Mondaq Business Briefing articles from June 2007

Mondaq Business Briefing archives from June 2007

Cartel Regulation In The United Kingdom.( )
June 1, 2007... Article by Simon Holmes, Antonia Horrocks and Mark Gardner "An extract from The 2007 European Antitrust Review, a Global Competition Review special report - www.globalcompetitionreview.com" The OFT is now using its new powers ...

Is Treasury Adding Value As It Should?: Strategy And Benchmark Practices.
June 1, 2007... Modern treasury strategy must demonstrably match the needs of the company and meet the expectations of a wide set of stakeholders, as well as fundamentally support the business. Treasury functions also face the added pressure of...

International Identity Of The Isle Of Man Recognised.
June 1, 2007... A landmark declaration recognising that the Isle of Man has its own identity and interests in the international arena is announced today (Tuesday May 1, 2007). The framework of principles agreed by the governments of the United Kingdom and...

USERRA And The Five-Year Rule.(Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act)(Law overview)
June 1, 2007... More than five years after September 11, 2001 and the ensuing military engagements, many employers are facing the decision of what, if anything, they can or should do about employees who have been on military leave for more than five years. The...

Multiconsult Newsletter, April 2007.(Mauritius tax policy)(Editorial)
June 1, 2007... Editorial Small offshore jurisdictions are sometimes subject to negative public comments. One of the criticisms levelled at them is that they are tax havens, a term loaded with many undertones, such as being an ideal location for money...

The Growth Of Investment Funds In Guernsey.(Ozannes)(Brief article)
June 1, 2007... Investment funds are an established but continuously growing industry in Guernsey because of the attractiveness of the territory as an offshore jurisdiction and its tax regime. Ozannes specialise in the establishment of private equity funds,...

Engineer's Responsibility For Temporary Works.(Hart Investments v. Fidler)
June 1, 2007... An engineer engaged to provide design services for permanent works may also owe a duty to his employer for temporary works, even if the employer's brief does not specifically refer to temporary works. In Hart Investments v Fidler the court...

Supreme Court Restricts Time Frame For Bringing Discriminatory Pay Suits.
June 1, 2007... By Proskauer Rose LLP's Labor & Employment Practice Group In a significant victory for employers, the Supreme Court, on May 29, 2007, rejected an employee's claim that she should be permitted to sue for intentional pay discrimination that...

The Brave New World Of Employment Verification Under The "Grand Compromise".
June 1, 2007... At the core of the "Grand Compromise" bi-partisan comprehensive immigration reform bill in the U.S. Senate is a paradigm shift in assigning responsibility for assuring that all U.S. employees are authorized workers. Under current law,...

CompAct - Q&As On The 2006 Companies Act.
June 1, 2007... The Questions Directors 1. There is now a minimum age for appointment as a director, but is there a maximum age? 2. What has to be included within the Register of Directors? 3. Are directors' residential addresses now...

Fluid Prospects - Results Of The Water UK City Conference 2007 Survey.(Conference news)
June 1, 2007... Water UK City Conference 2007 Introduction Deloitte was delighted to be involved with the 7th annual Water UK City Conference held on the 8th February 2007. More than 100 people from across the water industry attended the event despite...

Rule 10b5-1 Plans Under Scrutiny: The Next Executive Stock-Timing Story.
June 1, 2007... A recent academic study suggests that returns on trades by public-company executives under so-called "10b5-1" prearranged trading plans beat the market by significantly more than executive trades made outside of such plans. Although the...

New Employment-Related Legislation.
June 1, 2007... Article by Robert Hill and Nick Dent Summarised below are the key employment law changes which came into force in April 2007: 1 April The rate of statutory paternity pay, maternity allowance, statutory adoption pay and the basic...

Hedge Fund Manager Fined For Violating HSR Act By Exercising Stock Options.(Hart-Scott-Rodino Act)
June 1, 2007... On May 21, 2007, the Justice Department (following a request by the Federal Trade Commission) charged a hedge fund manager with failing to comply with the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act notification and waiting period requirements before...

