The problem of a failure to pay the rent by companies that are tenants of commercial space
Pursuant to Article 46 of the Act of 5 December 2008 on preventing and combating infections and infectious diseases in humans (consolidated text Journal of Laws of 2019, item 1239, as amended), the Polish Minister of Health announced epidemic status due to SARS-CoV-2 virus infections from March 20, 2020until further noticethroughout the entire area of the Republic of Poland.
The status of the epidemic was announced by the ordinance of the Polish Minister of Health of 20 March 2020 regarding the announcement of the status of the epidemic in the territory of the Republic of Poland (Journal of Laws No. 491, as amended). The statutory “epidemic state” authorized the Polish government to introduce a special legal situation in the Polish business.
Amendments to the Polish Commercial Companies Code during COVID-19
In connection with the prevailing coronavirus
pandemic, a package of legal changes is being prepared in Poland to facilitate
the functioning of companies during coronavirus pandemic. So far in Poland the
legal changes caused by COVID-19 have been implemented on the basis of the main
act of law dated 2 March 2020 on specific solutions related to the prevention
and combating COVID-19 effects and crisis situations caused by the latter (the
act of law passed by the Polish Parliament and published in the Journal of Laws
under item 374, hereinafter “COVID-19 Polish emergency law”). Pursuant to the
draft act amending COVID-19 Polish emergency law (that amends more than 30
different Polish acts of law, including the Polish Companies Code), in the new art.
25 there are to be implemented provisions regarding the remote decision-making
by corporate bodies.
Remote decision-making in the
management boards of companies is allowed unless the companies’ articles of
association stipulate otherwise.
WHO’s announcement that COVID-19 can be characterized as “pandemic” causes that the economic problems of local businesses arising from the epidemic state are global. Simply put, similar legal measures temporarily implemented into the legal environment of all pandemic countries create very similar economic problems and legal challenges for businesses (especially corporations).
In the face of an increasing number of corporate questions from its Clients, KIELTYKA GLADKOWSKI KG Legal is preparing a guide to assistance packages in individual jurisdictions affected by negative effects of coronavirus. As a part of the project, KIELTYKA GLADKOWSKI KG Legal is preparing a chapter devoted to the specific legal solutions in the face of coronavirus epidemy in Poland and the aid measures launched by the Polish government for companies operating in Poland that are affected by the negative effects of coronavirus.
The discussed issues concern, among others, the distribution of aid granted to Poland from the European Union. Poland is the largest beneficiary of the European Union funds earmarked for combating the effects of the coronavirus epidemic and is to receive approximately EUR 7.5 billion. The report discusses legal and public aid mechanisms for entrepreneurs and employers in Poland. KIELTYKA GLADKOWSKI KG Legal also advises on the application of general principles of Polish law in the case of so-called emergency states, such as the coronavirus pandemic, including labour law, #payment gridlocks, performance of contracts.
The coronavirus infection in Poland has created considerable legal challenges for a number of sectors.
KIELTYKA GLADKOWSKI KG Legal has developed measures to assist its Clients, entrepreneurs and employers, in order to minimise the negative effects of COVID-19 outbreak.
The Polish authorities have implemented an emergency act of law as of 2 March 2020 (about coronavirus effects and combating them; so called “Coronavirus Act”) which regulates, among others, two crucial issues from the point of entrepreneurs – employers.
Firstly that the employee who has a child younger than 8 years and demonstrates that he or she is forced to exercise personal care over such a child (namely that there is no other parent taking care of the child, no other member of the family or no other caretaker for the child) has the right to apply for carer’s allowance and have additional 14 days off work to look after the child. For the period when the employee stays at home with the child the standard salary is not paid. There is, instead, paid the carer’s allowance which amounts to 80% of the remuneration. The carer’s allowance is paid from the funds of the Polish Social Insurance Fund. If the employer has registered more than 20 employees, it is standard that the employer makes the payment to the employee and then applies to the Social Insurance Fund for compensation.
On December 16, 2019, the Voivode of Lesser Poland positively audited almost one thousand of the certified legal translations that the lawyers of KIEŁTYKA GŁADKOWSKI KG LEGAL performed over the past three years as part of cross border legal expertise. The audit was carried out as part of the administrative procedure and the Polish Act of 25 November 2004 on the profession of sworn translators (consolidated text published in the Polish Journal of Laws dated 2019, item 1326) by the local Authority of the Polish Ministry of the Interior and Administration.
Positive findings from the administrative audit performed on a sample of 1,000 translations from the last 36 months, prove the good practices and due diligence of KIEŁTYKA GŁADKOWSKI team.
