Dr. Alexander Ehrle is a member of the Firm's International Trade Practice in Baker McKenzie's Berlin office. Alexander studied law at the Universities of Heidelberg, Montpellier (France), Mainz, Munich and New York (NYU) specializing in Public International and European Law. He worked as advisor and member of a delegation of a developing country at the United Nations before qualifying for the German bar. He spent his clerkship with the Higher Regional Court in Berlin, the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Berlin and Tokyo as well as an international law firm in Frankfurt and Milan. He wrote his doctoral dissertation on the structural changes of public international law and their conceptualization in academic discourse basing his research on the governance of areas beyond national jurisdiction. Alexander is admitted to practice in Germany and New York.
Alexander co-chairs the Business & Human Rights Committee of the American Bar Association’s International Law Section and has been recognized as one of 40 under 40 lawyers worldwide for foreign investment control by the Global Competition Review.
On 24 January 2024, the EU Commission released its Decision establishing the European Artificial Intelligence Office (AI Office). This client alert focuses on the integration timeline, jurisdiction and scope of the AI Office, alongside questions yet to be addressed.
This alert focuses on AI hallucinations and their implications for the responsible use of AI in your business. It aims to provide an overview of the legal ramifications of AI hallucinations, as well as recent regulatory developments in this area.
The European Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) entered into force on 1 October 2023. The full panoply of obligations will gradually start to apply during the so-called Transitional Phase through 31 December 2025. Importantly, EU importers will have to submit the first report under the CBAM shortly, by 31 January 2024, reporting on the scope of embedded emissions in certain goods they have imported during the first quarter year the CBAM has applied (1 October 2023-31 December 2023). This article covers what EU importers need to report on by the end of the month, 31 January 2024, together with an overview of the new regulation and the obligations it sets out.
On 23 December 2023, the United Nations Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence released an interim report, marking a step forward in the global discourse on Artificial Intelligence (AI) governance. This report, a collaborative effort of experts from government, the private sector, civil society, and academia, calls for a robust global framework to regulate AI. Its publication underscores the urgency and complexity of addressing AI’s rapidly evolving landscape.
President Biden’s issuance of the Executive Order on Artificial Intelligence (AI) on 30 October 2023 marks a significant legislative stride in AI regulation. This directive, extending beyond the US, has profound implications for European businesses and the EU’s regulatory landscape on AI.
On 14 December 2023, the Council of the EU and the European Parliament reached a compromise on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), paving the way for its formal adoption by both institutions and thus the CSDDD’s entry into force before year end. The CSDDD is intended to significantly reshape corporate due diligence obligations regarding human rights and environmental standards in the EU and beyond. With its imminent enactment, the EU Member States will have two years to enact national laws providing for respective corporate due diligence obligations, similar to that already provided for by the German Supply Chain Act in its current form.
On 11 October 2023 the German Federal Government approved the Financial Crime Prevention Act, which shall come into force on 1 January 2024. The law will establish a new federal authority – the Federal Office to Combat Financial Crime. This new institution will have competences with respect to the fight of money laundering, sanctions and illicit financial flows.
On 18 November 2023, Germany, France, and Italy reached a significant agreement on the future of AI regulation, marking a step forward in shaping the AI landscape within the European Union.
The United Kingdom just hosted the first-ever global Artificial Intelligence Safety Summit on 1 and 2 November 2023, an event that brought international attention to the regulation of Artificial Intelligence. UK Prime Minister Sunak underscored the urgency for global collaboration in the governance of AI, a technology that defies national boundaries and demands a collective regulatory approach. The summit’s outcome was the Bletchley Declaration, a commitment signed by leading nations, including Germany, the United States, and China, to enhance cooperation in the development and regulatory oversight of AI technologies.
Baker McKenzie’s Sanctions Blog published the alert titled The EU’s Eleventh Sanctions Package against Russia on 26 June 2023. Read the article via the link here. Please also visit our Sanctions Blog for the most recent updates.