In November 2012, Lavery published a newsletter concerning the announcement made by the Harper government on October 24, 2012 of the adoption of new regulations to protect consumers who use prepaid credit cards so that they are better able to choose the forms of payment best suited to their needs. At that time, on October 27, 2012, the draft Prepaid Payment Products Regulations (the "Federal Regulations") were published for comment in Part I of the Canada Gazette ...
In 2012 the Western Cape High Court handed down a trade mark judgement that raised eyebrows. The facts were that the owner of a farm called Zonquasdrift had a trade mark registration for the mark Zonquasdrift covering wine (but not grapes). The owner of another farm in the area sold wine grapes under its name, Zonquasdrif Vineyards (no ‘t’ at the end) ...
The authorities seem to have gone on the offensive on the issue of counterfeits. In the run-up to Christmas, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has called on South Africans not to buy counterfeit goods, even if they are cheaper than the originals (as they invariably are) ...
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) has issued interpretive guidance regarding which Dodd-Frank1 requirements apply to certain non-U.S. swap transactions (the “Cross-Border Rule”).2 In order to facilitate parties’ compliance with the Cross Border Rule, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (“ISDA”) has published the ISDA 2013 DF Agreement for Non-U.S. Transactions (the “Non-U.S ...
On November 21, 2013, the Supreme Court of Canada issued its judgment in the case of La Souveraine, Compagnie d’assurance générale v. Autorité des marchés financiers, 2013 SCC 63, a decision which is now critically important in the context of the distribution of insurance products in Quebec ...
More than three years after first announcing that it was considering issuing regulations applying the Americans with Disabilities Act to websites, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) appears on the verge of announcing its proposed rules for website accessibility. While the DOJ originally stated that it anticipated issuing its Title II website accessibility rules for websites operated by state and local governments by November 2013, it now expects to issue these rules by the end of the year ...
Confirmation of the W.Va. Attorney General's Authority to Hire Private Counsel on Behalf of the State For more than a decade, the circuit courts in West Virginia have wrestled with the issue of whether the State Attorney General has the ability to retain private attorneys to pursue litigation on behalf of the State. The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia recently issued a decision confirming the Attorney General does, in fact, have that authority. In State of W. Va. ex rel ...
Over the last few years, the Canadian Council of Insurance Regulators1 (“CCIR”) has taken an active interest in the issue of the electronic commerce of insurance products and the necessity of ensuring the adequate protection of the interests of consumers in this context ...
In recognition of the increasing popularity in the market of asset-backed contribution arrangements (ABCs), the Pensions Regulator has issued detailed guidance for trustees considering using such a structure to fund their pension scheme. ABCs, in general terms, allow an employer operating a defined benefit pension scheme to use a non-cash asset to provide a regular income stream to the scheme without an outright disposal of the asset to the scheme ...
The Board of the Central Bank of Ecuador issued a new rule governing interest rates for late payment, which seeks to encourage timely payment of claims by customers of the institutions of the national financial system.The new rule establishes a scale of percentages to calculate the default rate of up to 10% in credit operations. The settlements will be made only for the amount due of principal and only from the date of non-payment until the day of fulfillment of obligations ...
A recent decision by the English High Court emphasises the limited scope of the duties on facility agents arising from standard facility terms. The role of facility agents in these circumstances has been found to be “solely mechanical and administrative” in nature. A link to the full text of the decision can be accessed here ...
A Report into effective approaches to audit committee reporting has been published by the Financial Reporting Lab, which is a forum set up by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) to encourage better communication between listed companies and investors in the UK. The aim of the Report is to provide insight from companies and investors on effective approaches to audit committee reporting ...
In a highly-anticipated and extremely significant pair of decisions for businesses and consumers alike, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) ruled on Thursday (October 31, 2013) that the ultimate consumers at the end of a supply chain can effectively leap-frog the supply chain by having direct legal recourse in a class action against a manufacturer who illegally overcharged for the product supplied ...
On October 25, 2013, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China passed an amendment to the P.R.C. Law on the Protection of Consumer Rights and Interests (the “Amendment”) ...
Whilst adding some clarity, the case doesn't make a "no MAC in financial condition" representation any easier for a lender to rely upon.MAC in loan agreementsMAC definitions come in many forms but generally refer to changes which have an adverse effect either on the borrower's business generally, its financial condition, and/or the ability of the lender to call on its security ...
Invoice financing includes factoring, invoice discounting and asset-based lending. It can be accessed by the SME and corporate market to unlock the value of unpaid debts and assets of a business, such as stock, plant and machinery.This type of financing has distinct advantages. In invoice discounting, funders may be able to offer up to 85% of the value of unpaid debts well before that debt is due to be paid. This dramatically reduces the credit cycle, getting cash back into the business sooner ...
FCA clarifies applications timetable The transitional period for the implementation of AIFMD in the UK ends on 22 July 2014 and existing alternative investment fund managers' (AIFMs) must hold the correct Part 4A permission by that date ...
As the fiscal year came an end at midnight on September 30, the House and Senate were unable to reach an agreement to fund the federal government and avoid a government shutdown. As a result, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has issued the order to implement the shutdown of the federal government. Although essential functions such as public safety and benefit payments will continue, the shutdown impacts all agencies funded through the annual appropriations process ...
After two years of operations, the SEC’s whistleblower program announced its first multimillion dollar award - a record $14 million payment to an anonymous tipster. The award is the largest of three announced since the program’s inception and emphatically signals the SEC’s continuing emphasis on its whistleblower program ...
When bankers and First Amendment lawyers encounter each other at cocktail parties, they can struggle to find common interests. Here is something to break the ice. In July 2010, President Obama signed into law the Dodd-Frank Act, the most comprehensive series of financial regulatory reform measures since the Great Depression. Just one year later, the United States Supreme Court issued Sorrell v. IMS Health, Inc., 131 S. Ct ...
The Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) has just enacted a revamped investor residency programme, entitling successful applicants to a permanent residence certificate (PRC). Qualifying criteriaThe qualifying criteria are:- Villasa. Investment of not less than $300,000 in actual construction of a new home, or in renovation of a distressed property as a home for the applicant and his or her dependants, on the islands of Grand Turk, Salt Cay, South Caicos, Middle Caicos or North Caicos; orb ...
Following a period of consultation, the Government has published regulations in relation to bridging pensions which will come into force on 1 October 2013. A number of pension schemes contain provisions dealing with bridging pensions, where a greater pension is paid from the scheme until the member reaches state pension age. As the state pension age is due to be increased over time the original provisions may no longer be appropriate ...
Trusts and Private Foundations often serve the same purposes. One transfers goods (money, real estate, shares, etc.) to an Private Foundation or trustee to be managed for the benefit of one or more others. Those “others” can be the ones who have transferred the goods to the trustee or the Private Foundation, but not necessarily so ...
A creditor affected by asset-stripping by a debtor doesn’t have to remain a passive victim of dishonesty. Creditors have probably had trouble since time immemorial with dishonest debtors—ones who deliberately and unlawfully attempt to escape from their obligations ...
