
THE METAVERSE, what is it and how do I protect my intellectual property?
In a revealing presentation on 28 October, Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook – now Meta – presented the metaverse as the next level of the Internet, more immersive, where the user will not only observe the experience, but also live it, to do everything he or she can imagine, on a level hitherto unheard of ...

Is it good for me to start in Spain?
Following the approval of the draft promotion law the startup ecosystem, better known as the Startups Law, the answer seems to be yes. The Startups Law, which is expected to come into force this summer, includes a package of measures that not only seek to streamline the bureaucratic procedures for company incorporation, but also to ...

Law on measures against fraud: BILLING AND ACCOUNTING SOFTWARE
On October 11, 2021, the measures introduced by Law 11/2021, of July 9th, came into force, regarding measures to prevent and combat tax fraud in relation to computerized or electronic accounting, management and invoicing systems and software. Important penalties are established not only for the manufacturers of these programs but also for the users, therefore ...

The NEXT GENERATION EU fund
WHAT IS IT? An instrument for 2021-2024 implemented by the European Union (EU) in response to the Covid-19 crisis. While being a recovery plan, it is also linked to the great goals for the next decade: Green transition Digital transformation Gender equality Social and territorial cohesion The fund has an endowment of 750.000 M € ...

THE INSERTION OF CONTENT THROUGH THE FRAMING TECHNIQUE What you should know and the latest CJEU jurisprudence to the case
The interpretation of article 3 of the Directive 2001/29/EC about whether it is considered an act of public communication making available to the public, by a third party, a link to a content which is protected by intellectual property and published in another website, has followed the direction of the interpretation done by the CJEU ...

The local tax on increased value of real estate: can it be confiscatory and, therefore, deemed void?
The Third Chamber of the Supreme Court (hereinafter, SC) addresses this particular issue in its recent decision No. 1689/2020, of December 9 (appeal No. 6386/2017). In this case the facts are the following: A company (hereinafter, X) acquired an urban property in the city of Madrid, in 1998, for an amount of 52 million pesetas ...

ARE YOU READY FOR BREXIT? Consequences on trademarks, patents, designs and geographical indications
2021 is here and with it, the end of the transitional period for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union. With it, the consequences of the abandonment of the country from the institutions of the Union and the single market accrue, for citizens and companies. In this sense, below, we offer a short summary ...

THE OBLIGATORY USE OF THE TRADEMARK: How to prove that you use your trademark so as not to lose it
Historically, trademark law, despite granting restricted use of a trademark to its owner, has always advocated competitiveness in a plural market. For this reason, your trademark could and can be declared expired, if it is not used within a period of 5 years, unless there is just cause. Prior to the latest reform in the ...

THE REGULARISATION OF THE MEDICINAL PRODUCT AGAINST COVID-19: Is generic medicine possible? Will the vaccine be available for all?
Ownership is recognised in our legal system as a fundamental right. Intellectual property arises in two ways: on the one hand, to recognise the sphere of control over creations and inventions and, on the other hand, to promote artistic and industrial development through the legal incentive for their economic exploitation and defence against third parties. ...

Deferral on the payment of rent for self-employed workers and SMES
On 23 April, Royal Decree-Law 15/2020 on supplementary urgent measures to support the economy and employment entered into force, which regulates the requirements to be met by self-employed persons and SMEs in order to request a moratorium on the payment of rent for the premises they have leased for the development of their activity. First, ...

Europe declares spanish courts have to control IRPH
The Supreme Court of Justice of the European Union has considered that the Spanish courts of justice should ensure the clear and comprehensible nature of the clauses contained in mortgage agreements that establish the application of a variable interest rate based on the benchmark index of the savings banks (IRPH). Two years after the Barcelona ...

UPDATES in the VAT for intra-community regime of goods as of March 1st, 2020
The aim of the update is to achieve a simplified and uniform taxation of intra-Community operations in all Member States. Among other modifications, it is established that the shipment of a good to a customer’s warehouse in another Member State will not be considered as an intra-Community transaction until the customer removes the merchandise from ...

Generalitat de Catalunya Tax to counter the effects of the climate change
The tax on carbon dioxide emissions of mechanical traction vehicles is a tax established by the Generalitat de Catalunya, which tolls the carbon dioxide emissions produced by the vehicles that have an effect on the increase of gas emissions with greenhouse effect. This tax must be paid by those who have their fiscal domicile in ...

How to legally use Internet photos, drawings and videos
The Law on Intellectual Property (Royal Decree 1/1996, of April 12) establishes that the reproduction, distribution and communication to the public of photographs, drawings or audiovisual pieces through any physical or digital medium, is subject to the author’s authorization. On the other hand, there is a widespread belief that photographs, videos, drawings or other graphic ...

What can I do in case of a SGAE inspection?
WHAT IS SGAE? SGAE (Sociedad General de Autores y Editores) is a non-profit organization authorized by the Ministry for Culture, therefore, it is a private company. This fact must be kept in mind because, in the event of an inspection, the fact that they don’t have a public status means their “inspectors” cannot impose sanctions. ...

