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In its Chamber judgment of 8.11.2021 in the case of Dolińska-Ficek and Ozimek v. Poland (application nos. 49868/19 and 57511/19) the European Court of Human Rights held, unanimously, that there had been a violation of Article 6 § 1 (right to a fair hearing) of the European Convention on Human Rights. The case concerned complaints brought by two judges that the Chamber of Extraordinary Review and Public Affairs of the Supreme Court, which had decided on cases concerning them, had not been a “tribunal established by law” and had lacked impartiality and independence. They complained in particular that the Chamber of Extraordinary Review and Public Affairs, one of two newly created chambers of the Supreme Court, had been composed of judges appointed by the President of Poland on the recommendation of the National Council of the Judiciary (“the NCJ”), the constitutional organ in Poland which safeguards the independence of courts and judges and which has been the subject of controversy s

By George Kazoleas, Lawyer LL.M. The proposed European Regulation on Markets in Crypto-assets, and amending Directive (EU) 2019/1937, published in September 2020, introduces new legislation on crypto-assets (a digital representation of values or rights that can be stored and traded electronically). The purpose of the proposed regulation is to safeguard financial stability as well as to protect investors from potential risks. The new regulation aims to provide legal clarity and legal certainty for crypto-asset issuers and providers. It is also noted that the new rules will allow operators authorised in one Member State to provide their services across the EU ("passporting"). One of the regulated areas of the proposed legislation is the activity of crypto advisors. Any person that provides crypto-asset services on a professional basis should be considered as a ‘crypto-asset service provider’. Providing advice on crypto-assets is explicitly part of the meaning  of ‘crypto-as

In its Chamber judgment in the case of Špadijer v. Montenegro (application no. 31549/18) the European Court of Human Rights held, unanimously, that there had been a violation of Article 8 (right to respect for private life) of the European Convention on Human Rights. The case concerned the alleged bullying of a prison guard following her reporting an incident involving male prison guards coming into the women’s prison where she worked and their inappropriate contact with female prisoners, and her attempts to address this with the authorities. The Court found in particular that the manner in which the legal mechanisms had been implemented in the applicant’s case had been inadequate, constituting a violation of the obligation on the State to protect her rights. Facts of the case The applicant, Daliborka Špadijer, is a Montenegrin national who was born in 1978 and lives in Podgorica. In 2013 Ms Špadijer, then head-of-shift prison guard in a women’s prison, reported five colleagues for an

On 24 June 2021, the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) issued an  Opinion  on the European Commission’s Proposal to regulate the crypto-assets’ markets. The proposed Regulation includes a series of obligations and requirements concerning the trading of electronic money tokens, rules on the authorisation and supervision of those issuing and/or providing electronic money tokens, rules to protect individuals purchasing electronic money tokens. Overall, the Regulation seeks to prevent abuse in the crypto-assets’ markets. The EDPS made a number of recommendations concerning this proposal, in particular on the responsibilities of those issuing crypto-assets. As per the proposal, it is envisaged that issuers of crypto-assets may process the personal data of those purchasing crypto-assets by using various technologies and infrastructures, such as blockchain - a type of technology used in this case to record the purchasing and issuing of crypto-assets. Concerning the processing o

By Chrysovalantis Papantoniou, Lawyer at S.Dionysiou & Partners LLC Crowdfunding is one of the most innovative financial schemes, which provides the opportunity of increase in capital by expanding the pool of investors beyond the traditional circle of owners.  Most often used by startup companies or growing businesses, whose owners aim at obtaining alternative funds through online platforms. The abovementioned services are regulated in Cyprus by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (“CySec”) under the Crowdfunding Directive D187-10 (“The Directive”). The main aim of the Directive is to heighten the guidance and protection already provided to investors by the Investment Services and Activities and Regulated Markets Law.It is important to point out that that the current legislation safeguards the interest of crowdfunding investors only through the issuance of transferrable securities and it excludes other forms of crowdfunding such as loans, rewards, or donations. As per

The Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE) published a position paper on the proposal for a regulation laying down harmonised rules on Artificial Intelligence (Artificial Intelligence Act).  On 21 April 2021, the European Commission presented a proposal for a regulation laying down harmonised rules on Artificial Intelligence (Artificial Intelligence Act) and amending certain Union legislative acts. The proposal is supplemented by 9 annexes.  The CCBE previously issued comments on the communication on the digitalisation of Justice in the EU, a response to the consultation on the European Commission’s White Paper on Artificial Intelligence as well as its own considerations on the legal aspects of Artificial Intelligence.  With the recent paper, the CCBE wishes to further develop its position in relation to several aspects of the proposal for an Artificial Intelligence Act (hereafter “the AIA” or “the proposal”).  In particular, the CCBE considers that:  • Despite the choi

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) seeks to recruit a Senior Legal Officer (Finance and Impact Investments) in Italy (full time- assignment duration 2 years ) The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) is an international financial institution and a specialized United Nations agency dedicated to eradicating rural poverty and hunger. It does so by investing in rural people. IFAD finances programmes and projects that increase agricultural productivity and raise rural incomes, and advocates at the local, national and international level for policies that contribute to rural transformation. The incumbent is accountable for authoritative provision of qualitative legal advice and services in general legal matters and, more specifically, in financial legal matters to the General Counsel / AVP, the departmental Team and other divisions and clients. S/he plays a lead role in supporting the legal framework of IFAD's operations, both technical and s