Academic literature on the topic 'Price maintenance – Law and legislation – European Union countries'

Ukraine’s European integration direction has led to a set of significant changes in legislation and practice. Obviously, this is a high price, but the war has brought Ukraine closer to joining the European Union than ever before. On February 28, 2022, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed an application for Ukraine’s membership in the European Union. On April 8, 2022, during a visit to Kyiv by the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, a questionnaire was personally handed over to the Ukrainian side to obtain Ukraine’s candidate status for membership in the European Union. The war in Ukraine showed the effectiveness of European values. It showed their importance not only in the documents, but in concrete steps towards Ukraine’s meeting with European countries, in particular in sanctions against the Russian Federation, its oligarchs, diplomats and high-ranking officials. At the same time, harmonization with the legislation of the European Union still requires comprehensive changes in the legislation of Ukraine, in particular criminal legislation. Moreover, necessity of movement to European values and principles has been identified. Each state is sovereign and unique in the peculiarities of its legal regulation. However European countries are united with the values. The Association Agreement highlights in particular the following values: respect for the rule of law, human rights and fundamental freedoms, non-discrimination, and respect for diversity. The last but not the least, it should be noted that Ukraine has already taken some steps towards such an approximation, but there are still many unresolved issues, including methodological. The draft of the new criminal legislation of Ukraine, which is being developed by the Working Group from 2019, should take into account the peculiarities of European law, but also preserve national peculiarities. European sanctions are not so fast, but over time they will prove effective as a response to war crimes by another state.

The REACH legislation constitutes a milestone for the European Union. It sets new standards for environmental law, which are becoming the benchmark for many countries and companies around the world. This new chemicals legislation also introduces institutional novelties at the European level. An independent European agency with decision-making powers has been created to administer this complex and highly technical legislation. Nevertheless, the European Commission and the Member States have maintained direct influence over the agency’s work, and participate in various roles in the implementation of REACH. These environmental and institutional innovations are not making the position of companies, who are the immediate addressees of the legislation, any easier. The present article analyses the decision-making processes under REACH, and inquires which legal remedies, if any, registering companies have in the event they encounter decisions that adversely affect them. It will be shown that companies are not always in an enviable position. They are paying a price, it seems, for the still evolving institutional architecture of the European Union. In other words, the deficiencies in legal protection we identify point to more fundamental problems surrounding the effectiveness and accountability of European agencies. Thus, this analysis can also serve as a case study to test new models of European governance. The article offer recommendations for improvement.

The article investigates the mechanism of legal regulation of property relations of partners in de facto unions. The national legislation of European states is analyzed, as well as the recommendations of the Commission on European Family Law, suggestions for improving national legislation are made.It is determined that there are no uniform approaches in the legal regulation of partners in de facto unions in European countries, in particular in six countries such relations are unregulated, in fourteen countries such relations are regulated by different branches of law, and in nine jurisdictions there is a special legal mechanism (Sweden, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Catalonia, Portugal, Scotland, Ireland and Finland).The provisions of the Lithuanian Civil Code on the regulation of de facto marital relations, as well as the legislation of Croatia, Sweden, Norway and other countries are analyzed. It was found that in Scotland, civil partnerships were allowed for same-sex couples back in 2005, and for people of the opposite sex only from June 30, 2021.It is substantiated that in the context of Europeanization of private law, the position on the need to amend the Family Code of Ukraine and introduce the term «de facto union» recommended by the Commission on European Family Law in the Principles of European Family Law on property rights, maintenance and succession of couples in de facto unions.It is proved that in the process of Europeanization of private law the institution of de facto union should be regulated by the norms of the Family Code of Ukraine, which, taking into account the recommendations of the Commission on European Family Law should be improved as follows: contract on selling a dwelling in which partners live, as well as household items, is made with the consent of both partners; to guarantee partners the right to file a claim to the court for consent to dispose of the property without the consent of the other partner; to guarantee the principle of freedom of contract between partners in de facto unions; establish the right to compensation for a significant contribution to the property (or business) or profession of another partner; guarantee the right of the partner to inherit equally with the spouses, etc.