Legal Implications Of Employee Blogs.
June 1, 2007... Web logs, or "blogs," have gained enormous popularity over the last few years. From traditional journalism to consumer marketing, few communications channels have escaped their impact. This is particularly the case in corporate America. Many...

SanDisk v. STMicroeletronics Announces A "Sweeping Change" To The Declaratory Judgment Standard In Patent Cases.
June 1, 2007... A recent Federal Circuit decision, SanDisk Corp. v. STMicroelectronics, Inc., announced a new declaratory judgment standard in patent cases, expanding the rights of potential licensees to file preemptive complaints against patent owners. ...

Outsourcing: FSA To Apply MiFID Connect Industry Guidance.(Financial Services Authority, Markets in Financial Instruments Directive)
June 1, 2007... The FSA has announced it will take account of industry guidance issued by MiFID Connect in its supervision of outsourcing by firms. This is part of the regulator's recent move to more 'principles-based' regulation. MiFID Connect MiFID...

Delaware Bankruptcy Court Considers Whether Key Employee Incentive Plan Milestones Can Be Lowered Without Triggering The Restrictions On Retention Plans.
June 1, 2007... Originally Posted in Cooley Godward Kronish LLP's In The (Red) Business Bankruptcy Blog, May 29, 2007 One of the significant changes made by the Bankruptcy Code amendments that took effect in October 2005 was the imposition of severe...

SEC Proposes Regulatory And Offering Relief For Smaller Companies.
June 1, 2007... At its open meeting held on May 23, 2007, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed new rules for public comment that, if adopted, will bring about meaningful changes in reporting and offering requirements and exemptions for smaller...

Privacy In The Workplace.
June 1, 2007... Lynette Copland, a secretary at Carmarthenshire College, was awarded 3,000 euros plus costs of double that by the European Court of Human Rights in the case of Copland v UK after succeeding in a challenge against her employer and the UK...

Don't Forget To File HSR: Hedge Fund Director Fined $250,000 For Alleged HSR Violations.
June 1, 2007... On May 21, 2007, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a complaint in U.S. District court to obtain civil penalties against James Dondero, a hedge fund director of Highland Capital Management (Highland), for violating premerger...

Department Of Labor Seeks Comments On Proposed Changes To Child Labor Laws.
June 1, 2007... On April 17, 2007, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued notice of proposed changes to the child labor regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Wage and Hour Division Administrator Paul DeCamp described the changes as "the most...

Developments In Turkish Insolvency Law.
June 4, 2007... It has been an exciting time from a Turkish insolvency point of view. The law governing Turkish insolvency procedures known as the Execution and Bankruptcy law (the EBL) (Icra Iflas Kanunu) has in recent years been amended twice and has...

Project Finance Transactions Under Turkish Law.
June 4, 2007... Introduction and general information The explosion seen in the use of project finance techniques all around the world in the late 1980s and 1990s, has meant people are tempted to regard the financing of projects on a limited or non-recourse...

Boutique Fund Administrators Begin To Make Their Mark.
June 4, 2007... Ever-changing, forward-thinking legislation and increasingly straightforward regulation, is making it simpler and easier to establish new funds in Guernsey. The introduction of the PCC concept, the success of the Qualifying Investor Funds and...

Protection of Mark - A Growing Concern.(Intel Corp. v. A. Sailesh)
June 4, 2007... Trademark has become an integral part of every business concern and now a day the predicament is not with registration of the mark but as to its protection. Trademark infringements have emerged as a fertile ground of litigation. The trademark...

Copper, Crooks, Conversion and Hedging - A Cautionary Tale.(Trafi gura Beheer BV & Anor v. Mediterranean Shipping Company)
June 4, 2007... By Electra Panayotopoulos and Alex Moulsdale In Trafi gura Beheer BV & Anor -v- Mediterranean Shipping Company ([2007] EWHC 944 (Comm)) Aikens J considered several undecided issues of law as well as decided cases such as the Happy Ranger...

