Mondaq Business Briefing articles from January 2005

Mondaq Business Briefing archives from January 2005

Cross-Border Sale of Medical Devices.
January 4, 2005... Article by John Terry and Conan McIntyre Published in Medec Pulse, December 2004. Medical device companies operate globally, but their products are regulated locally. Canadian companies selling into the United States must navigate not...

SEC Denies No-Action Relief on Broker-Dealer Registration to Marketer of Hedge Funds.
January 4, 2005... Originally published December 28, 2004 The SEC denied no-action relief from broker-dealer registration to a U.S. based firm that proposed to market hedge funds to foreign institutional investors. The firm seeking relief indicated that "it...

Applying a New Discipline to Employment Procedures.
January 4, 2005... All employers, regardless of size, will be affected by the new statutory dispute resolution procedures, which came into force on 1 October 2004. The Government has given teeth to its new procedures, encouraging employers and employees to sort...

The Relevance of Corporate Governance in the National Economy - Indian Experience.
January 4, 2005... By R S Nambi Introduction: Corporate governance has reached centre-stage in the global agenda. The principles and codes evolved in several countries have furthered the cause of efficiency, transparency and equity particularly in the...

SEC Releases Final Rule Requiring Registration of Certain Hedge Fund Advisers.(Securities and Exchange Commission )
January 4, 2005... More than a month after adopting new provisions under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the "Advisers Act") in a 3-2 split vote, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") released the final rule and rule amendments that will require...

The State Of Maine: Banking On Success.
January 4, 2005... WHERE Think of Maine, and what do you think of? L.L. Bean, of course, a landmark business in Freeport, with catalogs and customers around the world. Poland Springs water has quenched the thirst of many bottled water drinkers. Perhaps you...

Employment Law Commentary, December 2004.(National Labor Relations Act )
January 4, 2005... End-of-Year Odds and Ends: Meal and Rest Period Regulations, Case Law Developments, Federal Statutory Developments, New OFCCP Policies and Procedures, and Significant N.L.R.B. Decisions During the past year, there have been many significant...

Specialization: Considerations for the Individual Litigator.
January 5, 2005... Article by Barry Leon and Donna Wannop* Prepared for the International Bar Association, October 2004. Introduction A great deal has been said and written on the subject of specialization in the practice of law. When it comes to...

Mortgage of Intangible Properties in Iranian Law.
January 5, 2005... According to the Iranian Law the mortgage is a real contract which its conclusion is subject to the transfer of the property to the possession of the mortgagee. In this regard, Article 772 of Iranian Civil Law stipulates that: "The...

DOL Proposes Amendment to Prohibited Transaction Exemption Concerning Interest-Free Loans.(Department of L)
January 5, 2005... The Department of Labor (the "DOL") proposed an amendment to Prohibited Transaction Exemption 80-26 ("PTE 80-26") under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended ("ERISA"). PTE 80-26 is a class exemption that permits...

New TSCA Requirements Present Substantial Challenge to Manufacturers That Produce or Import Chemical Substances.(Toxic Substances Control Act)
January 5, 2005... Originally published December 2004 Beginning in 2005, manufacturers and importers of any of the roughly 76,000 chemical substances listed on the Chemical Substances Inventory maintained by EPA under the Toxic Substances Control Act ("TSCA...

Organizations Should Continue to Upgrade Their Compliance Programs.
January 5, 2005... Executive Summary Action: The United States Supreme Court holds that Washington state's sentencing guidelines are unconstitutional. Impact: The decision calls into question the use of federal sentencing guidelines in the development...

FASB Finalizes Statement on Stock Option and ESPP Expensing.(Employee Stock Purchase Plan)(Financial Accounting Standards Board )
January 5, 2005... By Marian A. Tse, Scott A. Webster and Lynda T. Galligan Originally published December 28, 2004 As described in our May 2004 Client Alert entitled "FASB Issues Proposal on Stock Option and ESPP Expensing," stock option expensing is on...

OFCCP Publishes Proposed Standards for Evaluating Compensation Discrimination and Guidelines for Employer Self-Evaluations.(Office of Contract Compliance Programs)
January 5, 2005... Originally published December 29, 2004 By David John Santeusanio (Boston) and Paul Martin Thomas (Washington, D.C.) On November 16, 2004, the United States Department of Labor's Office of Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) published...

