As bad as 2023 ended (here), 2024 begins and the stream of bad news seems to continue unabated, as the following “monthly” shows:
Germany 2024 – The end of the illusions
“2024, the year in which narratives break, illusions burst and hollow promises will implode.“ Alexander Kissler via Twitter (here). While at the beginning of 2023 we could at least still look (somewhat hopefully) into the “cloudy crystal ball” (here), the extent of Germany’s malaise became increasingly clear over the course of the year and at … more
The German economy in November 2023 – towards a not so happy end
The “b(e)acon of hope” in July (here) proved to be rather a cognitive dissonance in August (here) which led to a slippery slope in September (here) and in October, hope was definitely fading for the German economy (here). So, let’s take a closer look at the how the year nears its closing in November:
The German economy in October 2023 – fundamentals do not support hope
The “b(e)acon of hope” we were experiencing in July (here) proved to be rather cognitive dissonance in August (here), but seemingly, the pundits did not realise that sentiment (indices) might prove to be a slippery slope in September (here). But, hey, let’s take a closer look at the how German economy slipp****, mh, fared in October:
Turnaround – but with a plan, please!
„Plans are nothing
planning is everything“
Dwight D. Eisenhower
The current economic situation (here), as well as the sharp rise in the number of corporate insolvencies in recent months (here, in German) prove that the German economy is in crisis mode. Of course, this crisis is not without consequences for individual companies. The following article explains what to do if the managing director recognises crisis signals in “his” company or receives a specific “crisis warning” from one of his advisors (see here for background information).
The German economy in September 2023 – slippery sentiment
Already in May the German economy was going south with astonishing speeed (here), however, larger parts of the public only realised that in June (here) but were still seeing a “b(e)acon of hope” in July (here) and did not really lose their cognitive dissonance in August (here). So, let’s take a closer look at the how German economy fared in September:
When the advisor “suddenly” warns…
“Just in time” for the upcoming economic crisis (see only here), the German higher courts are expanding the duties of advisors in general and lawyers in particular. After the BGH’ IXth Civil Senate had already tightened the liability of tax advisors with regard to omitted warnings of reasons for insolvency in a judgement from January 2017 (see in-depth here), the court now turns to lawyers and the duties of care to be observed by them. Shortly thereafter, the Higher Regional Court of Bamberg ruled in a similar manner on the duties of care of a restructuring advisor. The mostly stringent rulings complement each other and are groundbreaking for advisory practice in the event of corporate crises.
OLG Nuremberg: Obligation to set up a CMS even in small companies
In a decision from March 2023, the Higher Regional Court (OLG) Nuremberg significantly expanded the scope of duties of managing directors in medium-sized and small GmbHs in particular by requiring the “establishment of a compliance management system” regardless of the size of the company. The following article highlights the implications of this decision. The decision … more