Supreme Court's Dismissal of Antitrust Conspiracy Complaint May Ease Path for Early Dismissals Of Weak Claims Generally.
June 4, 2007... On May 21, 2007, the United States Supreme Court in Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly (No. 05- 1126) dismissed a Sherman Act s. 1 antitrust conspiracy claim brought in a putative customer class action against various "Baby Bell" telephone...

New CIS - 40% Of Construction Companies At Risk Of Losing Gross Payment Status.(Construction Information Service)
June 4, 2007... By Isobel d'Inverno and Laura Wilkinson Under new CIS, construction companies must meet a much stricter compliance test to retain gross payment status which is a rolling review looking back over the last 12 months. HMRC ran the new...

Money Matters.(financial services regulations in Guernsey)
June 4, 2007... This article was originally published in Country Life, May 2007. Guernsey's numbers are staggering. Banks based in the Island hold more than [pounds sterling]92bn worth of deposits; the local fiduciary sector has more than [pounds...

The Cutting Edge.(investment fund industry regulations)
June 4, 2007... This article was originally published in HFM Week, May 2007. Guernsey's investment fund industry is booming. The substantial growth that was a feature of 2005 continued throughout 2006, pushing levels of business to record highs and this...

Pre-Action Protocol: Cost Penalties.
June 4, 2007... Article by Peter Mansfield and Rob Morris A recent case shows that a claimant who issues proceedings without following pre-action protocol procedure can be penalized on costs at an interim stage; even though proceedings are to be stayed to...

Freedom Of Information Act: Public Service Broadcasting.(United Kingdom Freedom of Information Act 2000, British Broadcasting Corp.)
June 4, 2007... The High Court, in its first judgement on the Freedom of Information Act 2000("FOIA"), has considered a fundamental jurisdictional issue in addition to widening the scope of what information falls within the ambit of "journalism", to which the...

Mortgage Law Will Accelerate The Flow Of Foreign Capital Into Turkey.
June 5, 2007... The new mortgage law in Turkey sets new standards for the housing finance system and introduces new capital market instruments. The lack in Turkey of a proper housing finance system, and the consequential high occurrence of irregular and...

Patent Appeal Board Considers The Patentability Of Financial Service Innovations.(Canadian Patent Appeal Board)
June 5, 2007... The Canadian Patent Appeal Board, in two recent decisions, has reversed the examiner's rejections of applications regarding certain financial service-related innovations. The decisions are particularly noteworthy for the Board's strong...

News In The Legislature And In The Courts.
June 5, 2007... Federal Legislative Proposal Canadian government proposes new Fisheries Act, 2007 The Department of Fisheries and Oceans recently proposed Bill C-45, the Fisheries Act, 2007 (New FA). It is designed to revoke and replace the 138-year...

IFRS For Financial Instruments: Technical Accountants And Financial Instrument Experts Providing IFRS Advisory Services.(International Financial Reporting Standards)
June 5, 2007... The rapidly shifting sands of the financial reporting landscape has led to a huge growth in demand for client facing, expert IFRS advice and project services. This is particularly true in the complex area of financial instrument accounting....

Intellectual Property Update: Statement Of IP Principles Released.
June 5, 2007... Background On 11 May 2007, the Attorney-General, the Hon Philip Ruddock MP, released the Statement of IP Principles. The Statement of IP Principles is an IP Policy which provides a framework for effective management of Intellectual...

Use Of Isle of Man Vehicles For AIM Listings.
June 5, 2007... Introduction AIM is becoming an increasingly popular option for companies looking to raise capital. A growing number of new floats have been Isle of Man companies and this suggests that international businesses are realising the advantages...

European Litigation Trends.
June 5, 2007... Article by Gillian Eastwood, Stephane Benouville, Christian Duve, Enrico Castellani, Hub Harmeling & Vicente Sierra An overview of collective actions and D & O liabilities in England, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain ...

Gowers Review Of Intellectual Property.
June 5, 2007... It may have gone largely unnoticed, but the publication in December 2006 of the Gowers Review of Intellectual Property (the "Review"), is one of the most important reports issued in relation to Intellectual Property ("IP") in the United...