A Look Ahead: Preview of U.S. Supreme Court Term 2004-2005.
January 5, 2005... By Jolynn C. Caroline (Chicago) The U.S. Supreme Court began hearing oral arguments for the 2004-2005 term in September 2004. The 2004-2005 docket is brimming with more than 50 high profile cases. This article highlights a case that...

Inability To Get Along With Others As An ADA Disability? That's Ridiculous!(employee discrimination)(Americans with Disabilities Act )
January 5, 2005... By Timothy M. Singhel (New York) Originally published December 28, 2004 The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) generally prohibits employers from discriminating against employees on the basis of a recognized disability and also...

Overview of Listing Shares in Hong Kong.
January 5, 2005... The Hong Kong Stock Exchange ("the Exchange") operates two markets on which companies may choose to list their shares: the Main Board and the Growth Enterprise Market ("GEM"). Main Board This is the market for companies that meet the...

FCC Preempts State Regulation of VOIP Services.(Federal Communications Commission)
January 6, 2005... By K. Patrick Meehan (Tampa) Originally published 4th Quarter 2004 The Federal Communication Commission (FCC) recently decided that Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) services, a technology that transmits voice communications and...

Military Leave: Department Of Labor Drafts New Regulations.(Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act )
January 6, 2005... Originally published December 28, 2004 By Paul Lannon (Boston) Employers will soon have more detailed guidance about their obligations to employees on leave for military service. The Department of Labor (DOL) has issued new draft...

Choosing between Canada and the United States: Patent Law and Litigation.
January 6, 2005... Published in Innovation and Invention Focus 2004, October 2004. Business in the 21st century has gone global. Multinational companies must plan for, obtain and enforce large IP portfolios in every commercially significant jurisdiction....

Communications Law Bulletin - January 2005.(Telecommunications regulations)
January 6, 2005... Special Announcement Morrison & Foerster LLP is pleased to announce that William F. Maher, Jr. has joined its Washington office as a partner in its Communications Practice. Until recently, Mr. Maher served as Chief of the Wireline...

Communications Law Bulletin -January 2005 (Continued).(Telecommunications regulations)
January 6, 2005... VOIP Developments at Home and Abroad In the wake of the FCC's decision last month to preempt state regulation of voice over Internet protocol ("VOIP") services, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission ("MPUC") stayed its order that...

IRS Issues Transitional and Other Guidance Relating to New Requirements for Non-Qualified Deferred Compensation Arrangements.(Internal Revenue Service)
January 6, 2005... By Marian Tse, Matt Guiliani, Dan Condon, Kris Wardwell and Lynda Galligan Originally published December 23, 2004 As was described in our October 2004 article*, the recently enacted American Jobs Creation Act of 2004 added new Section...

Mitigating the Risk When Selecting a New Trademark or Domain Name (Part II).
January 6, 2005... This is the fifth in a series of introductory articles on the topic of trademark law. To view the fourth in the series, please click on the Previous Page link below. In our last article, we covered preliminary trademark searches as a...

Treasury Department and IRS Release Transition Guidance on New Non-Qualified Deferred compensation Requirements - no Action is Required by 2004 Year End.(Internal Revenue Service)
January 6, 2005... On December 20, 2004 the Treasury Department and IRS released Notice 2005-1, which is the first guidance with respect to the application of Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the Code). Section 409A, which was added to the Code...

A Ring Around the Collar - IRS Approves Mechanism to Lock in Stock Profits and Obtain Liquidity - All Without Triggering a Taxable Sale.
January 6, 2005... Originally published December 3, 2004 Suppose you sell or exchange your appreciated low basis privately-held company stock for equivalent publicly traded stock in a "tax-free reorganization," but for various reasons you do not want to sell...

California Tax Amnesty...Not?
January 6, 2005... On August 16, 2004, Governor Schwarzenegger signed into law S.B. 1100 establishing two tax amnesty programs: the personal and corporate income tax amnesty program and the sales/use tax amnesty program to be administered by the Franchise Tax...

Proposed Meal and Rest Period Regulations not Final, yet.(labor Standards )
January 6, 2005... Article by Gail M. Blanchard-Saiger and Gregory W. McClune Executive Summary Action: Division of Labor Standards Enforcement has issued proposed regulations concerning meal and rest periods that must go through the administrative...

