Latest updates
Rusnano Capital AG decision
Ogier- Litigation
- Guernsey
- 31 March 2020
In a recent case, the Guernsey Court of Appeal upheld the deputy bailiff's interpretation of Section 53(3) of the Trusts (Guernsey) Law 2007 that a sole beneficiary can use that section of the law to terminate a discretionary trust even if the trust instrument contains a power to add further beneficiaries.
Burden of proof remains with shipowner in proving terminal operator liability
AKD- Litigation
- Netherlands
- 31 March 2020
The loading and unloading of cargo from ships is a key element in the transport chain. However, ships are sometimes damaged during these operations. This raises the question of whether – and on what grounds – a terminal operator can be successfully held liable for such damage. A recent Rotterdam District Court decision upheld the standard of liability established in Dutch case law, confirming that the burden of proof lies with the shipowner when it comes to demonstrating terminal operator liability.
COVID-19: how franchise and distribution networks can respond
Fieldfisher LLP- Franchising
- United Kingdom
- 31 March 2020
There is no one-size-fits-all plan for how businesses should respond to the COVID-19 crisis. However, this article provides some guidance for businesses which are primarily consumer focused and use franchise and distribution networks to sell their products and services in order to help them to respond to the challenges ahead and hopefully even emerge on a stronger footing than before.
COVID-19 and the courts: a headlong journey into remoteness
RPC- Litigation
- United Kingdom
- 31 March 2020
The English civil justice system has shown itself to be capable of rapid change as it adapts to the new reality caused by COVID-19. The clarion call from the English courts is that they are open for business, driven by the need to maintain the access to justice which is vital for the functioning of civil society. However, this will not be an easy task and it would be naive to think that there will not be teething problems during the move into a new era of conducting litigation in new ways.
Motor insurance: recent regulatory changes
Tuli & Co- Insurance
- India
- 31 March 2020
The Indian motor insurance framework underwent a variety of key developments in 2019, including the introduction of standalone own damage cover, the extension of the present insurance framework on ads to point-of-sales persons and registered automobile dealerships and the notification of an amendment to the Motor Vehicles Act 1988.
Litigation in the time of coronavirus (brief update)
RPC- Litigation
- Hong Kong
- 31 March 2020
The 'general adjourned period' (GAP) during which the courts in Hong Kong have been closed, save for urgent and essential court business, has been extended to 13 April 2020. The GAP is a consequence of the extraordinary measures adopted in Hong Kong to combat the coronavirus public health emergency.
High court grants injunction to restrain winding-up proceeding based on disputed adjudication decision
Gan Partnership- Litigation
- Malaysia
- 31 March 2020
The high court recently delivered a significant decision for the construction industry regarding contractors' cash flow. This decision is welcome as it has laid down clear directions for stakeholders in the construction sector when they are faced with payment and financing issues, as well as for litigants. Further, this decision highlights the importance of conducting preliminary assessments to determine suitable dispute resolution avenues – namely, adjudication, litigation or arbitration.
Insurability of corporate fines: new draft law's implications for insurance industry
Arnecke Sibeth Dabelstein- Insurance
- Germany
- 31 March 2020
In 2019 the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection presented its draft bill for a new and independent law on corporate penalties. Pursuant to the draft bill, considerable fines may be imposed not only on the persons involved in wrongdoing, but also on companies. This will significantly affect insurance cover, especially in the areas of professional indemnity and directors' and officers' insurance.
COVID-19 update
Carey Olsen Bermuda- Corporate & Commercial
- Bermuda
- 30 March 2020
The Bermuda Registrar of Companies and the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) recently issued information on the steps that they have taken to protect the public and ensure the continuity of business in Bermuda as it responds to the coronavirus. The registrar has implemented contingency measures to protect staff and members of the public, while the BMA has activated its business continuity plan and implemented social distancing protocols and remote working options for all external meetings.
Supreme Court clarifies contractual penalties for energy consumers
Kubas Kos Gałkowski- Energy & Natural Resources
- Poland
- 30 March 2020
The Supreme Court recently held that imposing a contractual penalty on energy consumers due to the early termination of a contract for energy supply is prohibited. This latest ruling seems to change the current interpretation of the legal provisions on the possibility of imposing a contractual penalty on acceptance in the case of early termination of a contract which was concluded for a fixed period.
