With the constantly growing scope of legal requirements for companies, compliance is also becoming increasingly important. Maintaining a clear overview of developments in German cartel, insolvency, tax and white-collar crime law in every situation to achieve success in compliance with the law often presents those responsible with considerable challenges. If not handled adequately, there is the threat – in addition to costly legal proceedings – of high fines, exclusion from public contracts or subsidies and, last but not least, damage to the company’s reputation that should not be underestimated. However, these consequences can be avoided by developing an effective compliance system and consistently implementing appropriate preventive measures.
To provide our clients with the support they need, Schlun & Elseven offers competent and committed legal advice. Our German lawyers will be happy to support you in developing or optimising compliance structures that ensure the legal conformity of all legally relevant processes in your company. Of course, they consider the industry, size, legal form and (inter)nationality of your company. As a multidisciplinary full-service law firm, we guarantee excellent expertise in all legal areas relevant to your company. Our compliance lawyers will help you ensure that your company is always legally compliant to operate successfully in the market. Contact us today via our online form and learn more about our legal services.
The Importance of Legal Compliance in Germany
Remaining compliant can be complicated, costly and time-consuming; however, the alternative is even more damaging. Not maintaining compliance can result in legal cases, which are also costly and time-consuming. Sacrificing the need to follow obligations by cutting corners may result in short-term benefits, but it is risky. Not maintaining compliance can also result in reputational damage depending on where the company did not respect its duties. This can result in a loss of customers and partners for future endeavours. It can be difficult for a company to recover from reputational damage depending on the cause of its reputational damage.
From the perspective of a company’s management, availing of outside legal assistance when it comes to compliance requirements is useful for several reasons. Firstly, managers and directors can be found personally liable for their actions in certain cases. We assist managing directors in their duties and provide the legal protection and support they may need in a demanding work environment.
Outside legal assistance can also be of great value when it comes to planning future projects. Our lawyers can look at the medium- and long-term implications of decisions. On occasion, businesses can fall into the trap of simply responding to short-term problems and not looking at the longer-term issues that may bring. At Schlun & Elseven, our attorneys will be there to make sure your compliance requirements do not get lost in your company’s plans.
Compliance in Employment Law
In Germany employees have strong protections in place to ensure that their employment rights are respected. We have a dedicated team of employment law attorneys who will provide the clear guidance your company may require when it comes to issues in this field. Some issues such as ensuring that anti-discrimination measures are in place and that there is zero tolerance policy in place (and acted upon) when it comes to sexual harassment is very important as cases in these fields can lead to potential reputational damage. There are a number of other areas of employment law where compliance requirements need to be followed. Here are just of the areas we can support and advise on:
- Employment contract terms,
- Employee data protection,
- Work councils and employee representation,
- Fair and unfair dismissal cases,
- Safety at work – occupational safety requirements,
- Company pension schemes,
This is a non-exhaustive list and thus if your company requires further assistance when it comes to compliance in the field of employment law please contact us directly.
Competition and Antitrust Law
Working with our corporate law team will ensure your company’s compliance with German competition law. Our competition law group will ensure that your company is informed about what activities are considered antitrust in Germany and how they are legislated. We will keep you updated on developments in German and European law on this front to ensure that any legal changes do not damage your company. Furthermore, we will advise your company on mergers and acquisitions in Germany and ensure that the actions taken are compliant with the law.
When it comes to representing your company, our German business lawyers will be there to counteract any unfair practices brought forward by your competitors. We will act in your interest when it comes to cases of misleading advertising, product imitation, false labelling and copyright infringement. Our legal support applies both inside and outside of court. Our competition law team will act in your interest on all matters relating to compliance.
Corporate Criminal Law
Compliance also takes the form of ensuring that your company does not come into conflict with German criminal law. Criminal law can play a role in issues around tax offences, money laundering and white-collar crime, as well as in the area of insolvency criminal law. Criminal law cases on these issues can result in reputational damaging and time-consuming court cases. Awareness of legal compliance in these fields will ensure that your business does not find itself in such as situation. We will help your company establish systems whereby employees can take action and report suspected wrongdoing to ensure that the business itself is aware of suspicious actions that may require further investigation. The business should be proactive in preventing corporate criminal offences from occurring and thus protect its reputation from the actions of individual employees or managers.
Schlun & Elseven: Our Legal Services
The German lawyers at Schlun and Elseven offer a wide range of services for the complex area of compliance and accompany your company in the introduction, implementation and optimisation of an individual compliance system. A detailed cooperation based on trust is particularly important to us. Once our legal team starts working for your company, we can tailor our services precisely to the specific requirements of your business area. Among other things, we offer you:
- In-house legal training for staff,
- advice on whistleblowing initiatives and mechanisms,
- support in the implementation of internal investigations and reviews,
- information on legal developments in all company-related a