New Tax Law Further Liberalizes S Corporation Rules.
January 6, 2005... Originally published December 15, 2004 As discussed in this year's Presidential campaign, substantial U.S. job creation occurs in corporations electing to be S corporations for income tax purposes. Therefore, it is not surprising that the...

The European Company: An Opportunity in France in the Near Future.(Statute for a European company )
January 6, 2005... Article by Marine Guyon-Godet and Marie-Laure Larget-Bozonnet Council Regulation (EC) No. 2157/2001 of 8 October 2001 "on the Statute for a European company (SE1)" (the "Regulation") came into force on 8 October 2004 in all European Member...

New China Franchise Regulation To Be Effective February 1.
January 6, 2005... Introduction Over the past several years, developments regarding the adoption of a franchise law in China have taken various turns, culminating in significant activity in the last two months of 2004. As predicted in our December 3, 2004,...

Landmark Patent Ruling - Federal Circuit Overturns 20-Year-Old "Adverse Inference" Rule in Patent Litigation.
January 6, 2005... In September, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in a 10-1 decision overturned the rule that allowed the jury to draw an "adverse inference" against the patent infringement defendant if the defendant did not offer a patent legal...

Studio Legale Sutti Makes Two New Partners and Relocates its Office in Sofia.(Brief Article)
January 6, 2005... Studio Legale Sutti (http://www.sutti.com), the Italian firm operating the largest practice of the Balkans, with three offices in Bulgaria Serbia and Romania and more than forty local fee-earners, has made two new partners in Sofia, further to...

Goodbye NCIS, Hello SOCA!(National Criminal Intelligence Service )( Serious Organised Crime Agency )
January 6, 2005... Many UK solicitors will be under the impression that the forthcoming Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 will include nothing of relevance to them. That would be their first mistake! Not only will the proposed Act deal with serious...

Employers Must Review Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plans In Light of the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004.
January 7, 2005... By David O'Leary (Chicago) Originally published December 28, 2004 In response to actual and perceived abuses of nonqualified deferred compensation plans by companies such as Enron Corporation, Congress has enacted sweeping changes to...

Planned Community Names: Do You Own Them or Does The Community?(Trademarks)
January 7, 2005... Article by David M. Kelly and Todd A. Anthony* Originally published in The Real Estate Finance Journal, Spring 2004 Developing a planned community or resort isn't exactly a walk in the park. As a developer, you spend a great deal of...

Data Exclusivity - Its Interpretation and India.(Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights )
January 7, 2005... The Intellectual Property Regime in India is in the final stages of ensuring compliance with the standards agreed in the World Trade Organization's Agreement on the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights ('TRIPS'). Much...

U.S. Supreme Court Resolves Confusion Over Trademark Fair Use Doctrine.
January 7, 2005... Article by Diane Duhaime and Patrick Leary On December 8, 2004, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a slip opinion which resolves a dispute among the U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals regarding the trademark fair use doctrine. While a majority of...

The FCC's "Red Light" Rule Creates New Hurdle For Applicants.(Federal Communications Commission)
January 7, 2005... By Rebecca Foye Adams (Boston) Originally published 4th Quarter 2004 On November 1, 2004, the FCC's new "red light" rule went into effect. Under the "red light" rule, the FCC will withhold action on applications and other requests for...

Keep Your Returns Separate, Please: Kentucky law Barring Unitary Returns Upheld as Constitutional.(Tax returns)
January 7, 2005... A recently-enacted law which bars the filing of unitary Kentucky returns for tax years ending on or before December 31, 1995 has been held constitutional by the Franklin Circuit Court in Kentucky. In Johnson Controls, Inc. v. Commonwealth of...

Game is changing.(Insurance law)
January 7, 2005... Developing APES framework for insurance management There are three discernible levels for professional knowledge management of individuals education, training and continuous professional development. Insurance domain can be split into...

Internet tax Moratorium Extended Until 2007.
January 7, 2005... On December 3, 2004, President Bush signed S. 150, the "Internet Tax Nondiscrimination Act" into law. This bill was originally introduced in the Senate on January 13, 2003. On April 29, 2004, the Senate passed the bill by a 93-3 vote. The...