Jersey Limited Partnerships.(Jersey's Economic Development Department)
June 5, 2007... Proposed amendments are likely to add to the attractiveness of Jersey limited partnership law, thereby helping to ensure that the island remains competitive in this area. The proposed amendments are included in a position paper authored by the...

Isle Of Man Aircraft Register.
June 5, 2007... Background The Isle of Man Aircraft Register became operational on 1st May 2007. Within two days of the launch of the register, three Cessna Citation Jets had been registered in the Isle of Man and it is anticipated that there will be a...

Audit Exemption.(Isle of Man Companies Acts 1931-2004)
June 5, 2007... Requirements for audit exemption A private company incorporated under the Isle of Man Companies Acts 1931-2004 which qualifies as an "audit exempt company" may, by members resolution, elect to dispense with compliance with the requirements...

Climate Change.
June 5, 2007... The consultation process for the draft Climate Change Bill, which was published in March, is well underway. The deadline for submissions is 12 June. The UK Government published the draft Climate Change Bill in March, aiming to set the UK...

Milk Prices Take A Step In The Right Direction.
June 5, 2007... The announcement by Tesco to give milk suppliers a base price of 22ppl could be a turning point for all involved if everyone in the supply chain is open and transparent. Extraordinary things have been taking place in the UK milk supply...

CMS Proposes Payment Change For Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities.(Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)
June 5, 2007... The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently proposed a new rule that would update payment rates and policies for inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs). Under the proposed rule, payment to IRFs would increase by 3.3...

Protected Cell Companies In The Isle of Man.
June 5, 2007... The Legislation There are two regimes governing the formation and operation of protected cell companies ("PCCs") in the Isle of Man. Which regime is applicable will depend upon whether the company in question is incorporated under the Isle...

E-Discovery - The Changing Face Of Litigation.
June 5, 2007... By Weston Rudd and Rinus de Waal, Calgary1 Generally, every party to a lawsuit is required to list all "records" (the physical representation or record of any information, data or other thing that is or is capable of being represented or...

Tax Focus - A Summary Of Current Tax Issues For Companies, June 2007.
June 5, 2007... Changes to clearance processes for financial transactions In this year's Budget it was announced that HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) could speed up its procedures for allowing relief from UK tax for loan interest paid to non-residents, and to...

The Real Lessons of "Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Inc." : What the Supreme Court Decided.(Case overview)
June 5, 2007... On May 29, 2007, the Supreme Court announced its decision in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Inc., limiting the potential liability of employers for pay discrimination under Title VII. The fact pattern it considered is rather common,...

Tender Offers in Italy.
June 5, 2007... Italy has not yet implemented the Directive on Takeover Bids (Directive 2004/25/EC, the "Directive") in its internal legal system.1 However, Italian tender offer rules currently in force, as set forth in Legislative Decree no. 58 of February...

Tax Update, 4 June 2007.(United Kingdom Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs )
June 5, 2007... 1. Jones v Garnett (Artic Systems Ltd) The House of Lords will hear the appeal from 5 to 7 June. This is the case where HMRC argued that dividends paid to Mrs Jones were assessable on Mr Jones under the settlement legislation. 2....

Proposed NYSE Broker Voting Rule Revised.(New York Stock Exchange)
June 5, 2007... On May 23, 2007, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) revised a previously proposed amendment to Rule 452 ("Giving Proxies by Member Organizations"), the NYSE rule that governs when brokers may submit proxies without having received voting...

Nuclear - Clarification Of Risks For Private Sector Investment.
June 5, 2007... The Government has published a Consultation on the Future of Nuclear Power alongside its Energy White Paper published on 23rd May ( Click Here to link to previous Law Now article). The consultation primarily deals with the option of private...

Paying An Adjudicator To Release His Decision Imperils It.(United Kingdom Construction Act 1998)
June 5, 2007... Last week the TCC declined to enforce another adjudicator's decision. The case is interesting for three reasons: It is yet another recent case highlighting when the Construction Act does not apply to letters of intent (LOIs). While the LOI...

