TGC Corporate Lawyers Legal review – November 2022

November legislative changes and interesting decisions prepared by TGC Corporate Lawyers.

• Information on beneficial owners – important CJEU judgment

On 22 November, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that the provision of information on the beneficial owners of corporate entities incorporated within the Member States’ territory interferes with the provisions of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which should be treated on an equal footing with EU primary legislation. We will keep you informed about the consequences of this judgment and its impact on the Polish AML regulations and the Central Register of Beneficial Owners on our website.

Find out more: Information on beneficial owners – important CJEU judgment

• The President signed the amendment to the Act Combating Payment Backlog

In the September issue of our legal review, we wrote about the draft amendment to the Act Combating Payment Backlog, which was processed by the Sejm – Legal Review 09/2022. The objective of the amendment is to improve the effectiveness of proceedings regarding excessive delays in performing monetary obligations.

The act was passed and signed by the President on 14 November 2022, and most of the provisions come into force within 14 days after the publication date. The main changes exclude payments made as part of insurance and reinsurance activity from the reports. Companies within the same capital group and time-barred monetary obligations have also been exempted from the reporting obligation. The obligation to submit a statement on the status of a large enterprise was also clarified, and certain restrictions were imposed on large enterprises with respect to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.

• Government bill amending the Code of Civil Procedure

A draft amendment to the Code of Civil Procedure has been published on the Sejm’s website. Its purpose is to simplify the existing procedures which should reduce the workload of courts and shorten the length of judicial proceedings. The regulations are also intended to make it easier for parties and attorneys to contact the court, and for consumers to pursue their rights in court. The bill also provides for:

• Suspension of enforcement proceedings – vacancies in the debtor’s bodies will not constitute grounds for suspending the proceedings,

• Changes in property rights cases – district court will be competent in property rights cases where the amount in dispute exceeds PLN 100.000 .

• Amendments to the Consumer Rights Act

Due to the need to implement Directives of the European Parliament and of the Council (EU), changes were made to the Consumer Rights Act. The amendment has already been signed by the President. The new regulations introduce provisions to ensure the protection of consumer rights, such as contracts for the supply of digital content or digital services.

• Improvements to the construction law

The proposed changes to the construction law are the next stage of simplifying, accelerating and digitizing the investment and construction process. The basic assumption of the bill is to further reduce the burden of the parties to the construction process.

The proposed changes include issues such as:

• Allowing the construction of single-family residential buildings with a built-up area above and below 70 sqm. on the basis of a uniform procedure;

• Extending the list of construction structures and construction works exempt from the obligation to obtain a building permit and to submit a notification.

• Applications for cheaper electricity for company in from 1 December 2022 to 3 December 2023

Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises can apply for a freeze in electricity prices. In order to take advantage of the guaranteed lower electricity prices from 1 December 2022 to the end of 2023, it is necessary to submit an application to the electricity supplier by 30 November 2022.

If this deadline is missed, a trader will still be able to take advantage of the preferential price for electricity but only from the month following the month in which the application for discount was received.

Find out more: Applications for cheaper electricity for traders until November 30

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