Business protection (4006) • Council Directive 84/850/EEC concerning misleading and comparative
advertising (1984), "substantially amended several times",
Consumer protection (6806) • Directive 85/374/EEC:
Product liability directive: establishes the principle of producer liability without fault applicable to European producers, such that "where a defective product causes damage to a consumer, the producer may be liable even without
negligence or fault on their part". • Directive 98/27/EC on injunctions for the protection of consumers' interests, repealed by • Directive 2009/22/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on injunctions for the protection of consumers' interests. • Directive on
alternative consumer dispute resolution, Directive 2013/11/ΕU, issued on 21 May 2013.
Company law (40) and finance (24) Business organisation/legal form (4011) •
First Company Law Directive (Disclosure): Coordination of safeguards which, for the protection of the interests of members and third parties (Directive 2009/101/EC of 16/09/09), repealed by Directive (EU) 2017/1132, repealed by Directive (EU) 2017/1132 •
Third Company Law Directive (Mergers): Mergers between public limited liability companies, repealed by Directive (EU) 2017/1132 •
Fourth Company Law Directive (Annual Accounts): this Directive coordinates Member States' provisions concerning the presentation and content of annual accounts and annual reports, the valuation methods used and their publication in respect of all companies with limited liability, repealed by Directive (EU) 2013/34/EU •
Seventh Company Law Directive:
Consolidated accounts of companies with
limited liability (Directive 83/349/EEC of 29/6/83). •
Directive 2009/49/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directives 78/660/EEC and 83/349/EEC as regards certain disclosure requirements for
medium-sized companies and the obligation to draw up consolidated accounts, 18 June 2009, intended to reduce the administrative burdens placed on businesses. Implementation was required by Member States by 1 January 2011. • A proposal intended to simplify the accounting directives was put forward by the
European Commission on 25 October 2011. •
Non-financial reporting – Directive 2013/34/EU, concerning disclosure of
non-financial and diversity information by certain large undertakings and groups, was amended by Directive 2014/95/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2014. The directives provide for "a certain minimum legal requirement as regards the extent of the information that should be made available to the public and authorities by undertakings across the Union" and require "undertakings subject to this Directive" to give "a fair and comprehensive view of their policies, outcomes, and risks". There are about 2000 companies (excluding exempted subsidiaries) affected by the requirements of the directive. On 21 April 2021, the Commission adopted a proposal for a new directive to amend the existing reporting requirements, on which provisional agreement between the European Council and the European Parliament was reached on 21 June 2022. The proposal: • extends the duty to all large companies and all companies
listed on a regulated market (except listed
micro-enterprises) • requires the reported information to be audited • introduces more detailed reporting requirements and a requirement to use mandatory EU sustainability reporting standards (to be developed) • requires businesses to digitally '
tag' the reported information so that it is machine readable. :The proposed standards were to be developed by October 2022.
Auditing (4021) •
Eighth Company Law Directive: directive 84/253/EEC of 10 April 1984, concerned with the qualifications of persons responsible for carrying out the
statutory audits of accounting documents (
Official Journal L126 of 12.5.1984, on EUR-Lex). •
Communication COM(2003)286, related to the Eighth Directive, aimed at reinforcing statutory audit in the European Union – not published in the
Official Journal.
Objective: reinforcing public oversight of the audit profession; imposing the International Standards on Auditing (ISAs) for statutory audits in the European Union as of 2005; systems of disciplinary sanctions; establishing the transparency of audit firms; as regards corporate governance, reinforcing audit committees and internal control. •
Audit directive 2006/43/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2006 on statutory audits of annual accounts and consolidated accounts, amending Council Directives 78/660/EEC and 83/349/EEC and repealing Council Directive 84/253/EEC. Entered into force on 29 June 2006.