Legislative and Regulatory Recommendations Of Isle Of Man Funds Review Group.
June 5, 2007... The Isle of Man funds industry has been the subject of a recent high level review to identify how the Island can continue to expand the size and increase the quality of the business. The Funds Review Group, as it is known, is comprised of...

Channel Islands Review - Ozannes.(Brief article)
June 5, 2007... Investment funds are an established but continuously growing industry in Guernsey because of the attractiveness of the territory as an offshore jurisdiction and its tax regime. Ozannes specialise in the establishment of private equity funds,...

The Isle Of Man From The Perspective Of A Fund Manager.
June 5, 2007... Despite modern communication systems, financial businesses generally prefer to have a physical presence in the largest cities around the world. This is entirely logical. Major trading centres have evolved over many years as a natural place to...

Why Isle Of Man? - From The Perspective Of A Fund Administrator.
June 5, 2007... As a participant in the hedge fund industry, you'll likely be a highly commercially focused person with very little time for detailed jurisdictional reviews. As a cut to the chase, this short article aims to answer why should you consider Isle...

SEC Proposes Amendments To Capital Raising & Reporting Rules For Smaller Companies & Approves Guidance On Compliance With Section 404 Of SOX.
June 5, 2007... On May 23, 2007, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") proposed a series of measures aimed at modernizing and improving certain requirements with respect to the capital raising and reporting requirements for smaller companies. On...

Supreme Court Reverses Federal Circuit, This Time On Obviousness.(KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc.)
June 5, 2007... A unanimous U.S. Supreme Court criticized application of the Federal Circuit's "teaching, suggestion or motivation" (TSM) test for obviousness. While describing the TSM test, originally articulated by the Court of Customs and Patent Appeals...

The Legend Of The Golden Master Lives On-Supreme Court Limits The Reach Of s. 271 (f).(Case study)
June 5, 2007... Continuing a string of reversals of Federal Circuit decisions, the U.S. Supreme Court once again reversed the Federal Circuit in holding that under 35 U.S.C. s. 271 (f) software per se does not qualify as a "component" and that software copies...

Federal Circuit Enters The Post-KSR Obviousness Era.(Leapfrog Enterprises, Inc. v. Fisher-Price and Mattel, Inc.,)(KSR v. Teleflex)(Case overview)
June 5, 2007... With the Supreme Court decision in KSR v. Teleflex barely ten days old, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, looked to the "goal" of a claimed invention and held that the invention would have been obvious over a combination of...

China Update: Chinese Real Estate.
June 5, 2007... China's New Property Right Law The PRC Property Right Law ("Property Law") was promulgated and approved by the National People's Congress ("NPC") on March 16, 2007 and will become effective from October 1, 2007. The Property Law, which...

Merchant Liability for Security Breaches.
June 5, 2007... In the world of security breach, the momentum has clearly shifted to the states, maybe this time for good. More than thirty-five states have already enacted breach-notification statutes. This trend may be unstoppable, with Congress unable to...

TSX Amends Rules On Normal Course Issuer Bids.
June 5, 2007... Article by Pamela Hughes and Chris Hewat, [c] 2007, Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP Originally published in Blakes Bulletin on Securities Law, May 2007 BACKGROUND The Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) has adopted and the Ontario...

Canadian Government Withdraws Proposal To Restrict Interest Deductions.
June 5, 2007... Article by Bryan Bailey, Leslie Morgan, Kathleen Penny, Ron Richler, Paul Stepak, Paul Tamaki, Jeffrey Trossman and Chris Van Loan, [c] 2007, Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP Originally published in Blakes Bulletin on Tax, May 2007 On May...

Employment Law: Breaking The Continuity Of Employment.
June 5, 2007... Introduction Section 31B of the Hong Kong Employment Ordinance provides that an employee employed for a minimum of 24 months under a continuous contract will be entitled to severance payment if he is dismissed by reason of redundancy or...

Generic Manufacturers May Not Be Required to Address All Listed Patents.
June 6, 2007... The Supreme Court of Canada's decision in AstraZeneca1 has now been judicially interpreted by the Federal Court of Canada, for the first time. The implications are far-reaching for companies that rely on the regulatory regime established by the...

