NON – DISCLOSURE AGREEMENT (NDA) AND FREELANCERS When it comes to hiring a freelancer, the question that comes to mind is what are the advantages and what are the challenges of such an endeavor? The biggest advantage of hiring a freelancer is that this cooperation can be stopped at any moment, as hiring a freelancer does not imply having an employment contract and obligations that derive from it. On the other hand, the biggest disadvantage of hiring a freelancer is probably that a freelancer can at any time find and accept other business opportunities that suit him/her better. This can end your business cooperation and delay the realization of your business aspirations. Aside from all that, cooperation between a freelancer and a client requires the exchange of a substantial amount of information, and the best way to secure the confidential nature of the data and to protect it from misuse…

Proposal of reorganization plan in bad faith The legal instrument of reorganization plan is in practise often misued. For example, the plan is proposed just to to obtain a period of moratorium (in which the execution proceedings can not be run against the debtor), there are subsequent reorganization plans (so called „Chapter 22“) for the same debtor and plans are proposed even where there are no real economic grounds. Reorganization should be available to commercial entities which have real chances for the realization of the plan. This legal institute give opportunity for the fresh start to the insolvent debtor, but on the other side, it can have negative effect on economy, as it protects companies which are generating losses. Reorganization, therefore, has a serious impact on competition on the market, having in mind that it creates benefits for companies which are in financial distress. Having this in mind, a minimum…

Rejecting the payment of the demand guarantee Demand guarantees are the important instrument which is commonly used in business transactions. Namely, this type of bank guarantee is a liquid instrument on the basis of which the beneficiary may collect funds quickly if the debtor does not fulfill its obligations as stipulated. Having in mind that for the activations of such guarantee it is sufficient to issue a written call, sometimes followed by a short statement explaining the breach of the obligation on the side of the debtor, unjustified calls for activation of bank guarantees occur. Therefore, the banks obligation to make the payment may be questioned. Fraud and misuse of the rights from the bank guarantee When it can be deemed that there is a fraud, i.e. misuse of the rights from the bank guarantee? These are the cases when the beneficiary submits the call for the payment of the…

Renewable energy production in Serbia – the general framework of the Energy Law Like all EU member states, Serbia as a candidate follows newest trends in the field of environmental protection and fight against climate changes, and more specifically in the area of renewable energy sources. There is a rising number of foreign companies and investors that are interested in investing into hydropower, solar power and biogas plants as well as wind parks. In that sense, Government of the Republic of Serbia enacted several acts in the field of renewable energy sources such as: Regulation on the requirements and procedure of acquiring the status of a privileged producer, preliminary privileged producer and producer from renewable energy sources (https://www.mre.gov.rs/doc/efikasnost-izvori/Uredba%20o%20uslovima%20i%20postupku%20sticanja%20statusa%20PP%20PPP%20i%20POIE%20ENG200916.PDF)Regulation on incentive measures for the production of electricity from renewable sources and from high-efficiency electricity and thermal energy cogeneration (https://www.mre.gov.rs/doc/efikasnost-izvori/Uredba%20o%20podsticajnim%20merama%20ENG20092016.PDF) andRegulation on the power purchase agreement…

CSR principles and the Serbian legal framework As mentioned in the previous AKT blog post about corporate social responsibility (CSR), CSR is primarily a voluntary implementation of ethical principles to business practice, thus making it a part of the so-called soft law framework. In some ways, legal regulation of CSR might not be necessary as its values and goals arise from common sense. It has been widely accepted today that employees should be treated equally, with dignity and respect, paid fairly and on time, that they should be provided with safe and healthy working environment, and not overworked. However, if profit is the only incentive for companies, there is no guarantee that businesses will respect ethical labor practices, environmental protection, local community interests and consumer rights. That is why hard, positive legal frameworks in most countries (including Serbia) have regulated some of the critical areas – areas which can be…

Going beyond the legal aspects, there is increasing evidence of importance of CSR for consumers. For example, a 2017 study conducted in the US (https://www.conecomm.com/research-blog/2017-csr-study) found that more than 60 percent of Americans hope businesses will drive social and environmental change in the absence of government regulation. The majority of consumers surveyed (87 percent) said they would purchase a product because a company supported an issue they care about. More importantly, study showed that 76 percent would refuse to buy from a company if they learn it supports an issue contrary to their own beliefs. Washington State University just published the visual resource guide titled, Corporate Social Responsibility: Helping Others is Good Business. This in-depth resource guide was created for socially responsible companies, business sustainability groups, and communities who are looking to share information about how to build socially responsible cultures that has an impact beyond the…