Michigan Court of Appeals Finds That the Presence of any Sales Force in Michigan Establishes Substantial Nexus for Purposes of Single Business tax.
January 7, 2005... The Michigan Court of Appeals recently rejected a taxpayer's claim that the size of a company's sales force in Michigan must be considered when determining whether a company has substantial nexus with Michigan. Rayovac Corporation v. Dep't of...

New York Loses Pennant Race, But Raises Minimum Wage.(New York Yankees)
January 7, 2005... By Colleen A. Sorrell (New York) Originally published January 2005 While it's not likely that the New York Yankees' losing the American League pennant to the Boston Red Sox had anything to do with the state's minimum wage, the...

Review of Financial Services & Markets Act 2000.
January 7, 2005... Since the Financial Services & Markets Act 2000 (''FSMA'') came into force on 1 December 2001 (the date known as N2) the Financial Services Authority (''FSA'') has continued its reform of the financial services industry through refinement of...

Security For Costs: Is Attack The Best Form Of Defence?(security for costs )
January 7, 2005... There are a host of tactical considerations to weigh up when a defendant wants to do more than merely defend a claim and decides to add counterclaims to his defence. One of the biggest considerations may be the risk of a successful security for...

Doubt as to Whether Sex Discrimination in the Insurance Industry is to be Outlawed.
January 7, 2005... Originally published in the summer edition of BLG Insurance Law Quarterly In November 2003 the European Commission presented a proposal for a Council directive (the ''Draft Directive'') on equal treatment for men and women outside the...

Intellectual Property Crime.
January 7, 2005... Authored by Sudhir Ravindran & S.A. Chenthil Kumaran Increasingly, the global economy is dependent upon the creation and distribution of intellectual property (IP) to drive economic growth.1 However markets are plagued by fakes be it...

SEC Postpones Deadline for Filing Internal Control Reports for Some Issuers.(Securities and Exchange Commission)
January 10, 2005... Originally published December 3, 2004 On November 30, 2004, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued an exemptive order granting certain accelerated filers an additional 45 days to comply with the requirement under Section 404 of the...

Key Telecommunications Legislation Approved During the Final Moments of the 108th Congress.
January 10, 2005... By Reginal Jay Leichty (Washington, D.C.)Originally published 4th Quarter 2004 Following a contentious and often gridlocked session, three pieces of key telecommunications legislation were sent to the President only moments before the...

Internet Tax Moratorium Extended for Three Years.
January 10, 2005... By Raymond P. Carpenter (Atlanta) and Eddie Williams (Tallahassee) Originally published 4th Quarter 2004 On December 3, 2004, President George W. Bush signed the Internet Tax Nondiscrimination Act (S. 150). The Act reinstates and...

Bosses Forced To Grant New Powers To The Workforce.(employment law Regulations )
January 10, 2005... Article by Russell Brown For many bosses, employees should be seen but not heard. However, from this April employers who believe that staff shouldn't have a say in the running of the business could be in for a shock. New employment...

Quebec Announces Increase to the Quebec Refundable Tax Credit for Film or Television Production Services.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2005... On December 30, 2004, the Quebec Minister of Finance, the Honourable Yves Seguin, on behalf of the Quebec Government, announced an increase in the rate of the Quebec Refundable Tax Credit for Film or Television Production Services from 11% to...

Toronto Stock Exchange Provides Clarification of New Rules for Security Based Compensation Arrangements.
January 10, 2005... Introduction The Toronto Stock Exchange (the "TSX") has issued a Staff Notice to provide clarification of the interpretation of recent amendments (the "Amendments") to its Company Manual relating to security based compensation arrangements...

Product Patent Regime & Pharmaceutical Industry In India - The Challenges Ahead.(Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights)
January 10, 2005... The Prologue With the nearing of the TRIPS deadline, the pharmaceutical industry in India is gearing up to face new challenges. The product patent regime is no longer the challenge - it is a reality that the Indian pharma industry has...

Emerging Communications: Enhanced Director Liability for Experts?
January 10, 2005... Published in The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel, January 2005. Sitting on a board of directors today is a more serious undertaking than ever before. The obligations, and potentially the liabilities, of directors have been significantly...