Property purchase: be aware of the community of owners’ fees
One of the most pressing issues when acquiring a property is learning about its status of debts, specifically those that may exist with the Community of Owners. It is not a minor issue, since, should these debts exist, the law provides for a direct liability regime for the purchaser, for which the estate itself is ...

Real Estate legal audit: purchase and sell with safety
Real Estate Due Diligence is an exhaustive revision of the legal status of a property, as well as the various aspects and legal consequences of its acquisition or transfer. The result of this revision is a report in which, mainly, identified contingencies are stated along with the recommendations suggested by the legal team in order ...

Working hours log
The newly published RDL 08/2019, of March 8, on urgent measures of social protection and for the fight against job insecurity in the working day. This rule has modified Article 34th of the Workers’ Statute, that refers to the working day. According to this article, as of May 12th, 2019 all companies will be under the obligation ...

Recovery of delayed payments in loan or credit contracts with mortgage guarantee formalized with physical persons
Traditionally, the judicial recovery of arrears in mortgage loan or credit agreements formalized with individual consumers was carried out through the filing of mortgage foreclosure proceedings under Book III of the LEC (forced execution) and Chapter V of Title IV (execution on mortgaged and pledged assets). The filing of such executive action is based on ...

Novelties regarding the Corporate Enterprises Act
Law 11/2018, of December 28, introduces significant changes in certain precepts of the Capital Companies Law. Given the urgency of the subject we will do a quick analysis without undermining the possibility of furthering the analysis of said issue in future articles, and remain at your service to analyse the impact of modifications in your ...

Can I sell my apartment if it is leased?
Of course, there is no impediment to selling your apartment even if it is leased. Different question is the type of buyer profile that will be interested in acquiring it. Buyers who are looking for a regular home will discard it right away, but those buyers who have investing in mind can approve of it, ...

What happens to the deposit in a lease agreement?
When we subscribe a lease agreement the lessor requires the constitution of a rent deposit, which is foreseen by law as the Law for Urban Rents establishes as mandatory that “when entering into a contract it is mandatory asking for and providing a deposit in cash whose amount is equal to one month’s rent in ...

Bonus – Contribution reduction system
The new rules of the Bonus – Contribution reduction system, approved last March by means of Royal Decree 231/2017, open up new possibilities and expand the options to access this incentive from the year 2017 (Bonus Campaign 2018 ), by reducing the necessary requirements to request it: It is not necessary to prove complementary actions ...

Liquidate or dissolve society?
In several occasions clients have presented us their doubts as to if they can dissolve their company, and in fact often confuse the liquidation process with the dissolution process. For this reason, we think that this short article on our blog may be useful to many people, for in it we will try to explain ...

TAX FREE electronic stamping (DIVA)
The procedure for the VAT refund to non-resident travelers in the European Union will be exclusively telematic as of January 1, 2019. The DIVA system will be mandatory, as well as the only valid system in Spain. It will allow the electronic stamping of the proof of exit of the goods to which the regulation ...

Deductions for donations
Taxpayers of the Income Tax of individuals, who make donations to foundations or non-profit organizations under the special regime of Law 49/2002, can apply the following percentages to the group of donations made with the right to deduction: Donation up to 150 euros Deduction rate: 75% Other donations from 150 euros Deduction rate: 30%* *If in the ...

How to minimize the risks when buying a home off-plan
During November 2017 members of the MES ADVOCATS office attended the seminar on Real Estate Sales delivered by “Enfoque XXI”, which is summarized below by stating the most relevant aspects regarding the acquisition of housing through the purchase off-plan. The particularity of the purchase-sale contract is that its object falls on a future thing (projected ...

How to recover housing by default of the tenant?
The lease is a contract in which the owner of the property cedes the use and enjoyment of the same in favor of a third party, for a certain period of time and in exchange for a rent, so that he can use it. -the house. It may happen, during the term of the contract, ...

Brief approach to the “FIDUCIA CUM AMICO”
This figure, currently in effect, goes back to Classic Roman Law, which defines it as a contract in which one person – a trustor – transmits ownership of something to another – trustee – for purposes of a different nature. The thing is entrusted to a loyal person who only acquires the property according to ...

Difference between branch, permanent establishment and subsidiary
In this post we will look at the differences between a branch, a subsidiary and a permanent establishment, which can often be confused and used colloquially as equal figures, but have clearly differentiated characteristics. BRANCH OFFICE When we talk about a branch, we are talking about a secondary establishment or accessory to the main one, ...

What can I do if my invoice is unpaid?
In this post, we will give some helpful tips when it comes to invoicing a client that has left us unpaid. It should be borne in mind that when we refer to “unpaid invoice” we also refer to any other type of debt that we have to pay. Although it would be best to get ...

Establishing an LLC (S.L.) in Spain as a foreigner
If you are thinking about constituting a Limited Liability Company (S.L.) in Spain, in this post you will find a summary of the main steps foreigners ought to follow. Limited liability companies are one of the most common types of corporation in Spain, since they are the most appropriate ones when aiming to form a ...