Traditional knowledge (TK), for example folklore, is a controversial issue and we’ve written about it before. The government feels that TK should be legally protected, and that this should be achieved through amendments to the intellectual property (IP) statutes. The IP community has no issue with TK being protected, but it’s not very comfortable with this being done through IP legislation ...
Recently, the Superior Court rendered a decision 1 which clarifies the extent of the discretion a court has when asked to ratify a hypothecary creditor's recommendation to appoint an employee of its legal counsel to act as the officer of the court entrusted with the sale by judiciary authority of the collateral secured in its favour. CONTEXT The Superior Court had to render judgment in five cases involving very similar facts ...
The New Amparo Law-On April 2, 2013, the Amparo Law, Regulatory of Articles 103 and 107 of the Constitution of the United Mexican Estates, was published in the Official Gazette of the Federation. This new law broadens the constitutional defense of rights, since more individuals can have access to the amparo actions ...
On March 26, 2013, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (“OSFI”), the Canadian bank regulator, issued an Advisory in which it identified the banks considered to be systematically important for Canada in accordance with the framework set out by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision. These banks are the Bank of Montreal, the Bank of Nova Scotia, the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, the National Bank of Canada, the Royal Bank of Canada and the Toronto-Dominion Bank ...
The Commodities Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”), pursuant to its rulemaking authority under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank”)1, has interpreted guarantees of swap agreements to fall under the definition of a swap,2 which means that any swap guarantor must be an “eligible contract participant” (“ECP”) at the time a swap is entered into (which may occur after the date on which the guarantee and related credit facility documents are entered
On March 22, 2013, the Department of Homeland Security ("DHS") announced that it will submit to the Office of Management and Budget ("OMB") a new Information Collection Request ("ICR") related to the implementation of the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards ("CFATS") Personnel Surety Program ("PSP"). DHS is soliciting comments during a 60-day public comment period (which ends May 21, 2013) prior to the submission of the ICR to OMB ...
In 2008 the government introduced important intellectual property (IP) legislation. The Intellectual Property Rights from Publicly Financed Research and Development Act 51 of 2008 - which only came into force on 2 August 2010 – governs the ownership and exploitation of IP which flows from publicly financed research and development (R&D) ...
Canadian ratification of the Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment and of the Protocol to the Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment on Matters Specific to Aircraft Equipment: This Bulletin is intended as a brief overview of the above-mentioned Convention and its Protocol and is not an in depth analysis of each of their provisions ...
According to December 2012 data from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate for Gulf War Era veterans, hovering around eight percent, remains higher than the national rate. Over the last decade, more than 2.3 million Americans were deployed to military duty in Iraq, Afghanistan or both. Of that total, more than 1 million have since left the military ...
Many banks formed holding companies in the late 1980s and 1990s. They had various reasons for doing this. Some formed a holding company to hold subsidiaries providing nonbank activities. Some used the holding company to reduce state taxes in states where banks are taxed differently. Some were acquisitive, and holding companies gave them more options in acquiring banks. Some thought the holding company would help improve the marketability of the stock ...
For the first time ever, North Carolina’s Business Court and Court of Appeals both upheld fiduciary duty claims against banks in late 2012. Debtors frequently employ such claims in an attempt to shift liability for failed projects to their lenders or to pressure lenders to settle problem loans in the wake of the financial downturn. Despite their ubiquity, breach of fiduciary duty claims had proven elusive for borrowers before October 2012 ...
It appears that the industry is starting to “enjoy” a modest increase in activity as to participations, assignments and syndications. This “enjoyment” is not without more than a fair share of trepidation and reluctance, but the allure of increased revenue is difficult to withstand. Regardless of this trepidation, participations, assignments, syndications and intercreditor agreements can be done safely and profitably ...
In 2008 the government introduced important intellectual property (IP) legislation. The Intellectual Property Rights from Publicly Financed Research and DevelopmentAct 51 of 2008 - which only came into force on 2 August 2010– governs the ownership and exploitation of IP which flows from publicly financed research and development (R&D) ...
A federal court jury in Illinois found that nursing home operator Momence Meadows fraudulently billed Medicare and Medicaid for “worthless services” and falsely certified compliance with health care laws and regulations, resulting in $28 million in damages to the government. United States ex rel. Absher v. Momence Meadows Nursing Ctr., Inc., No. 2:04-cv-02289 (C.D. Ill. Feb. 8, 2013) ...
On February 13, 2013, the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (the “Agency”) issued a new guidance (the “Guidance”) to clarify the interpretation that must be given to the Code of Conduct for the Credit and Debit Card Industry in Canada (the “Code”) with regard to three issues within the Canadian payment card industry (credit or debit cards) that, according to the Agency, are not in line with some of the key principles set out in the Code ...
The Comelec promulgated Resolution No. 9615 on 15 January 2013. This Resolution implements the provisions of Republic Act No. 9006, more popularly known as the Fair Election Act, for purposes of the 2013 national and local mid-term elections ...
It took thirteen years, four months, and five days of heated debates and passionate protests before the country’s first reproductive health law was passed. Four days shy of Christmas last year, President Aquino finally signed the 24-page bill into law. It is now Republic Act No. 10354 or The Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012 (RH Law). The passing of the RH Law, however, does by no means close this chapter of Philippine history ...
The quality of corporate governance practices increasingly represents a key factor to maintaining the trust of depositors, policyholders and most stakeholders who are active on capital markets. Considering the unique features of financial institutions and the risks arising from their responsibilities, some aspects of corporate governance are particularly important for these institutions, including banks, insurers, trust companies, loan companies and cooperative credit associations ...
Pursuant to new rules and interpretations issued by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) and the Securities Exchange Commission under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act1(together with related rules, regulations and interpretations, the “Dodd-Frank Act”), a “swap” has been interpreted to include any guarantee of a swap ...
Savings and Credit Entities (SCEs) are regulated financial institutions of private capital authorised to develop lending activities. The operation of SCEs is governed by the Law of Cooperative Banks and Savings and Credit Entities, which came into force on July 1 2001, amended in January 1 2009 to its current regime ...
On January 23, 2013, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC)1 issued a notice for comment on its proposed guidance, Social Media: Consumer Compliance Risk Management Guidance2 (the “Guidance”) ...
On February 12, 2013, in conjunction with the release of the Executive Order on Improving Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity (the Executive Order), President Obama signed a Presidential Policy Directive/PPD-21 on Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience. The PPD revokes the 2003 Homeland Security Presidential Directive-7 (issued by President George W ...
Sixteen years since the enactment of Law No. 7 of 1996 regarding Food (“the 1996 Food Law”), the Government issued the new Food Law (ie Law No. 18 of 2012) (“Food Law”) on 18 October 2012, two days after World Food Day. The Food Law replaces The 1996 Food Law. The Food Law covers three significant areas which were not governed by the 1996 Food Law, ie imports of food; the halal requirement; and the establishment of a new non-ministerial agency in-charge of food matters ...
