for asylum transfers under the Dublin III Regulation Labour Court of Sweden: ‘Adequate allowance’ in the Pregnant Workers Directive means income equivalent to basic salary and related supplements, and not a capped social insurance benefit CJEU: Protection of trade names (company names) may be compatible with the free movement of goods (EU primary law) and the Trade Marks Directive (EU secondary law) CJEU: Seven-day cabotage rule by Denmark for non-resident bus and coach operators is compatible with EU law CJEU: AG Medina: GDPR requires public transport users to be immediately notified when ticket inspectors use body-worn cameras Administrative Court of Växjö: Decisions of a municipality and a regional authority to financially support a direct flight to Stockholm breaches national state aid law, and is annulled Administrative Court of Malmö: Three years residency rule to acquire citizenship of Sweden for those married to Swedish citizens must be generously interpreted by the Migration Agency CJEU: National law causing loss of trademark enforcement rights due to inactivity is incompatible with the Trademark Directive, unless acquiescence conditions are met CJEU: AG Campos Sánchez-Bordona: The addition of a name to an ‘insider list’ under the Market Abuse Regulation, may not necessarily be precise information CJEU: AG Rantos: Modifications to contracts under EU public procurement law may be permissible if minor, and safeguards are maintained CJEU: AG Kokott: Insider trading is prohibited under the Market Abuse Regulation until information is truly ‘made public’ CJEU: AG Norkus: For the labelling of food for special medical purposes, additional nutritional elements (protein, fibre) may be repeated on the front of such food’s packaging CJEU: Non-compliance with procedural requirements under the EU Customs Code does not automatically extinguish the possibility of a VAT exemption CJEU: ‘Sufficiently comparable’ (not strictly equivalent) compensation for loss is the standard for recoupment under the Social Security Coordination Regulation CJEU: Online sellers recommending specific transporters are liable for excise duties in the destination EU Member State CJEU: AG Biondi: Compensation payments made by the Swedish Maritime Administration to Stockholms Hamn on the use of port infrastructure may be infringing EU state aid law Administrative Court of Appeal of Gothenburg: Municipalities have no legal authority to boycott goods and services from companies with financial ties to Russia, as that is a matter of foreign policy CJEU: The concept of an ‘undertaking’ in EU competition law applies to GDPR fines under EU privacy and data protection law CJEU: AG Emiliou: The Minimum Wage Directive should be annulled in its entirety (in a case brought by Denmark, and supported by Sweden) because the EU Treaties explicitly excludes its adoption EFTA Court: Infringement case taken by the EFTA Surveillance Authority against Norway is dismissed as partly inadmissible and partly unfounded Svendborg District Court: New CJEU reference on whether the EU Social Security Coordination Regulation grants social security institutions the ‘right of recourse’ (reimbursement from liable third parties in cross-border situations) for benefits paid by authorities in other EU Member States CJEU: Previously invalidated parts of the EU emissions trading system cannot result in surrendered emissions allowances being reclaimed from the EU registry Court of Justice of the European Union: Temporary import of a motor racing car into the EU within 24-month window does not require ‘exceptional circumstances’ Eidsivating Court of Appeal: Request for an advisory opinion of the EFTA Court on the existence, as a matter of EEA law, of state liability for judicial decisions CJEU: A self-employed person in an EU Member State (EEA state), with economic activity in an EFTA-EEA state (EEA state), and a third state (non-EEA state), may remain affiliated to the social security system of the EU Member State EFTA Court: The general principle of state liability includes judicial decisions of final instance national courts (the Köbler doctrine) in EFTA-EEA states EU General Court: First VAT case to be heard at the General Court is a reference for a preliminary ruling case referred by the Supreme Administrative Court of Sweden Supreme Administrative Court of Finland: Benefit-in-kind tax for the CEO of a company is to be calculated on the mere ‘availability’ of collectible cars to them, and not just the ‘use’ of such collectible cars European Commission: Sweden has not transposed the presumption of innocence and right against self-incrimination during criminal proceedings under an EU directive European Securities and Markets Authority: Wide discrepancies across all five Nordic states when it comes to their national supervisory authorities and the enforcement of EU/EEA secondary law in the financial sector EU General Court: Single Resolution Board (SRB)’s decision, regarding the amount that Nordea Bank must contribute to the Single Resolution Fund (SRF) is incompatible with EU secondary law, and is annulled Immigration Appeals Board of Norway: Request for an advisory opinion of the EFTA Court made under Article 34 SCA, even though it is an administrative body, and not a ‘court’ or ‘tribunal’, and will thus be declared inadmissible CJEU: VAT applies in Sweden to each stage of electric vehicle charging transactions, including those involving intermediaries (including by service-providers domiciled outside Sweden) European Commission: Denmark is failing to transpose a Directive on inland waterway navigation qualifications, and thus, is referred to the Court of Justice of the European Union to be fined CJEU: AG Kokott: LKAB, a Swedish state-owned mining company, should have its appeal against the General Court’s judgment on free greenhouse gas emissions allowances dismissed Market Court of Finland: For the first time, a penalty payment (fine) is levied on a company for breaching the conditions of a merger set by the national competition authority EU General Court: Commission Implementing Decision to authorise a pharmaceutical product is annulled, following a challenge by Orion, a Finnish pharmaceutical company ICSID: Denmark the respondent in an investment dispute taken by a private investor on the basis of the imposition of an energy sector windfall tax, imposed by EU secondary law Supreme Court of Finland: Case referred to the CJEU on whether the Trademark Directive precludes the application of national law that could cause a trademark holder to lose their IP rights to enforce the trademark due to inaction CJEU: Land sold only with foundations is not a ‘building’ or ‘parts of a building’, but instead, constitutes ‘building land’, and thus subject to VAT under the Directive EFTA Surveillance Authority: Norway is consistently and systematically failing to ensure port security and protect maritime infrastructure