Pharmacapsules - December 2004.(Pharmaceutical Regulations)
January 10, 2005... Edited by Adrienne Blanchard and Jennifer Wilkie Contents Federal Government Proposes Changes To Pharmaceutical Regulations Health Canada Report On Clinical Trials Federal Government Response To Internet Pharmacy Developments...

Keeping Up With Corporate Governance.
January 10, 2005... Originally published December 2004 Corporate governance continues to be a hot topic: the post-Higgs Combined Code has completed its transitional period and a new UK Companies Act containing several significant measures has been passed...

Guidance For Employers Sick And Tired Of Long-Term Absent Staff.
January 10, 2005... The slogan "Work Is Good For You" sounds very much like those used by the Communist Chinese in the 1950s or George Orwell's Big Brother. In fact it's the banner for the Health & Safety Executive's (HSE) recent new initiative to encourage,...

Qualified Retirement Plans: December 2004 Developments.(401K plans and Internal Revenue Service)
January 10, 2005... IRS guidance for automatic rollovers has been issued (Notice 2005-5). The Department of Labor previously issued guidance establishing a fiduciary "safe harbor" for setting up the rollover IRAs needed to implement the EGTRRA requirement that...

The Devil in the Details: The Income/Franchise Component of California's tax Amnesty Program.
January 10, 2005... Article by Danald M. Griswold, Kimberley M. Reeder and Arthur R. Rosen On December 22, California's Franchise Tax Board (FTB) released the state's amnesty application for purposes of California's personal income and corporate...

Santa Comes Early for MBNA in West Virginia: State Rejects "Economic Nexus" Theory for Corporate Income and Business Franchise Taxes.
January 10, 2005... MBNA filed refund claims for the tax years in issue, asserting that because it had no physical presence in West Virginia, it lacked "substantial nexus" as required by the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. The Office of Tax...

One Statute, two Interpretations of Legislative Intent: The Georgia Courts Address the Research tax Credit.
January 10, 2005... The Georgia Court of Appeals in Georgia Department of Revenue v. Georgia Chemistry Council, Inc., No. A04A1602, 2004 Ga. App. LEXIS 1543 (Ga. Ct. App. Nov. 23, 2004), held that a Georgia Department of Revenue regulation requiring that a...

The Land Of The Loss: The Supreme Court Will Rule On Loss Causation.(Securities law)
January 10, 2005... On January 12, 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral argument in one of the most significant securities law cases to come before that Court in some time--a case concerning the parameters of "loss causation" (a key element of federal...

TRIPS: The Post-Doha Divide - Issues for LDCs.(less developed countries, Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights )
January 11, 2005... By Asaf Shamsi, B. Pharm., MBA Director, International Operations TRIPs, the intellectual property component of the Uruguay round GATT Treaty, gave rise to an acrimonious debate between the developed countries and less...

Segregated Portfolio Companies and Insurance.
January 11, 2005... The Cayman Islands has continued to improve its position as a jurisdiction of choice for captive insurance companies. As at 31 October 2004, 671 insurance captives were licensed by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority of which 50 were new...

Under Scrutiny: Governance in Canada.(Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002)
January 11, 2005... Published in Directors and Boards, Fall 2004. U.S. practices are having a significant impact, and other distinctive initiatives are under way to protect investors and rebuild confidence in the country's capital markets. Corporate...

Michigan Unclaimed Property Act Reduces Holding Periods and Alters Notification Requirements.
January 11, 2005... Effective October 12, 2004, Michigan's Senate Bill 1340 ("S.B. 1340") amended the Michigan Uniform Unclaimed Property Act (the "Act") to shorten the time period in which certain unclaimed property would be presumed abandoned and alter the...

New York Supreme Court Rules Against Sherwin-Williams.(taxation)
January 11, 2005... In Sherwin-Williams Co. v. Tax Appeals Tribunal of the Department of Taxation and Finance of the State of New York,1 the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court ruled against Sherwin-Williams, affirming the order of the lower court...

Taxpayers may use Industry Changes to Justify a Reduction in the True Value of Tangible Personal Property for Purposes of Ohio Personal Property tax.
January 11, 2005... The Ohio Board of Tax Appeals recently held that industry changes may support a finding that the use of the 302 computation to value tangible personal property produces an unjust and unreasonable result. However, the taxpayer still has the...

