On 20 May 2020, the Federal Parliament approved a legislative proposal (only available in Dutch and French) postponing the entry into force of the provisions on abuse of economic dependency. Therefore, the rules on abuse of economic dependency will not enter into force on 1 June 2020 as originally specified in the Act of 4 April 2019 (only available in Dutch and French) (the "b2b Act").
The postponement was prompted by the fact that, due to their overlapping entry into force, the b2b Act and the Act of 2 May 2019 (only available in Dutch and French) amend different versions of Book I and Book IV of the Economic Law Code ("ELC"), while the legislative technique of a coordinating Royal Decree (as provided for in the Act of 2 May 2019), did not prove to be suitable for achieving conformity between the two acts.
The legislator has now authorised the King to amend the ELC "with a view to adequately incorporating" the provisions on abuse of economic dependency by 1 December 2020 at the latest.
This ultimate date of entry into force coincides with the entry into force of the new rules on unfair contract terms, which were also introduced by the b2b Act.
For a discussion of the content, please see our earlier contribution on the new rules in b2b relationships.