Usancen Blog
New Regulations on Notice Periods and Exceptions
Labour LawAs of 1 July 2025, new rules for deviations from statutory notice periods under collective agreements are being enforced retroactively, along with several transitional provisions. Exemption Clause in Collective Agreements Clarified On 1 October 2021,...
ECJ: Applicable Law After Workplace Relocation
European LawThe European Court of Justice (ECJ) has examined which country’s labour laws should apply when an employee relocates to a different nation under their current employment contract. In the case at hand, a Luxembourg transport firm had employed a French...
Shrinkflation: Austrian Government Bill on Anti-Deceptive Packaging
Competition LawThe Austrian Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs, Energy and Tourism has introduced a government bill regarding legislation on misleading packaging. Under this new law, products whose quantity was reduced without a matching decrease in price must b...
ECJ: Travelling Pets are ‘Baggage’
European LawThe European Court of Justice has ruled that pets are considered baggage for the purposes of airline liability, thereby delineating the extent of airlines’ responsibility in cases of loss. In the case at hand, the plaintiff flew with her mother and h...
Austrian Police: Time Spent Changing and Gearing up Is Work Time
Administrative LawThe Austrian Administrative Court (Verwaltungsgerichtshof, hereinafter VwGH) has recently examined whether putting on your uniform and equipment counts as part of working hours. In the case at hand, the appellant police officer submitted a request fo...
Insurance Contract Law: Are One-Year Limitation Periods Constitutional?
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) was tasked with deliberating upon the question of whether a policyholder’s claim for coverage is precluded as a consequence of non-compliance with the stipulated deadline under Sectio...
German BGH Strikes Down Pension Cut Clause for Riester Policyholders
Civil LawThe German Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof, hereinafter BGH) was required to adjudicate the validity of a provision contained within the terms and conditions of a unit-linked pension insurance policy. Pension factor reductions From June t...
Austrian OGH: Preclusion Period for Damages Claims
Civil LawIn a recent ruling, the Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has clarified that the limitation period under Section 1111 of the Austrian General Civil Code (Allgemeines bürgerliches Gesetzbuch, hereinafter ABGB) also applies...
Package Travel Directive: ECJ Preliminary Ruling Request
European LawA Polish court has submitted questions to the Court of Justice of the European Union concerning the interpretation of Articles 14 and 3(12) of Directive (EU) 2015/2302 relating to package travel. The referral seeks to clarify the specific circumstanc...
Consumer Loan Agreements: OGH Rules on Processing Fees
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) was tasked with ruling on the transparency of a particular clause regarding the loan’s processing fee, and whether it was invalid. In August 2017, the consumer plaintiffs took out a m...
OGH: No Injury Compensation after Construction Site Accident
Labour LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has issued a decision regarding compensation for physical impairment under Section 213a of the Austrian General Social Security Act (Allgemeines Sozialversicherungsgesetz, hereinafter...
ECJ: Travel Time Counts as Working Time
European LawThe European Court of Justice has determined that, under specific circumstances, travel time constitutes working time. This interpretation extends to situations where employees are traveling as passengers in the back seat. In this scenario, the emplo...
OGH Clarifies Statute of Limitations for Legal Expenses Insurance Claims
Civil LawIn a recent decision, the Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) provided clarification regarding the commencement of the limitation period applicable to claims for coverage or information against a legal expenses insurer. The...
German BGH on Pre-Negotiated Brokerage Agreements
Civil LawThe German Bundesgerichtshof (hereinafter BGH) recently had to consider whether a brokerage agreement negotiated in advance between a project developer and a brokerage agency could still be subject to review under the German Law on Standard Terms and...
Austrian OGH on Parallel Representation in Maintenance Proceedings
Civil LawIn a recent ruling, the Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) clarified that the child and youth welfare agency (Kinder- und Jugendhilfeträger, hereinafter KJHT) and a parent may provide parallel representation of minor child...
EU: Amazon is a 'very large online platform'
European LawThe Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has rejected Amazon’s legal objection to the designation of the Amazon Store as a ‘very large online platform’ pursuant to the Digital Services Act (DSA). As a result, Amazon is required to adhere to ...
Austrian OGH on Insufficient Transparency in Loan Agreements
Civil LawDuring an appeal, the Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, or OGH) examined the validity of certain terms in loan agreements. The main question was whether a processing fee in the agreement could be enforced when consumers were not clearly i...
Limitation Period for Rent Reclaims in Property Sales
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has recently issued a decision regarding the applicable limitation period for claims seeking the return of rent collected subsequent to the contractually agreed handover date of a pro...
Right-of-Way: Adverse Possession Criteria
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has issued a judgment regarding the adverse possession of a right of way and the establishment of a definitive easement agreement. The case concerned the defendants' use of the plaint...
Loan processing fees: Significant excess of actual costs
Civil LawThe Supreme Court (OGH) recently ruled in two cases that the use of certain clauses in loan agreements constituted a violation of the law. In this case, it dealt with the question of whether a processing fee agreed in a loan agreement is valid if its...
Austrian OGH: Receiving Dunning Notices After Address Change
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has held that a formal dunning notice requiring receipt under Section 39 of the Austrian Insurance Contract Act (Versicherungsvertragsgesetz, hereinafter VersVG) is considered officia...
OGH on Tax Compensation for Lost Earnings
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has confirmed that, in cases where someone is seeking reimbursement for tax compensation due to lost earnings, the usual rules about who must prove their claims still apply. Shifting ...
Austrian OGH: Executive Board Contracts Terminable Without Notice
Civil LawIn a notable appellate decision, the Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) addressed the issue of whether an executive board contract could be subject to immediate termination without notice upon the supervisory board’s disco...
Austrian OGH on Eviction Following Termination of Cohabitation
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) discussed when ex-partners are allowed to use real estate and explained in detail under what circumstances cohabiting partners can legally challenge a property’s owner for reasons oth...
Protecting Competition in Leases to Affiliated Companies
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) was called upon to determine whether a landlord would breach a contractual competition protection clause by leasing two distinct business premises, each under 500 m², to companies tha...
Efficient Legal Information 
Legal Jobs 
Innovative LegalTech Solutions