For the last several months, local and national economies have struggled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. To mitigate the downturn, the federal government reduced interest rates to near zero. This reduced rate has created a unique estate planning opportunity for individuals who hold assets they expect will appreciate, who wish to make lifetime gifts to their lineal descendants, and who wish to make such gifts without incurring annual or lifetime gift tax liability ...
Black Lives Matter. The lives of Black men matter. The lives of Black women matter. The lives of Black children matter. And the lives of a group that gets less attention in the national conversation also matter—the lives of Black Queer people matter. (I recognize that some may view the term “Queer” as pejorative, but I use that term here intentionally, as many in the Queer Community do, to embrace all who fall within the LGBTQ+ Community) ...
Cases challenging the constitutionality of state pass-through entity (PTE) nonresident owner withholding or composite return statutes are extremely rare. However, a recent Alabama Circuit Court decision, Black Eagle Minerals, LLC v. Alabama Department of Revenue, Case No. CV-2018-900328.00 (Cir. Ct. Montgomery County, Ala., July 27, 2020), highlights why such challenges may be more common when PTE composite returns are mandatory ...
By: Joshua M. Robbins, Michael C. Flynn, and Robert S. Gillison The past decade has taught lenders much about regulatory enforcement risk. In the fallout of the 2008 financial crisis and collapse of the housing and related markets, the Department of Justice and other agencies aggressively stepped up investigations of lenders seen as complicit in the misconduct of borrowers and others ...
In the recent case of Re Shum Tung Lam formerly known as Shum Wan Man [2020] HKCFI 1720, the Court of First Instance was asked to clarify the requirements under section 30A(6) of the Bankruptcy Ordinance (Cap. 6) (BO) which governs objections made by creditors or trustees to the automatic discharge of a bankrupt from bankruptcy ...
Under section 327 of the Companies (Winding Up and Miscellaneous Provisions) Ordinance (Cap. 32), the Court can exercise its discretion to wind up a foreign-incorporated company. A recent case reaffirms the three core requirements necessary to enable the court to exercise that discretion ...
In SC v OE1 & Anor, HCCT 48/2019 and OE1 & Anor v SC, HCCT 66/2019, the Court had to consider whether the arbitral Tribunal could make corrections to an arbitration award under Article 33(1)(a) of the Model Law (adopted in section 69 of the Arbitration Ordinance, Cap 609) because the award had failed to address two types of relief which had been claimed ...
In the recent case of Redland Precast Concrete Products (China) Ltd v Permasteelisa Hong Kong Ltd, HCCT 35/2018, the Court had to decide whether a contract existed between the Plaintiff and Defendant whereby the Defendant agreed to appoint the Plaintiff as its subcontractor for works to be carried out on a project ...
In the recent case of Atkins China Ltd v China State Construction Engineering (Hong Kong) Ltd, HCMP 1193 2020, the Plaintiff sought in its Originating Summons (i) a declaratory judgment that, as a matter of construction, a settlement agreement entered into between the parties had settled all claims and counterclaims arising under a Design Agreement; and (ii) a final injunction restraining the Defendant from taking further steps in the arbitration proceedings commenced in the name of the
On 12 September 2020, the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) reported 1007 new COVID-19 cases in the UAE. With the number of cases rising both within the UAE and in most other countries, the UAE government has reiterated the importance of adhering to preventive guidelines and has further placed safeguards, particularly in Abu Dhabi, to ensure that those traveling to the UAE are confined to prevent the transmission of the virus ...
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many hospitality professionals and their clients to confront bankruptcy, insolvency, and loan workout issues for the first time since the Great Recession. Chapter 11 presents a host of unique issues for hotels and other hospitality businesses ...
A GAO report was intended to shed some light the use of captives as abusive tax shelters. Instead it only risks perpetuating misunderstandings, says Bradley’s Davis Smith ...