Enforcement Of Foreign Non-Monetary Judgments.(Pro Swing Inc. v Elta Golf Inc.)
June 6, 2007... Article by Barry Leon and Sarah Huggins Originally published in IBA Legal Practice Division Litigation Committee Newsletter, May 2007. In late 2006, the Supreme Court of Canada decided that foreign non-monetary judgments should be...

Abuse Of Dominance In Canada: What Lies Ahead?
June 6, 2007... Abuse of dominance continues to be a focus of debate and attention in Canada (as it is throughout the international competition law community). In June 2006, the Federal Court of Appeal ("FCA") issued its decision requiring the Competition...

Cartels: An Enforcement Priority.
June 6, 2007... The Commissioner of Competition (the "Commissioner") has identified cartels, and particularly domestic cartels, as a top enforcement priority for the Competition Bureau (the "Bureau"). The Commissioner also has stated that she will continue to...

Merger Review: Issues Facing Domestic And Foreign M&A.
June 6, 2007... The past year saw several important developments in merger review under the Competition Act. Perhaps most notable, however, was the degree of attention paid to the review process under the Investment Canada Act, which reached unprecedented...

Regulated Markets: Competition Bureau Targets Professionals.
June 6, 2007... Every Commissioner of Competition ("Commissioner") in Canada eventually develops an enforcement theme for his/her tenure in office. The previous Commissioner, Konrad von Finckenstein, devoted much time and energy (some would say too much) to...

Finding Anonymous Wrongdoers - The e-commerce Context.
June 6, 2007... Originally published in BLG's Technology Law Review, Summer 2007 How do you find out who has made an anonymous bulletin board posting? What if an unknown person has leaked a confidential e-mail to someone? There is a legal remedy which can...

Using Electronic Records In Patent Proceedings.
June 6, 2007... Originally published in Managing Intellectual Property's World IP Contacts Handbook, 14th edition, 2007. In Canada, a patent granting exclusive property to a claimed invention can be obtained only if the applicant complies with all the...

Special Report On Cross-Border Compensation And Pension Issues: Participation Of Canadian Employees In Cross-Border Plans - Impact of Proposed Non-Resident Trust Tax Legislation.
June 6, 2007... Article by Blakes Pension & Employee Benefits Group, [c] 2007, Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP Originally published in Blakes Bulletin on Pension & Employee Benefits, May 2007 INTRODUCTION On November 9, 2006, the Canadian Department...

Overseas Investment By Venture Capital Funds.(Brief article)
June 6, 2007... The Reserve Bank of India ("RBI") has, vide its circular dated 30th April 2007, and in consultation with the Securities and Exchange Board of India ("SEBI"), decided to permit investment by Indian Venture Capital Funds (VCFs), registered with...

Extension Of Credit Facilties To Overseas Step-Down Subsidiaries Of Indian Corporates.
June 6, 2007... In order to facilitate the expansion of the business of Indian corporates abroad, the Reserve Bank of India ("RBI") had on 6th November 2006 enhanced the prudential limit on credit and non-credit facilities extended by Indian banks to Indian...

Climate Change: Directors Take Note...
June 6, 2007... Originally published in BLG's Directors' and Officers' Liability Review, Summer 2007 It is now accepted that the global climate is changing and that man-made carbon emissions are the cause. The February 2007 report of the Intergovernmental...

SEC And PCAOB Reform And Harmonize SOX 404 Requirements.(Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002)
June 6, 2007... As anticipated, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board ("PCAOB") each has acted unanimously on outstanding proposals to reform and harmonize their guidance to public companies and public...

On Your Marks, Get Set, Go! The Race To Recognition.
June 6, 2007... The Australian Trade Marks Register is full of life; bursting with a rainbow of colours and a wide range of shapes, sounds, and even smells. It has become a critical focus of many leading businesses as a powerful tool to recognise, record, and...

Building And Construction Update.
June 6, 2007... Enforcing bank guarantees under construction contracts The double-edged sword of proportionate liability - when should principals 'contract out' of the Civil Liability Act? Enforcing bank guarantees under construction contracts ...