Top of page
Posted by: Jenny Gesley
In September 2015, the German automaker Volkswagen (VW) admitted that it had manipulated software in around eleven million diesel vehicles worldwide to cheat on emissions tests. As more and more details emerged in the ensuing weeks and months, VW’s share value rapidly declined by 30 percent. U.S. regulators levied heavy fines of up to US$15.3 billion …
Posted in: Global Law, In the News
Posted by: Jenny Gesley
On August 1, Switzerland commemorates the signing of what is generally considered to be the founding document of the Swiss Confederation, the Federal Charter of 1291 (Bundesbrief von 1291). It is believed that approximately on this date, representatives from the cantons of Uri, Schwyz and Nidwalden met on the Rütli meadow and pledged allegiance to …
Posted in: Global Law, In the News
Posted by: Jenny Gesley
Conscription in the German Federal Republic began on July 21, 1956 when the German Compulsory Military Service Act (Wehrpflichtgesetz) entered into force. It lasted for 55 years until, on July 1, 2011, the German Bundestag (parliament) decided to suspend conscription and convert the German Armed Forces into an army of professional and volunteer soldiers. Instead of …
Posted in: Global Law, In the News
Posted by: Jenny Gesley
When President Obama announced the nomination of Merrick B. Garland, Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, to replace Justice Antonin Scalia on March 16, 2016, it garnered a lot of media attention. Thinking about my native Germany, I realized that I could not remember hearing or reading …
Posted in: Education, Global Law, In the News
Posted by: Jenny Gesley
On April 23, 2016, breweries all over Germany and particularly in the Free State of Bavaria will celebrate the 500 year anniversary of the enactment of the Bavarian Reinheitsgebot (beer purity law); a regulation that mandates which ingredients are allowed for the brewing of beer. The Reinheitsgebot is one of the oldest food regulations in …
Posted in: Global Law, In the News
Posted by: Jenny Gesley
To “Uber” is now a verb. This development reflects the rapid expansion of the mobile ride-hailing company Uber in the United States and the rest of the world. However, in many European jurisdictions, and particularly in Germany, Uber has run into regulatory roadblocks. Uber offers “a technology platform that enables users of Uber’s mobile applications …
Posted in: Education, Global Law, In the News