IN BRIEF The current economic decline caused by the COVID-19 pandemic will result in a surge of debtors in need of bankruptcy protection. Subchapter V to the rescue! Despite some burdens on debtors, the advantages to individuals under Subchapter V will make it substantially easier for individuals to confirm Chapter 11 plans ...
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently adopted a new amendment that adds additional categories of persons eligible to meet the accredited investor definition, expanding the pool of capital available to the private capital markets. Background Under the Securities Act of 1933 (Act”), offerings for the sale of securities must be registered with the SEC ...
On August 3, 2020, the California Supreme Court issued its highly anticipated decision in Ixchel Pharma, LLC v. Biogen, Inc., clarifying the bounds of legitimate competition under California tort and antitrust law. The Court’s ruling generally came down in favor of encouraging competition, reducing claims for tortious interference with contract, and decreasing the risk of litigation arising from normal competitive activity ...
By: Michael Flynn and Melissa Richards Introduction California has enacted a new California Consumer Protection Law (CCFPL), California Financial Code Section 90001 et seq. The CCFPL will convert the Department of Business Oversight (DBO) into a new Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI). AB 1864 was sent to the California Governor on September 4, 2020 for signature, and he is expected to sign within thirty (30) days ...
The world continues to come to grips with the daily changes brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools contemplate opening. Some do, while others do not. Some professional and college sports teams play games to empty stadiums. Some businesses are open, with restrictions, while others are not. Lawsuits are being filed by businesses that think they should be permitted to reopen like their neighbors who already have ...
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has limited the use of “special remedies” by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) in a 3-0 decision issued on Sept. 4, 2020.[1] On April 4, 2019, the NLRB ordered the employer to remedy unfair labor practices committed during a union organizational drive.[2] As part of that decision, the Board refused to enforce a Gissel bargaining order that would have compelled the employer to recognize and bargain with the union ...
The DIFC has expanded the scope of the common reporting standards, meaning more people must make filings plus increased fines for non-compliance. With effect from 16 August 2020, DIFC Law 6 of 2020 (the CRS Law Amendment Law) was enacted to amend the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) Law, DIFC Law 2 of 2018 (the CRS Law). This enactment follows the issuance of the new CRS Regulations, which came into effect on 30 July 2020 ...
Federal Law No. 4 of 2020 on Guaranteeing Rights Related to Movables (the New Mortgage Law), which came into effect on 1 June 2020, has updated the regime for registering security interests over movable assets in the UAE. The new regime The New Mortgage Law repealed Federal Law No. 20 of 2016 on Mortgaging of Movable Property as Security for Debts (the Old Mortgage Law) ...
INTRODUCTION Information Communication Technology (ICT) has, without a doubt, greatly impacted virtually every industry, and the communications industry is no exception. Services such as bulk short message service (SMS), online games, data services, telemarketing, text messages and media messages, all of which are often referred to as Value Added Services (“VAS”), now constitute a part of our daily lives ...
The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has recently released its consultation conclusions on the proposed enhancements to the open-ended fund companies (OFC) regime. Highlights include: Removal of investment restrictions for private OFCs; Expansion of entities eligible to act as custodian of private OFCs; and Confirmation of the SFC’s intention to provide for a statutory mechanism to re-domicile overseas corporate funds to Hong Kong as OFCs ...
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued an order titled “Temporary Halt in Residential Evictions To Prevent the Further Spread of COVID-19” (“Order”) forbidding evictions of residential tenants who do not exceed certain income levels (generally $99,000 for an individual), are unable to make full rental payments due to substantial loss of income, loss of job, or extraordinary medical expense, and have exhausted all available governmental sources o
Key Points New California law prohibits residential evictions based on the non-payment of rent and other fees due between Mar. 1, 2020, and Jan. 31, 2021, if failure to pay is due to COVID-19 related distress. California courts may not issue summonses in any residential unlawful detainer actions based on non-payment until Oct. 5, 2020. New Order from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention halts evictions for tenants who meet specific requirements through Dec. 31, 2020 ...
