August 2024 in Brief: International Business Law

New Obligations for Directors of Spanish Companies

By Ignacio Montoya, Across Legal

To comply with European Union objectives, the Spanish government approved the Gender Equality Law published on August 2, 2024, which aims to promote gender balance in the political, economic, and public spheres.

The law’s new obligations for companies will apply to listed companies and public interest companies that have more than 250 employees and an annual turnover greater than €50 million or total assets exceeding €43 million.

The main obligations are: (i) ensuring that the board of directors and senior management of the company is at least 40 percent persons of the underrepresented gender; (ii) providing shareholders with information on the measures required regarding balance between women and men on the board of directors, as well as on possible sanctions for noncompliance; and (iii) publish annually, as part of the sustainability report, information related to this topic.

Argentine Law “Bases and Starting Points for the Freedom of the Argentine People” Passed

By Gabriel Matarasso, Marval O’Farrell Mairal

The Argentine Congress recently passed the law “Bases and Starting Points for the Freedom of the Argentine People,” a comprehensive law introducing material reforms in privatizations, oil and gas, energy, public contracts, labor and social security, and other relevant regulatory frameworks, aiming at modernizing the Argentine state and promoting foreign investments.

The law also includes a special regimen for large investments (above USD 200,000) in mining, oil and gas, energy, infrastructure, and others, providing a material set of tax, customs, and FX benefits and incentives, as well as a long-term stability guarantee (thirty years), and the submission of Argentina to foreign arbitration.