This contribution deals with the macroeconomic legal trends in the Eastern member states of the European Union, so called EU11: Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. The paper discusses the development from the 1990s to nowadays, emphasizing the initial changes and the consolidation after the financial crisis. Therefore, the fiscal policy bears a major attention: fiscal and budgetary stability, government debts, fiscal controls (auditing and independent fiscal councils), for a more comprehensive overview, some ports of the monetary policy will be examined: national banks and price stability. The main aim of the contribution is to confirm or disprove the hypothesis that there is any identifiable or verifiable correlation between the legislation and the macroeconomic trends: sustainable balanced budget and government debt, economic growth, inflation. The research is based on law and economics, especially law and finance methodology with quantitative analysis, because of the cross-discipline nature of the topic. The paper contains some comparative statistics to evaluate the certain results upon figures, because it is even important to match the legal provisions with the economic performance.

The scientific article is devoted to the study of the purpose of monetary policy of the central banks of the EU member states. The legislation of the European Union, the member states of the European Union (Germany, France, Poland, the Czech Republic, Spain), as well as the United Kingdom, which left the EU, modern approaches in the science of constitutional and administrative law to determine the monetary policy of central banks EU members. The concept of the purpose of the monetary policy of the Central Banks of the EU member states, the activities and instruments of monetary policy, the functions of the central bank of the EU member state are distinguished. Emphasis is placed on the following regulatory functions of central banks that exist in legal doctrine: 1) management of aggregate money turnover; 2) regulation of the monetary sphere; 3) regulation of supply and demand for credit. The focus is on the fact that the central banks of the EU member states support purchasing power, as well as on the well-known fact: inflation - the slope of financial policy is recognized in economic theory as the most effective. Ensuring the stability of the currency (conducting open market operations or establishing exchange rate policies or reserve requirements, etc.) is a function of the central bank of the state, not the purpose of its activities. The stability of the national unit is also a function of the central bank of the state. It is established that the main purpose of the monetary policy of the central banks of the EU member states is to ensure price stability. In addition, it is argued that this is the inflationary - inclination of financial policy is the most effective. Accounting policy, interest rate policy, regulation of reserve requirements, money supply, open market operations and credit operations, interest rates, reserve requirements of banks are the activities and instruments of monetary policy of central banks. members of the EU, not the purpose of monetary policy.

Problem setting. The development of social relations, the economic well-being of the population and the stable social structure of any state in the present circumstances are conditioned by a series of factors, one of which is the development of innovative infrastructure. One of the most important directions of development of the economic sector of our country was the formation of an innovative model of the economy, which puts to law the new tasks of clarifying the purpose and social value of law as a regulator of social relations. Analysis of recent researches and publications. The current state of the study of the selected issues indicates that the sources from which public-law organizations are investing innovative activities of small and medium-sized innovative entrepreneurship in the EU are insufficient. At the same time, the state policy of the EU countries in the scientific and technical sphere is realized through the use of various instruments, which include: legislation, tax policy, size and nature of the allocation of budget funds, including for the implementation of works in priority areas, the formation and maintenance of infrastructure, personnel, etc. Target of research is to identify the public and legal means of investing small and medium innovative entrepreneurship in the EU. Article’s main body. In the EU, the innovative component of public policy encompasses the scope of national scientific institutions (institutes, research centers, university laboratories, etc.). There are government programs that receive partial funding from the state budget. The state is guided by different criterias when deciding on the financing of specific works. First, the prospect of each specific direction is evaluated from the point of view of preserving the country’s achieved position on the world market in the future. Second, the recognition at the governmental level of innovation as a vital factor of economic development, the conduct of a broad government company on the problems of innovation. The current state of regulatory support suggests that structural funds such as the European Regional Development Fund and the European Social Fund should be considered as the main public sources of investment for innovative enterprises. In particular, such funds are implementing EIC Pathfinder Pilot, FET Innovation Launchpad, EIC Transition to Innovation Activity, EIC Accelerator, Programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (COSME) etc. Conclusions and prospects for the development. In the EU, the investment of small and medium enterprises is not homogeneous, but a large part of them, despite the large number of investment support tools for such companies, face significant challenges in accessing investment resources. Developing a successful pan-European policy requires an indepth understanding of the problems and specifics of financing the innovation activities of small and medium innovative enterprises in EU Member States.

