I would like to thank IMH Gold Magazine “Legal Edition” for soliciting my perspective on the present and forthcoming state of the Cyprus legal market. Link of the interview here: Shaping the Future of Law #Cyprus  #Law  #Legal  #IMH  #GoldMagazine  #LegalMarket  #Lawyer  #AGFrangos

Following the Judgement of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEE) in joined cases C-37/20 and C-601/20, of November 22, 2022 the Registrar of Companies has decided to suspend access to the Beneficial Owners register for the public service.  The Registrar issued the following the statement dated 23d Novemeber 2022: "The Department of Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property announces that, following the Judgement of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEE) in joined cases C-37/20 and C-601/20, of November 22, 2022, access to the Register of Beneficial Owners for the general public is suspended as of the 23rd of November 2022. According to the above-mentioned Judgement of the CJEE, Article 1, point 15(c) of Directive (EU) 2018/843 of the European Parliament and the Council, of 30th May 2018, which provides for access to the information on the beneficial ownership of legal entities to any member of the general public, is invalid as it constitutes a serious interference with the fundamental rights of respect for private life and to the protection of personal data, enshrined in Articles 7 and 8 respectively, of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. The relevant information to the competent and supervisory authorities and the Unit as referred in article 12 of Directive R.A.A. 112/2021 and amending Directive R.A.A. 116/2022, will continue to be provided with the applicable procedure.   The relevant information will, also continue to be provided to the obliged entities, with the applicable procedure by submitting additionally a solemn declaration confirming that the information on the Beneficial Owners is requested within the context of performing customer due diligence.   It should be noted that the obligation of companies and partnerships to submit and update their Beneficial Owners information is not affected and remains valid."  The official press release can be found here:  https://www.companies.gov.cy/en/knowledgebase/news/suspension-of-access-to-the-beneficial-owners-register-for-the-general-public