| In Principle

Demolition of all or part of a structure erected as a result of unlawful construction is not the rule, but is an alternative to legalisation of the structure, which should always be applied whenever the structure is consistent with the planning guidelines and other regulations such as technical construction regulations.

Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, often family firms, are the driving force behind the Polish economy and the hallmark of Polish entrepreneurship. But Polish law is not ideally suited to the specific nature of family firms. Hence new legal solutions are being proposed that would help family firms pursue their business in Poland.

Effective resignation by a member of the management board of a company is not an easy matter. The First President of the Supreme Court of Poland recently applied for a resolution on the matter by a seven-judge panel of the Supreme Court.

The amendment of 24 July 2015 to the Industrial Property Law doesn’t enter into force until 1 December 2015, but another amendment has already been published—dated 15 September 2015 and entering into force on 15 April 2016. Letters of consent are the most important change introduced by the first amendment, while the second amendment will revolutionise the system for obtaining protective rights to trademarks. The changes will affect the registration procedure and the grounds for lapse of protective rights.

In computer games and apps, the use of images of nature, like mountain streams, does not raise doubts in terms of copyright. But the use of architectural structures, such as bridges, monuments or buildings, can be problematic, because they are generally regarded as “works” for copyright purposes.

Systemic amendments to Poland’s Bankruptcy & Recovery Law enter into force on 1 January 2016.

Conceptual similarity between trademarks may be sufficient to find a risk of confusion even when there is little visual similarity between the marks, if the earlier mark has become highly distinctive through its use.

New rules on heirs’ liability for decedents’ debts are the most significant changes in the set of amendments to the Civil Code and the Civil Procedure Code, among other acts, effective 18 October 2015.

The Court of Justice has issued a judgment invalidating the European Commission’s Safe Harbour decision. This means that participation in the Safe Harbour programme by US entities is no longer grounds for European companies to transfer personal data of EEA citizens to the United States.

Protection of possession of real estate against drones as a form of necessary defence is permissible only under exceptional circum­stances.

In August an arbitration award was issued in the case of the ship Arctic Sunrise, involving protests by ecologists on the Pechora Sea defending the Arctic environment. The ship was seized and 30 protesters were arrested by Russian authorities.

Financial services are not always performed as they should be, and procedures for considering customer complaints have not always been effective. Consequently, in May 2015 the Polish Financial Supervision Authority adopted a resolution on consideration of customer complaints, and in August the Sejm adopted the Act on Consideration of Complaints by Financial Market Entities and on the Financial Ombudsman. The act has just entered into force.