Dentons Hong Kong is pleased to announce that the firm has been shortlisted for seven awards at the upcoming Asian Legal Business (ALB) Hong Kong Law Awards 2025. These prestigious awards recognise excellence in the legal industry and celebrate the outstanding achievements of private practitioners and in-house teams across Hong Kong and the wider region.

Saarlouis/Berlin (DAV). Eine Frau wollte die Schreibweise ihres Nachnamens ändern. Sie begründete dies mit psychischen Belastungen und praktischen Problemen im Alltag. Doch das Oberverwaltungsgericht des Saarlandes lehnte die Namensänderung ab, berichtet die Arbeitsgemeinschaft Familienrecht des Deutschen Anwaltvereins (DAV). Die Begründung reiche nicht aus, ein öffentliches Interesse am bisherigen Namen überwiege (Entscheidung vom 10. Februar 2025; AZ: 2 A 134/23).

Die Frau wollte eine Änderung der Schreibweise ihres Nachnamens „A.“ mit „v“ statt mit „w“ erreichen. Da sie kaum gebräuchlich sei, führe die Schreibweise ihres Nachnamens mit „w“ zu erheblichen Problemen. So führe es etwa bei Auslandsreisen zu massiven Verwicklungen, da sich der Name vom Personalausweis unterscheide. Immer wieder würden Bestellungen nicht durchgeführt und von der Post nicht zugeordnet. Sie habe aufgrund der Schreibweise ihres Familiennamens psychische Beeinträchtigungen.

Das Gericht sah keinen ausreichenden Grund für eine Namensänderung. Der Familienname dürfe jedoch nur geändert werden, wenn ein wichtiger Grund dies rechtfertige. Das könne eine seelische Belastung sein – aber nur, wenn sie verständlich und nachvollziehbar sei. Sei die seelische Belastung dagegen nur als übertriebene Empfindlichkeit zu werten, zähle sie nicht als ausreichender Grund für eine Namensänderung.

Bei der Entscheidung über eine Namensänderung müsse bedacht werden, dass der Nachname ein wichtiges Merkmal zur Identifikation sei. Deshalb bestehe ein öffentliches Interesse daran, den bisherigen Namen zu behalten. Besonders bei Erwachsenen wie der Frau, die seit 42 Jahren unter ihrem Nachnamen auftrete, sei das Festhalten am bisherigen Namen wichtiger als bei Kindern oder Jugendlichen.

Ein Namenswechsel sei auch nicht nötig, nur weil Behörden ihren Namen manchmal mit „v“ statt „w“ schreiben. Solche kleinen Schreibfehler oder Missverständnisse bei der Aussprache reichten nur dann als Grund aus, wenn sie zu ernsthaften Problemen führten – und das habe die Frau nicht überzeugend gezeigt. Sie habe nur von alltäglichen Unannehmlichkeiten berichtet.

Es fehle darüber hinaus eine klare und verständliche Erklärung, warum der Name sie psychisch so stark belaste, dass nur eine Namensänderung helfen würde. Die fachärztliche Bescheinigung sei nicht aussagekräftig genug. Die Richter hatten erhebliche „Zweifel daran, dass einzig die Änderung des Namens in Gestalt der Änderung eines Buchstabens … für die Heilung einer psychischen Krankheit erforderlich und ausreichend ist“.

Information: www.dav-familienrecht.de

Global law firm Dentons has advised Alpha Bank A.E. on a €59 million project financing for the development of a photovoltaic power plant located in Teleorman county, Romania, with an approximate capacity of 80 MW, developed by METLEN Energy & Metals A.E.

Australia: The Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Penalty and Overtime Rates) Bill 2025 is set to reshape the Fair Work Commission’s approach to modern awards. It signals increased scrutiny on pay structures for award-covered employees and serves as a timely reminder for employers to review their payroll compliance. This article explains the Bill and its potential impacts for employers.

The Qualified Opportunity Zone (“QOZ”) program, first introduced in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, was designed to spur economic development and job creation in low-income communities by offering investors significant federal tax incentives.

