Employment law expert, Mirko Kovač, attended a Roundtable discussion on the new Law on Conditions for Secondment of Employees Abroad and their Protection organised by the Ministry of Labour on 13 January 2016. Our office previously analysed this law in more detail and additional information on the novelties it introduces may be found on our website (http://www.karanovic-nikolic.com/2015/11/16/serbia-adopts-law-on-conditions-for-secondment-of-employees-abroad-and-their-protection/ ) ...
There has been a lot of talk recently about launching of the EU’s procedure for monitoring compliance with the rule of law in Poland, but not much about what exactly the procedure is. Observing the rule of law is a condition for joining and being a member of the European Union. Democracy, human rights and the rule of law are also enshrined in the preamble to the European Convention on Human Rights. Because the rule of law is one of the fundamental values of the EU defined in Art ...
2015 was an eventful year for government contractors as the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) finalized several key rules related to contractors’ relationships with employees and job applicants. With more rules expected to be finalized in 2016, the OFCCP will exercise increasing oversight over contractors’ activities ...
The purpose of this newsletter is to raise the awareness of employers regarding the problems related to making knowledge of English a requirement for employment ...
On February 12, 2016, the recently constituted Philippine Competition Commission (“PCC”), which was created under the Philippine Competition Act (Republic Act 10667 or the “PCA”), issued Memorandum Circular No ...
Termination of electricity supply due to non-payment of an electricity account A landlord may not, without a court order, terminate the supply of electricity to premises leased to a tenant who is in arrears with monthly electricity payments. This is according to the recent High Court judgment in the matter of Anva Properties CC vs End Street Enterprises CC (22109/2014, 14 April 2015) ...
The confusing definition of “instalment sale agreements” in the Act In terms of the National Credit Act (“the Act”), an instalment agreement is defined as a sale of movable property. From the definition, it would seem that instalment sale agreements over immovable property are excluded from the Act; however, this is not the case ...
As part of the nuclear arrangement reached with Iran, the United States rescinded its nuclear-related sanctions imposed on entities outside the United States on January 16, 2016, which is the so-called “Implementation Day” under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (“JCPOA”). At the same time, the United States also lifted sanctions on foreign subsidiaries of U.S. companies. Apart from a few specific exceptions, however, including new exceptions for U.S ...
A new bill on restrictive employment covenants has been adopted. Restrictive covenants concluded after 1 January 2016 will be subject to the new rules. We have listed some of the key changes below. Non-competition clauses can now only be entered into with employees who hold a very special position of trust. Previously, it was only a requirement that the employee held a special position of trust ...
On January 11, 2016, Vadim Kazenelson, a project manager for Metron Construction Corporation (“Metron”), was sentenced to three and a half years in prison.1 This sentence follows the decision rendered on June 26, 2015 in which the Superior Court of Ontario found Mr. Kazenelson guilty of the five charges against him, including four counts of criminal negligence causing death and one count of criminal negligence causing bodily harm ...
The filing window for Fiscal Year 2017 for Cap-Subject H-1B petitions – those subject to the annual numerical limit (the “Cap”) – will open on April 1, 2016. Given recent trends, the number of filed petitions is expected to again exceed the Cap. Over the last three years, the Cap has been reached within the first week of the April filing period ...
The recent Memorandum of Understanding (the “MOU”) between the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and Department of Labor (“DOL”) reinvigorated the Worker Endangerment Initiative by “redoubling” the agencies’ cooperative “efforts to hold accountable those who unlawfully jeopardize workers’ health and safety,” Deputy Attorney General Sally Quillian Yates announced on December 17, 2015. An accompanying memorandum sent to all 93 U.S ...
What will happen if the objectives of the Paris Climate Agreement are not achieved? Most people assume that since the agreement is non-binding, failure to reach the targets will necessitate new political action, writes Lucas Bergkamp, Partner at the Brussels-based law firm Hunton & Williams LL.P. But according to Bergkamp, what is likely to happen is that climate activists will instead turn to the judiciary to enforce the treaty ...
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) of the United States Department of the Treasury issued a “Geographic Targeting Order” on January 13, 2016, aimed at curbing money laundering in the real estate sector. The targeting order is an expression of the Treasury’s power under 31 U.S.C. § 5326 of the Bank Secrecy Act and will affect all-cash purchases of real estate valued at $3 million or more in Manhattan and $1 million or more in Miami-Dade County ...
On Tuesday, December 22, 2105, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued a much- anticipated opinion regarding the constitutionality of the prohibition against “disparaging” trademarks. In an 9-3 en banc opinion, the Federal Circuit held that the exclusion of disparaging trademarks under Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act violates the First Amendment.Many of the marks rejected as disparaging convey hurtful speech that harms members of stigmatized communities ...
On December 18, Congress voted to reauthorize the Immigrant Investor (EB-5) Pilot Program without change through September 30, 2016. The EB-5 program was scheduled to sunset on September 30, 2015 but was granted two short-term reprieves while lawmakers debated several changes which would have made investing in the program more difficult, including increases to the minimum investment amount and restrictions on the calculation of indirect job creation ...
In February 2015, the report on the public enquiry of the fire commissioner concerning the fire that occurred on January 23, 2014, at the Résidence du Havre at L’Isle-Verte, which resulted in the death of thirty-two residents, was tabled1 ...
The current Constitution of Ecuador was enacted in 2008. In the past seven years it had few changes. The last one was introduced by a resolution of the National Assembly (Congress), which was issued on December 21th 2015. This last amendments are: Reelection of popular election authorities (elected by voting).- The amendments allows to the current authorities to run as candidates to be re-elected indefinitely ...
Two recent Labour Court decisions have highlighted the duty of trade unions and their officials to act to prevent unprotected strikes and unlawful actions during the course of a strike. These add to the growing list of decisions in which the court has indicated that it will hold unions accountable for unlawful acts by their members ...
A number of recently announced initiatives could introduce potentially significant changes to the rules governing the workforce in the UAE. Earlier this year, the Ministry of Labour promulgated Ministerial Resolutions Nos. 764, 765 and 766 of 2015. According to the reports of Ministry of Labour spokesmen that appeared in the local press, the new resolutions were designed to deter a number of undesirable practices ...
LCS has provided a 2015 Taiwan Employment Law Update. 1. Five-Day Workweek to Kick Off Next Year An amendment to the Labor Standards Act (the "LSA") will take effect on January 1, 2016, paving the way for a five-day workweek and for working hours per week to be reduced to 40 hours. The LSA currently sets a ceiling of regular working hours of 84 hours fortnightly. 2 ...
Equity crowdfunding will soon have a new framework in which to operate in Canada and this is excellent news for investors and startups alike ...
Last April 27, the Court of Appeal of Quebec dismissed the appeal, from the bench, by the Attorney General of Quebec concerning the use of English trademarks on public signs ...
The Parliament of the Republic of Serbia adopted the Law on Conditions for Secondment of Employees Abroad and their Protection (the “Law”). The Law will be applicable two months following its coming into force, i.e. 13 January 2016. The Law regulates the secondment of employees abroad in a more modern manner compared to the currently applicable Law on Protection of Citizens of FR of Yugoslavia working abroad ...
UPDATE: On December 21, 2015, Common Pleas Judge Joseph James struck down the employee sick leave ordinance, ruling that Pittsburgh’s City Council lacked authority to “to enact any ordinance determining any duty, responsibility or requirement of a business or private employer.” The ordinance would have required employers of more than 15 employees to provide up to 40 hours of paid sick leave per year and smaller employers to offer up to 24 hours of paid sick leave ...