The FCC's E-rate Program: Alive and Kicking.(Federal Communications Commission)
January 12, 2005... By David Andrew O'Connor (Washington, D.C.)Originally published 4th Quarter 2004 Many schools and libraries across the country rely upon the federal funding program known as the "E-rate," which will soon enter its seventh year. This...

California Moves Towards Stricter Environmental Regulation of the Cruise Ship Industry.
January 12, 2005... By Robert Alfred Samuel Bleicher and Jennifer Kennedy (San Francisco) Originally published January 2005 The environmental activities of large seagoing vessels have become a focal point for legislation in California and on a national...

Using a 3-D View of Customers To Generate Profitable Growth.
January 12, 2005... By Ron Langford and Matt Hammerstein Ron Langford is a Managing Partner in Marakon Associates' (www.marakon.com) London office. He has advised CEOs and their teams in a wide range of industries, including financial services, chemicals,...

"A Review of Not-For-Profit Organisations, Their Giving, and the new Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism and Asset Freezing Legislation Implemented in the US, Canada, UK, France and Germany ".
January 12, 2005... Summary An examination of the implementation of money laundering laws in UK,US, Canada, France and Germany after 2001 appears to have succeeded only in psychologically allaying popular fear by visible actions that appear to be combating...

DTI Drops "due and careful enquiry" Standard for OFR.(operating and financial review, Department of Trade and Industry)
January 12, 2005... Originally published 26 November 2004 The DTI has announced how it proposes to proceed with regulations to require quoted companies to publish an operating and financial review ("OFR"). This follows its consultation and draft regulations...

SLOGANS: Can They Be Registered As Trade Marks?
January 12, 2005... A trade mark is a trader's badge of quality for its product or service, and a registered trade mark is a powerful legal right for its owner, who can prevent similar marks being used for similar goods. In some circumstances, possession of a...

OTS Approves Thrift Op Sub Holding Incidental Interest in Securities Partnership.
January 12, 2005... (Financial Services Alert - Developments of Note) The OTS issued an Order (#2004-61, the "Order") permitting a thrift to acquire an operating subsidiary registered under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (an "IA") that itself held 1.61%...

You Can't Take it With you: Net Loss Carryovers of a Merged Corporation Don't Carry Over to the Successor Corporation.
January 12, 2005... The Court of Appeals of Tennessee in AT&T Corp. v. Johnson, 2004 Tenn. App. LEXIS 214 (April 8, 2004) reaffirmed the Department of Revenue's position that a successor corporation cannot take advantage of net operating losses of a predecessor...

A Happy New Year? The Good News And The Not-So-Good News of 2005.(Environmental law)
January 12, 2005... Introduction In a previous Greenmail, we highlighted the introduction of Bill 133, the Environmental Enforcement Statute Law Amendment Act, 2004. Bill 133 introduces significant "Environmental Penalties" and increases the burden of...

Is Your Distribution or Licensing Relationship a "Franchise" Business? The Answer Might Surprise You.(Franchise Disclosure Act )
January 12, 2005... Your company has dealers, distributors or licensees, but you are not in the fast food or clothing business. So, is your company a franchisor? Ontario's broadly worded franchise legislation says it might be without your knowing it. This Bulletin...

Conducting Internal Investigations.(Corporate governance)
January 12, 2005... In the current regulatory environment, companies are increasingly conducting internal investigations focused on potential wrongdoing. U.S. laws and law enforcement agencies increasingly expect that companies will police their own conduct and...

Conducting Internal Ivestigations - Part 2.
January 12, 2005... IV. Gathering Documents Documents are a key part of almost all internal investigations. Documents often contain important information. Government law enforcement officials tend to place great weight on the documents. Documents can assist...

Major Amendments In The Indian Patents Law.
January 12, 2005... Preface On December 26, 2004 the President of India promulgated an Ordinance to amend the national patents law. The Ordinance came into force on January 1, 2005 marking the culmination of a decade long efforts by the Government of India to...

Checks and Balances, a new set of Rules for Taxation in Mexico*.
January 12, 2005... Article by Ricardo Leon-Santacruz** The last ten years have been maturing years for Mexico and its democracy. We have gone from a state controlled single party presidential system to a true democracy, in which a rebellious Congress seeks...