United States: Labubus—quirky, monster-like collectible figures created by Hong Kong-based artist Kasing Lung and sold via Pop Mart, a major Chinese toy retailer—have recently experienced a surge in popularity.

Dentons Rodyk has once again secured top rankings in the latest edition of the Chambers High Net Worth Guide, reaffirming our commitment to excellence in private wealth management.

United Kingdom: On 15 July 2025, the FCA published its final policy statement on the new rules that the FCA will implement in its Handbook to implement the public offers and admissions to trading regime. The new regime will effectively replace the UK Prospectus Regulation. Although the new regime will largely replicate the current regime, there are some changes of which debt capital markets practitioners should be aware.

Global law firm Dentons has advised Piraeus Bank S.A. (Greece), acting also through its Frankfurt Branch, on two financings totaling €106 million to support the development of METLEN Energy & Metals’ photovoltaic projects in Romania. Located in Dolj county, the two solar power plants have a combined capacity of approximately 164 MW.

Global law firm Dentons has advised Click JSC, a leading fintech company in Uzbekistan, on its landmark strategic partnership with Kazakhstan’s JSC Halyk Bank. Under the terms of the deal, Halyk is acquiring 49% of shares in Click, valued at US$176.4 million, while simultaneously selling 49% of shares in its Uzbek subsidiary, Tenge Bank JSCB, to Click's shareholders for US$60.76 million. The completion of these transactions is subject to regulatory approvals in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

Indonesia: The new regulation requires stronger protections for children in the digital world, setting clear obligations for Electronic System Providers. With administrative sanctions and extraterritorial enforcement, the regulation pushes providers to take real action to keep children safe online.

New Zealand: A new regulatory regime governing ground-based space infrastructure (GBSI) will come into effect in New Zealand on 29 July 2025, following the urgent passage of the Outer Space and High-altitude Activities Amendment Bill on 23 July 2025. Businesses with infrastructure that communicates with, supports, or surveils space objects, must comply with the new dedicated GBSI authorisation framework. 

New Zealand: Just like the sci-fi movies of the 70s, 80s and 90s predicted, FRT is becoming more and more ubiquitous. However, as New Zealand businesses explore FRT’s potential to deter crime, streamline customer experiences and improve security, questions still loom about how the technology works, and the legal and ethical implications of deploying it in a public setting.

Following the unanimous advisory opinion rendered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), or World Court, in Obligations of States in respect of Climate Change as requested by the United Nations General Assembly, the Member States of the United Nations, including the United States, have authoritative guidance available regarding their international law obligations to ensure the protection of the climate system and other parts of the environment from anthropogenic greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions for countries and for present and future generations.

Dentons Rodyk has once again been recognised by the India Business Law Journal (IBLJ) as one of the world’s top foreign law firms for India-related matters, marking the second consecutive year of this prestigious honour.

Back in May 2024, Dan Schulman – former President & CEO of PayPal – joined Dentons’ Victor Boyajian and Comcast’s James Rooke for a forward-looking conversation on the high-stakes intersection of AI innovation, cybersecurity, and global politics.

On July 23, 2025, the White House released, “Winning the Race: America’s AI Action Plan,” a sweeping AI policy and regulatory blueprint that directs more than 90 federal actions relating to AI innovation, infrastructure, and international diplomacy and security.

Dentons Dublin has advised a syndicate of lenders including BNP Paribas on a €2.4 billion five-year sustainability-linked revolving credit facility (RCF) to ESB.

Global law firm Dentons has advised Kenyan-based and owned Gulf Energy on the purchase by its subsidiary, Auron Energy E&P Limited, of the shares in Tullow Kenya B.V. from Tullow Overseas Holdings B.V., a subsidiary of Tullow Oil plc. The closing of the transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals.

Dentons Hong Kong is delighted to announce that the firm has won six awards at the China Business Law Awards 2025, hosted by China Business Law Journal.