The government have announced a variety of new immigration routes aimed at assisting businesses to fill labour shortages and plug the gaps left by Brexit. Here we summarise the changes that come into force in April 2022. The Home Office released the statement of changes to the immigration rules on 15 March 2022 with details of the new routes that will open to applicants from 11 April 2022 ...
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, many individuals are being called up to defend their home countries. This has left employers wondering whether they are obligated to release those employees from employment. In the UK, if an employee is mobilised for full-time service in the UK armed forced, there are rules in place to protect an employee’s employment ...
On April 2, 2022, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (the “CSRC”) published the revised Provisions on Strengthening Confidentiality and Archives Administration of Overseas Securities Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies (Draft for Comments) (the “Draft Archives Rules”). The Draft Archives Rules is now open for public consultations until April 17, 2022 ...
HM Treasury has recently published the outcome of its UK Prospectus Regime Review. The Review Outcome sets out important reforms to the UK prospectus regime for the public issuance of securities and admission to trading on capital markets, outlining the policy approach the UK Government will take following last year's Prospectus Regime Review consultation. This briefing note sets out the key measures confirmed by the UK Government in the Review Outcome ...
Republic Act No. 11659 (“RA 11659”) or “An Act Amending Commonwealth Act No. 146 otherwise known as the Public Service Act” as amended, was signed into law by President Rodrigo Duterte on 21 March 2022. The amendment of the Public Service Act was made pursuant to the State’s policy of encouraging private enterprise and expanding the base of investment in the country, with the goal of providing efficient, reliable, and affordable services to all ...
A recent decision by the First District Court of Appeal reversing workers’ compensation coverage for injuries sustained by an employee while driving a company vehicle for an HVAC company illustrates the challenges in determining when work begins and ends for employees who are allowed to take company vehicles home ...
By Aukjen Ingraham · Listen to articleBoth in-house counsel and law firms face an acute problem today: It's difficult for attorneys to gain trial experience or to hire other attorneys who have that experience. Fewer cases are being tried, and the cases that are tried are riskier, creating a challenging environment for those who want to gain more courtroom experience ...
In light of the current geopolitical situation, the severe US and EU sanctions, and Russian counter sanctions imposed in response, many international companies have already announced their plans either to leave the Russian market, or to temporarily suspend their business operations in Russia. The current unprecedented situation is a great challenge for companies, since it requires complex decisions to be made, in a very short time ...
Following the Scottish Government’s statement on 15 March 2022 regarding COVID-19 restrictions, organisations should take time to review the status of recently eased restrictions, and those which are to be eased in the coming weeks. These changes will be of particular relevance to businesses and employers throughout Scotland, who should follow the up-to-date guidance when dealing with employees and customers alike ...
Agricultural and rural settings present significant health and safety risks, which must be carefully managed and mitigated by employers and landowners operating in the sector. This was brought into sharp focus after two fatalities led to prosecutions following investigations by The Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Prosecution one In February, a farmer was prosecuted after a tragic fatal incident on farmland in Leeds ...
The proposal for a directive on the recovery and resolution of insurance and reinsurance companies enshrines the no creditor worse off principle as provided for in the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (“BRRD”). This opens the door for the Portuguese legislature to repeat the mistakes it made when incorporating the BRRD into Portuguese law ...
Economic sanctions The sanctions imposed by the UK, European Union and US following the recent invasion of Ukraine by Russia target the Russian economy. Whilst Russia is the largest country in the world, in terms of the global economy it only made up 3.11% of Global GDP in 2020. The sanctions imposed however will still have wide ranging impacts on all areas of the global market, and can already be seen in dramatically rising energy prices ...
Key Points The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that the City of Salinas's challenged zoning ordinance did not violate the "substantial burden" provision of the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 ("RLUIPA") but that it did violate the "equal terms" provision ...
[!<CDATA[ A recent decision by the Eleventh Circuit (the federal appeals court supervising trial courts in Florida, Georgia, and Alabama) sheds light on at least one way that insurers with complicated policies (and a host of exclusions) may avoid providing coverage and defense resources to insured material suppliers whose products are the focus of defect claims. In Morgan Concrete Company v ...
[!<CDATA[ A recent opinion from the Court of Appeals of Texas provides clarification regarding a contractor’s right to payment where the adequacy of the work performed is challenged and an owner attempts to rely on a satisfaction clause to withhold payment. It also sheds light, in the context of complex construction contracts, on the common contract requirement that the contractor must “strictly comply” with the Contract requirements. In Turner v ...
[!<CDATA[ Generally, the government has immunity from being sued with some exceptions grounded in statute or case law. Having a contract with the federal government is one such exception, and an interrelated exception falls under the Severin doctrine ...
During the US President’s visit to Brussels, President Biden and President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, stated on Friday 25 March that the parties have agreed on the main principles of a new agreement on the protection of personal data transferred to the United States. While a concrete agreement text has not yet been published, the US White House has published a Fact Sheet explaining the key principles to be expected in the final framework ...
Dear valued clients, colleagues and friends,The issue of whether an employee is transferred or seconded can sometimes prove rather contentious. In a transfer, the employment relationship to transferred to the new employer (i.e. the original company is no longer the employer), whereas in a secondment situation, the employee remains under the employment of the original company but may perform work for the secondee company ...
Over the years, the Quebec courts have repeatedly stated that dismissed employees have a duty to mitigate the damages they suffer as a result of a dismissal. This obligation, which is now codified in the Civil Code of Québec,1 has been adapted to the circumstances of the cases over which the courts have presided. The question, then, is whether the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to have an impact on a dismissed employee?s obligation to mitigate damages ...
On March 15, 2022, President Biden signed an omnibus spending package for the upcoming fiscal year. Included in its nearly 3,000 pages is a reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). As reauthorized, VAWA includes numerous safeguards to protect women and other victims of gender violence nationwide ...
The joint employer rule has been a hot topic in the last several years, mostly in the context of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Recall the drama of the Trump administration's narrower definition of a joint employer for wage purposes, followed by the Biden administration's almost immediate rescission of that rule. Gig economy workers have battled about overtime and their entitlement to it under the FLSA's definitions ...
When it comes to continuing disclosure, two of the more common “material events” to occur are rating changes and the incurrence of a “financial obligation.” As a general matter, these are reportable events that should be posted to Electronic Municipal Market Access (EMMA). However, as a practical matter, these material events are frequently overlooked ...
On March 15, 2022, President Joe Biden signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022, which was passed by Congress on March 8, 2022 (CAA). The CAA temporarily extends meaningful changes for reimbursement of Medicare services delivered via telehealth. All CAA provisions regarding telehealth amendments will last for 151 days following the expiration of the Public Health Emergency (PHE), which is currently set for April 16, 2022 ...
Working remotely combined with “The Great Resignation” has raised questions about how employers can best protect their business interests in this new world of work. Rewind a few years and most employees were physically attending the workplace every day, which in turn made it easier for employers to monitor the work being carried out by their employees and ensure that confidential files were locked away safely ...