Banking (2411) •
Capital Requirements Directive (CRD) for bank capital •
Payment Services Directive Financial Market (2416) •
Markets in Financial Instruments Directive 2004 (MIFIR, MiFID-I, MiFID-II ) •
Transparency Directive • Financial Collateral Directive 2002/47/EC • Settlement Finality Directive, 1998
Insurance (2421) • Directive 2002/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 November 2002 concerning Life Assurance • European Union Directive 2009/20/EC was implemented in all 27 member states by January 1, 2012. The directive requires compulsory
protection and indemnity (P&I) insurance cover for EU and foreign ships in EU waters and ports. Foreign vessels that do not comply to the directive may be expelled or refused entry into any EU port, although ships may be allowed time to comply before expulsion. • The
Insurance Distribution Directive (IDD, Directive (EU) 2016/97 of 20 January 2016) sets out regulatory requirements for firms designing and selling
insurance products. It aims to enhance consumer protection when buying insurance, including general insurance,
life insurance and insurance-based investment products (IBIPs) – and to support competition between insurance distributors by creating a level playing field. The directive replaced the previous Insurance Mediation Directive (IMD).
Investment and Financing (2426) •
Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities Directive 2009 (UCITS) •
Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFM) for investment funds
Criminal Law (1206) •
6th Anti-Money Laundering Directive Labour law (4411) • Council Directive 91/533/EEC on an employer's obligation to inform employees of the conditions applicable to the contract or employment relationship ;Anti-discrimination (1206) • Council Directive 97/80/EC, on the
burden of proof in cases of
discrimination based on sex. • Council Directive 2000/43/EC of 29 June 2000 implementing the principle of equal treatment between persons irrespective of racial or ethnic origin : also called the "Race Directive" (
Directive 2000/43/EC on Anti-discrimination) • Council
Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000 establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation • Council
Directive 2004/113/EC of 13 December 2004 implementing the principle of equal treatment between men and women in the access to and supply of goods and services •
Directive 2006/54/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 July 2006 on the implementation of the principle of equal opportunities and equal treatment of men and women in matters of employment and occupation (recast) • Proposal for a
Directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence of 8 March 2022 ;Safety at work (4406) •
Equipment and protective systems intended for use in potentially explosive atmospheres (2014/34/EU "
ATEX directive") •
Machinery Directive •
Minimum requirements for improving the safety and health protection of workers potentially at risk from explosive atmospheres (99/92/EC "
ATEX directive") •
Personal protective equipment directive ("PPE directive") •
Pressure Equipment Directive ("PED") 2014/68/EU (formerly 97/23/EC) •
Airborne noise emitted by household appliances directive •
Noise emission in the environment by equipment for use outdoors directive Competition law (4406) and procurement (4411) • Council Directive 71/304/EEC of 26 July 1971 concerning the abolition of restrictions on
freedom to provide services in respect of
public works contracts and on the award of public works contracts to
contractors acting through agencies or branches. This directive required Member States by 26 July 1972 to abolish certain restrictions applying to freedom to provide services in the
construction sector. • Coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors directive – 2004/17/EC 31 March 2004, replaced by • Directive 2014/25/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on procurement by entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors and repealing Directive 2004/17/EC. • Coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts directive – 2004/18/EC 31 March 2004, replaced by • Directive 2014/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on public procurement and repealing Directive 2004/18/EC • Remedies Directives: Directive 89/665/EEC (for the public sector) and Directive 92/13/EEC (for the utilities sector). These directives provided for interim orders preventing signature of a public contract, and require public authorities and utilities to inform all tenderers about the outcome of the tender process. Both were amended by • Directive 2007/66/EC – the "amending Remedies Directive", intended to improve "the effectiveness of review procedures concerning the award of public contracts". In summary, the 2007 directive "strengthen[s] the remedies available to candidates and tenderers who feel their rights have been infringed in the award of public contracts, improve[s] the opportunities for unsuccessful tenderers to challenge unlawful awards, and increase[s] the possible penalties on contracting authorities for making such awards". In the case of a contract awarded in serious breach of the rules, it allows a national court to declare the contract "ineffective". A statutory "
standstill period" coming between a contract award decision and the actual award of the contract, and the immediate suspension of the right to award a contract where a timely challenge has been submitted, were established by the 2007 directive. Recital 36 of the amending directive ties its objectives to the fundamental rights and principles of the
Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, in particular to the right to an effective remedy and to a fair hearing.
