What You Need to Know About the Unified Patent Court and Unitary Patent
Navigating the Once-Obscure German Nonresident Withholding Tax
German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act and Its Impact on Latin America
Compliance Perspectives: The German Corporate Sanctions Act
JONES DAY TALKS®: Private Antitrust Litigation in Germany
JONES DAY PRESENTS®: Trade Secret Enforcement in Germany
Nota Bene Episode 89: European Q3 Check In - Merger Clearance and Data Protection Court Rulings and Brexit Updates with Oliver Heinisch
Law Firm ILN-telligence Podcast | Episode 7: Joe Mittag, OMF Otto Mittag & Partner | Frankfurt, Germany
Jones Day Talks: Developments in Germany's Wind Power Regulations
Jones Day Talks: Navigating Foreign Direct Investment in Germany
Investor Considerations in Germany’s Renewable Energy Sector
E18: ICANN Loses First GDPR Court Ruling in Germany
In its ruling dated March 19, 2025, the German Federal Labor Court (BAG)—in contrast to the two previous instances and contrary to its previous case law—deemed an expiry clause in general terms and conditions to be...more
Incentive programs like an employee stock option plan or a virtual stock option plan ("VSOP") are widely used by young technology companies ("Company") to reward and retain talent ("Beneficiaries"). A key feature in these...more
On March 19, 2025, the German Federal Labor Court (Bundesarbeitsgericht or BAG) held in Case No.: 10 AZR 67/24 that certain forfeiture clauses in General Terms and Conditions of Business (Allgemeine Geschäftsbedingungen or...more
Virtual Stock Option Plans (VSOPs) are a common tool used by companies to incentivize employees by linking part of their compensation to the company’s long-term success. Unlike traditional stock options, VSOPs do not grant...more
On March 19, 2025, the German Federal Labor Court ("BAG") ruled that clauses that qualify as general terms and conditions and stipulate that virtual option rights that are already vested at the time of termination of an...more
The Fourth Bureaucracy Relief Act also amended the Evidence Act. Employers no longer need to inform employees of the essential contractual terms of the employment relationship in writing, but only in text form. This means...more
Digital Employment Contracts Are Now Generally Allowed With the new year, the Fourth Bureaucracy Reduction Act ("BEG IV") brings more flexibility by replacing the need for written form and qualified electronic signatures with...more
In the past, the argument was often made that a female employee might not be entitled to a differential compensation claim due to lower pay compared to a male colleague, if the higher salary of the male colleague who...more
On June 23, 2022, the German Bundestag passed the draft law (BT-Drs. 20/1636, 20/2245) in the committee version (20/2392) to implement the EU directive on transparent and predictable working conditions in the European Union...more
With effect from 1 August 2022, the German Act on Proof of the Essential Working Conditions (Nachweisgesetz – “Act on Proof”) will undergo the most comprehensive reform since it entered into force in 1995. The government...more
Das Nachweisgesetz erfährt mit Wirkung zum 1. August 2022 die größte Reform seit seinem Inkrafttreten im Jahr 1995. Der nun vorgestellte Regierungsentwurf verschafft ein klares Bild über die geplanten Neuerungen und,...more
Arbeitsverträge unterliegen keinem Formerfordernis? Bezogen auf unbefristete Arbeitsverträge ist das grundsätzlich richtig. Dennoch werden Arbeitsverträge regelmäßig noch mit handschriftlichen Unterschriften versehen, um den...more
On November 10, 2021, Germany’s Federal Labor Court (Bundesarbeitsgericht) ruled (Case No. 5 AZR 334/21) that employers must provide employed bicycle couriers with all the equipment essential for the performance of their...more
This Legal Q&A two pager gives an overview of non-compete clauses with a focus on post-contractual non-competes. Non-compete clauses can effectively protect the know-how of companies, especially in the tech sector. But their...more
German employment law provides for rather strong dismissal protection. This is the main reason why more and more employers are hiring employees on a fixed-term basis, since this will in most cases end employment legally...more
Seit Inkrafttreten des Mindestlohngesetzes (MiLoG) am 01.01.2015 stellt sich die Frage, ob Ausschlussklauseln in Arbeitsverträgen Ansprüche auf den Mindestlohn ausdrücklich ausnehmen müssen....more
Some employers like the concept that employees must repay a bonus if the employee is no longer employed as of a certain date. This may be permissible in Germany, but only under narrow circumstances. On June 27, 2018, the...more
A recent ruling of the Federal Labor Court will invalidate thousands of forfeiture clauses in employment contracts in Germany. Companies need to review and revise their standard employment contracts now and explore options to...more
It is rare for the highest German labour court to issue a decision that will require employers to take immediate action with respect to their employment contracts. On September 18, 2018, however, the Federal Labour Court...more
German employment law provides for a good level of employee protection, for example in case of termination of employment. Being familiar with some basic principles of German employment law can help Chinese investors avoid...more
The “Große Koalition” (the Grand Coalition) recently concluded a variety of legislative projects which will result in additional headaches, administrative hurdles, thresholds and new deadlines for HR professionals and...more
There are few clauses in employment contracts more heavily debated than Non-Competition Clauses (post-contractual non-competes). While employers tend to include them rather easily in order to protect company secrets beyond...more