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Europe – By judgment of 20 November 2025 (C‑204/24), the Court of Justice of the European Union condemns Ireland for failing to correctly transpose numerous provisions of Directive 2000/60/EC, the “Water Framework Directive,” into Irish law
HAVET & VANHUFFEL - Association d'avocats The Court of Justice of the European Union condemns Ireland for failing to correctly transpose numerous provisions of Directive 2000/60/EC, the “Water Framework Directive”, into Irish law. General context of the case The...
World – COP30 is taking place in Belém, Brazil, from 10 to 21 November 2025
HAVET & VANHUFFEL - Association d'avocats World – COP30 is taking place in Belém, Brazil, from 10 to 21 November 2025The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was opened for signature at the United Nations Conference on Environment and...
Europe – On 14 October 2025, the European Commission published a report entitled “Housing in the European Union: Market Developments, Underlying Drivers, and Policies”
HAVET & VANHUFFEL - Association d'avocats Europe – On 14 October 2025, the European Commission published a report entitled “Housing in the European Union: Market Developments, Underlying Drivers, and Policies.” The document provides a comprehensive analysis of...
Europe – In a judgment delivered on 13 November 2025 (C-117/24), the The Court of Justice of the European Union held that Article 4 of Regulation (EU) No 995/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 October 2010 “laying down the obligations of operators who place timber and timber products on the market,” which requires every operator to use a due-diligence system that includes access to information on the origin of the timber, an assessment of the risk that the timber comes from illegal harvesting, and risk-mitigation measures where the risk is not negligible, must be interpreted as meaning that it is not sufficient for an operator belonging to a corporate group to have access to the elements of a due-diligence system established, maintained, and assessed by the parent company of that group or by a monitoring organization used by that parent company. Each operator must use its own due-diligence system for its imports, maintain it, and assess it, unless it uses a system established by a recognised monitoring organization that is not used by its parent company
HAVET & VANHUFFEL - Association d'avocats The judgment responds to a request for a preliminary ruling submitted to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) by the Budapest-Capital Court and concerns the interpretation of Regulation (EU) No 995/2010, which...
Luxembourg – Le cadastre des loyers, un « Mietspiegel » luxembourgeois en vue d’un plafonnement des loyers ?
Le cadastre des loyers, un « Mietspiegel » luxembourgeois en vue d’un plafonnement des loyers ? En tant que propriétaire d’appartements ou immeubles donnés en location sis au Luxembourg, vous avez peut-être été surpris de recevoir un courrier sous entête du Ministère...
Europe – On November 13, 2025, the European Parliament voted on the adjustments to be made to the European directives on corporate sustainability transparency (CSRD) and due diligence (CSDDD), within the framework of the so-called “Omnibus I” legislative package, in preparation for future trilogue negotiations
HAVET & VANHUFFEL - Association d'avocats On 26 February 2025, the European Commission unveiled its Omnibus legislative package, aimed at easing and simplifying sustainability reporting requirements for European companies. This Omnibus reform seeks to amend three...
Europe – Norway – In a judgment of 28 October 2025 (Application No. 34068/21 – Greenpeace Nordic and Others v. Norway), the European Court of Human Rights held that while States have an obligation under Article 8 of the Convention to protect individuals against serious adverse effects of climate change on their life and health, in the case concerning petroleum exploration licenses in the Barents Sea granted on 10 June 2016, Norway has established a procedural framework ensuring a comprehensive environmental impact assessment prior to any extraction, including greenhouse gas emissions, including those related to combustion abroad, and providing for public consultation. The Court noted that although the processes leading to the 2016 decision were not fully comprehensive, and in particular, the assessment of the climate-related impacts of the activity was deferred, there was no indication that a deferred assessment was in itself insufficient to support the State’s guarantees regarding the respect for private and family life under the Convention, the legislation providing for such an assessment prior to any field development. Under Norwegian law, prior to granting any authorization enabling the exploitation of petroleum fields, a full environmental assessment must be conducted based on the best available scientific data, including: the quantification of greenhouse gas emissions, including combustion-related emissions even abroad; an assessment of the activity’s compatibility with national and international climate commitments; and effective public consultation when all options remain open
HAVET & VANHUFFEL - Association d'avocats Case Background The case concerns the procedural aspect of the State’s duty to effectively protect individuals from serious adverse effects of climate change on their life, health, well-being, and quality of life. The...
Belgique – Région wallonne – Dématérialisation des procédures de délivrance des permis en Région wallonne : les noms des Vingt communes pilotes sont connus. La phase pilote portant sur les permis dits publics commencera en avril 2026. La dématérialisation des permis communaux commencera quant à elle début 2027
HAVET & VANHUFFEL - Association d'avocats Suite à un appel aux communes pour la première phase pilote de dématérialisation, vingt communes ont été retenues sur base de critères objectifs garantissant une représentativité équilibrée des deux territoires pilotes....
Europe – The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled, in its judgment of 23 October 2025 (Case C-760/23), that Article 9(3) of Directive 2012/27/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on energy efficiency does not preclude national legislation under which the owner of an apartment in a condominium is required to pay the costs charged for thermal energy emitted by all the conduits and installations for the distribution and supply of thermal energy within the building — even where the stairwells and corridors of the building are not equipped with radiators — in proportion to the heated volume of that owner’s apartment, provided that the rules and parameters used to calculate the charges for the individual consumption of thermal energy for heating and domestic hot water ensure transparency and accuracy in the accounting of individual consumption
HAVET & VANHUFFEL - Association d'avocats The dispute opposes a Bulgarian district heating company and an individual regarding payment of invoices for thermal energy supplied in a condominium building connected to a district heating system. Relevant EU Law Article...
Europe – The Court of Justice of the European Union ruled, in a judgment of 23 October 2025 (Cases C-221/24 and C-222/24), that when the competent authority of a country of dispatch discovers an illegal shipment of waste and decides to take back that waste under Article 24(2)(a)(c) of Regulation No 1013/2006, this provision requires that authority to ensure the recovery or disposal of the said waste
HAVET & VANHUFFEL - Association d'avocats The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJUE) was seized of a preliminary question by the Court of Appeal of Stockholm, Real Estate and Environmental Division. The case concerned two companies seeking to ship...