Federal Court of Appeal remands Remicade new use patent decision on anticipation and obviousness
Smart & Biggar- Intellectual Property
- Canada
- 30 March 2020
In 2018 the Federal Court found that Kennedy's new use patent for infliximab (Janssen's Remicade) was valid and had been infringed by Hospira's biosimilar Inflectra. However, in January 2020 the Federal Court of Appeal released a decision remitting for reconsideration by the trial judge certain issues relating to the validity of Canadian Patent 2,261,630.
Five steps to avoid insider fraud
- White Collar Crime
- Jersey
- 30 March 2020
Insider fraud is a problem that persists at all levels of society, irrespective of whether the entity has commercial or altruistic motives. This begs the question of what internal controls and procedures employers in any sector can implement to reduce the risk of insider fraud. This article outlines five steps which could significantly reduce the risk for businesses of any size or type.
Supreme Court clarifies that relevant contractual provisions can supersede Environmental Code
Advokatfirman Lindahl- Environment & Climate Change
- Sweden
- 30 March 2020
The Supreme Court recently clarified that Chapter 32 of the Environmental Code can be applied between contracting parties and that it is possible to derogate from those provisions and even exclude their application through contractual provisions. While this ruling confirms that a contracting party can safely rely on terms which modify the liability rules in the Environmental Code, it also highlights the importance of ensuring that such provisions are clearly worded and well understood.
Pirated goods – risks for everyone involved
A & K Metaxopoulos & Partners Law Firm- Intellectual Property
- Greece
- 30 March 2020
Trading in pirated and counterfeit goods is widespread in many countries, including Greece. As such, the Trademark Law and the Copyright Law set out significant penalties (eg, long-term imprisonment) and high fines for anyone using, exploiting, putting on the market, selling, distributing or possessing with the intent to distribute to the public products that infringe the trademarks or copyrights of third parties.
Updated trademark rules: electronic filing, applicant email and specimens
Venable LLP- Intellectual Property
- USA
- 30 March 2020
The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has enacted a series of rule changes that will have a significant impact on trademark filers. The widest-scale change is the requirement for electronic filing of all submissions to the USPTO. However, additional application and specimen requirements are likely to have a greater effect on applicants, as compared with prior practice.
Solar FIT decommissioning fee
Nishimura & Asahi- Energy & Natural Resources
- Japan
- 30 March 2020
Since April 2018, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) has required business operators involved in solar power generation to set aside a certain amount of funds in preparation for the decommissioning of solar power plants. However, as of January 2019, less than 5% of business operators had complied with this rule. As such, METI established a working group to tackle the problems with the discretionary decommissioning reserve regime.
Capacity Market: consultation on future improvements
CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP- Energy & Natural Resources
- United Kingdom
- 30 March 2020
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy recently ran its Capacity Market consultation on future improvements. Following the consultation, the government will now seek to make the necessary amendments to the Electricity Capacity Regulations and the Capacity Market Rules, before the prequalification window for the T-4 2024/25 and T-1 2021/22 auctions open in Summer 2020.
Article 4 of new Trademark Law: an efficient weapon against bad-faith trademark filings
Wanhuida Intellectual Property- Intellectual Property
- China
- 30 March 2020
The fourth amendment of the Trademark Law came into force on 1 November 2019. The revised Article 4 of the law now states that a "trademark filed in bad faith without intention to use shall be rejected". This modified version is also mentioned in Article 44.1 of the law, which provides that any trademark registered in violation of Article 4 and any trademark registered by fraudulent or unfair means will be declared invalid.
New personal information security specification released
AnJie Law Firm- Tech, Data, Telecoms & Media
- China
- 27 March 2020
The State Administration for Market Regulation and the Standardisation Administration recently released a national standard circular to announce that the Information Security Technology – Personal Information Security Specification (Specification 2020) and seven additional national standards have been issued and will take effect on 1 October 2020. Specification 2020 was revised based on the Information Security Technology – Personal Information Security Specification which came into effect in 2018.
Banking regulation in Croatia – an overview
Macesic & Partners- Banking
- Croatia
- 27 March 2020
This article provides an overview of banking regulation in Croatia, including which authorities govern banking regulation and what the central bank's role is therein, the type of licence required to conduct banking services and what the application process is like, the forms of bank which can operate in Croatia and how are they regulated and how the Croatian regulatory regime distinguishes between different forms of bank.