IntroductionIn 2017, the European Union (EU) commission released the final versions of the Medical Device Regulation (MDR) and In-vitro Diagnostic Device Regulation. These regulations will replace the EU directives (Medical Device Directive [MDD], In-vitro Diagnostic Device [IVDD], and Active Implantable Medical Device [AIMD]). EU regulations are effective in all EU countries at date of publication. In contrast, the EU directives must be implemented in national law first.MethodsGuidelines and respective legislation, consultation results and methods/medical device (MD) evaluations were reviewed and analyzed. Decision criteria and reasoning, assessment outcomes and potential impact on price negotiations were the main aspects for comparison.ResultsManufacturers have to be aware of the importance of clinical data for demonstrating the compliance of their products. This applies both to the approval of the products and the “post-market activities” and particularly to the “post-market clinical follow-up” for which requirements for Class I and II products need to be further developed. The MDR requires manufacturers to collect clinical data before and after approval, which could lead to excessive documentation requirements. The term “sufficient clinical data” from the MDR is unclear. A functional Eudamed specification is necessary, which enables an automated processing of relevant data. A stronger involvement in the evaluation process is needed as well as more transparency in the Joint Federal Committee (G-BA) and faster evaluation processes.ConclusionsThe MDR increases the burden especially for small businesses, and it is doubtable that the ultimate goal – improving patient safety – will be achieved. The increased demands and rising costs of the new EU MDR and bottlenecks at Notified Bodies can be a risk for the MD industry. Due to the general reduction in the remuneration for services with a high proportion of technical services, it is feared that products will be withdrawn from the market for economic reasons or that they will not be marketed.

