Anti-money-laundering directive - a milestone interpretation by ECJ
Today, the EU Court of Justice published an announcement about the Judgement in Joined Cases C-37/20 Luxembourg Business Registers and C-601/20 Sovim.
By the said Judgement the Court finds that the provision whereby the information on the beneficial ownership of companies incorporated within the territory of the Member States is accessible in all cases to any member of the general public is invalid.
It is well known that by means of increased transparency the EU legislature seeks to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism and that legislation pursues an objective of public interest capable of justifying even serious interferences with the fundamental rights enshrined in Articles 7 and 8 of the Charter, and that the general public’s access to information on beneficial ownership is appropriate for contributing to the attainment of that objective.
The Court holds, however, that the interference entailed by that measure is neither limited to what is strictly necessary nor proportionate to the objective pursued.
The Judgement is available here.
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