Environmental law (5206) ;Environmental assessment (5206) •
Strategic environmental assessment (Directive 2001/42/EC) •
Environmental impact assessment (Directive 2011/92/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2011 on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment, amended by Directive 2014/52/EU of 16 April 2014) ;Plastics (2826) • Directive 94/62/EC • Directive (EU) 2015/720 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2015 amending Directive 94/62/EC as regards reducing the consumption of lightweight plastic carrier bags • Directive (EU) 2019/904 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment (the "
Single-Use Plastics Directive"), effective from 3 July 2021 ;Pollution and Waste (5216) • The Directive 76/464/EEC of 4 May 1976 on pollution caused by certain dangerous substances discharged into the aquatic environment of the Community •
Packaging and packaging waste directive, 94/62/EC deals with the problems of
packaging waste and the currently permitted heavy metal content in packaging • Council Directive 96/61/EC of 24 September 1996 concerning integrated pollution prevention and control; replaced by Directive 2008/1/EC (see below) •
Landfill Directive, Council Directive 1999/31/EC of 26 April 1999, amended by Directive (EU) 2018/850 with effect from 5 July 2020 •
RoHS Directive 2002/95/EC •
Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive ("WEEE directive"), Directive 2002/96, revised in 2006, 2009 and 2012, currently Directive 2012/19/EU on
waste electrical and electronic equipment •
Battery directive (2006/66/EC in force from 6 September 2006), Directive 2006/66/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 September 2006 on batteries and accumulators and waste batteries and accumulators and repealing Directive 91/157/EEC. Directive 2006/66/EC was amended by Directive 2013/56/EU of 20 November 2013. •
Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (Directive 2008/1/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 January 2008 concerning integrated pollution prevention and control) •
Waste framework directive (Directive 2008/98/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on Waste) ;Environment – Other (52) •
Industrial Emissions Directive •
Floods directive •
Large Combustion Plant Directive (Directive 2001/80/EC of 23 October 2001 on the limitation of emissions of certain pollutants into the air from large combustion plants) •
Noise emission in the environment by equipment for use outdoors (2000/14/EC − ″OND″) •
Implementation of a Scheme for Greenhouse Gas Emission Allowance Trading Directive, amending Council Directive 96/61/EC (Directive 2003/87/EC of 13 October 2003) •
Directive on public access to environmental information: Directive 2003/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2003 on public access to environmental information, which repealed the earlier Council Directive 90/313/EEC • Air quality (
Directive 2008/50/EC) •
Marine Strategy Framework Directive (Council Directive 2008/56/EC)
Intellectual property (4421) •
Patentability of computer-implemented inventions (proposed, then rejected) •
Directive on the legal protection of topographies of semiconductor products (87/54/EEC 16 December 1986) •
Trade Marks Directive (89/104/EEC 21 December 1988) •
Rental and lending rights (92/100/EEC) •
Satellite and Cable Directive (93/83/EEC 27 September 1993) •
Harmonising the term of copyright protection (Copyright Duration Directive) (93/98/EEC 29 October 1993) (replaced by Copyright Term Directive 2006) •
Database Directive (96/9/EC 11 March 1996) •
Patentability of biotechnological inventions (98/44/EC 6 July 1998) •
Legal protection of designs (98/71/EC) • The
Information Society Directive (2001/29/EC 22 May 2001) •
Directive on the re-use of public sector information (2003/98/EC 17 November 2003) •
Enforcement of intellectual property rights (Civil) (2004/48/EC 29 April 2004), also known as the Enforcement Directive •
Enforcement of intellectual property rights (Criminal) (withdrawn) •
Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market (2019) •
Computer Programs Directive (1991) •
Conditional Access Directive (1998) •
Copyright Term Directive (2006) •
Electronic Commerce Directive 2000 (2000) •
Resale Rights Directive (2001) ==Public regulation==