Statement of the problem. The current stage of Ukrainian society development requires introduction of absolutely new approaches to ensuring the national security of the country. To enable the adequate response to the challenges in today’s life, it is necessary to re-assess the approaches to the customs policy and improvement of its regulatory and legal support, to guarantee efficient governmental regulation of the customs procedures and further European integration of Ukraine. Currently, administration in the area of customs policy is underdeveloped and requires updates to be in line with the realities of our time as well as the standards and regulations of the European Union. In particular, the public administration system in Ukraine does not meet the needs of the country in terms of the comprehensive reformation in various areas of the governmental policy and the European standards. Hence, it is necessary to outline and study the challenges existing in the area of customs policy and its regulatory and legal support, as well as identify the ways to address this issue. Analysis of the latest researches and publications. The customs policy implementation challenges have been researched by many scientists studying this multifaceted issue. It is worth mentioning the works of M. Bilukha, O. Hodovanets, T. Ye- fymenko, I. Kveliashvili [3], L. Kyida, O. Kolomoiets [5], V. Martyniuk, T. Mykytenko, Mosiakina, V. Pashko, V. Khomutynnik, N. Shevchenko and many others. They convey the nature and specifics of the customs policy of Ukraine and management of the same, determine the role of the customs in the system of public authorities, detail the special aspects of customs control. Addressing the previously untouched points of the general problem. The subject of the research is the in-depth study of Ukraine’s customs policy implementation amid improvement of its regulatory and legal support, with due regards to the European integration ambitions of Ukraine. Presentation of the basic research material. The customs policy of Ukraine is both complex and comprehensive, being one of the key components in the system of public administration of the foreign economic activity. It features clearly definedinstitutional support, customs policy implementation methods, mechanisms and directions. Generally, customs policy should be reviewed both as a narrow and a broad phenomenon. In the first case, it is characterized by the subjects of its implementation, and in the second one, the national economic interests. These approaches to interpretation of the nature of the specified category are equivalent. The customs policy is most powerful if it is implemented in the context of efficient governmental control of all the social processes. The legal regulation aimed at governing the external economic relations, defending the interests of the domestic manufacturers, coordinating and regulating the external trade structure, and generally strengthening the country’s economic securityplays a huge role. In addition, it is important to dwell on the customs control because it ensures efficiency and effectiveness of the customs transactions in the researched area. Adoption of the Law of Ukraine «On customs control of Ukraine» is the way to systematize the legal regulations in the area of customs policy and bring them in line with the international norms and standards. Misalignment of the legal regulations governing customs control and various areas of its implementation is one of the key obstacles on the way to efficient customs clearanceprocedures in our time. Another big challenge in the area of customs policy is incongruity between the Ukrainian legal regulatory basis and the key provisions of the European legislation. Considering importance of maintaining the European integration ties for Ukraine, the legislative basis of the country has to be greatly unified and brought in line with the European Union standards. Implementation of the customs policy of Ukraine amid improvement of its regulatory and legal support has to be based on unification of the customs legislation owing toupdate of the separateprovisions of the regulatory framework; execution of the governmental operations in the area of customs policy within the competence of the State Customs Service of Ukraine; facilitation of joint activity underway fulfillment of the international agreements; supervision over customs authority employees’ strict abidance by the laws of Ukraine in conformity with the relevant law enforcement activity and the national security of the country; introduction of the legislative support procedures on the joint borders with the European countries and implementation of the same amid stabilization and maintenance of the efficient interstate relations of the parties. Conclusions. As an essential component of the country’s economic policy, customs policy requires a thorough study in terms of the particular relations in the customs area. Ultimately, it is important to focus on the regulatory and legal support and improvement of the same, which is gaining weight amid the European integration goals of Ukraine. Apart from the above, it is necessary to address the challenges in the customs control area and substantiate adoption of the special Law of Ukraine “On customs control of Ukraine.” Unification of the regulatory and legal support in the customs clearance area will not only improve the work of the public authorities in the customs control area, but also speed up the European integration processes that have already started in Ukraine and have become objective and irreversible.

Defence date: 27 February 2019
Examining Board: Prof. Dr. Heike Schweitzer, LL.M. (Yale), Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin; Prof. Giorgio Monti, European University Institute; Prof. Dr. Rupprecht Podszun, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf; Prof. Lorenzo Federico Pace, Università degli studi del Molise
The thesis contributes to the debate on the EU’s approach to the business practice of resale price maintenance (RPM), which is widely criticized as too strict and in conflict with what is considered to be the consensus in the economic literature. The thesis critically dissects the economic consensus, on which the critique against the EU’s approach is based, by analyzing the empirical evidence that is cited to support the claim that RPM can frequently be explained by the service-based RPM models and shows that there is no convincing evidence that would support the significance of these positive RPM models that predict positive effects on welfare. To support this finding the thesis collects new evidence by surveying the marketing literature and shows that not only is there no convincing evidence that the positive RPM models frequently apply, but to the contrary there is evidence that these models are inconsistent with the real world phenomenon of RPM. Having refuted the service-based models the thesis takes up the scientific challenge that “it takes a theory to beat a theory” and proposes to fill the gap with three price-based models. The thesis offers an analysis of the three price-based RPM models, first from the perspective of welfare effects and then from a broader economic perspective in an attempt to ultimately show that the EU approach to RPM can be justified based on these economic models. All three models explain the situation in which RPM is used by a branded good manufacturer to create the perception of high quality, which is used either as a credible quality signal, becomes a component of the product or is used to bias the consumer decision; they thus enter the difficult terrain of consumer preference formation and of markets for the intangible components of a product.