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 ...
On September 26, 2013 the Supreme Court released its decision in the Envision1 case. The case deals with the amalgamation of two credit unions, but has broader implications for the tax treatment of amalgamations in Canada, and will be of interest to Canadian corporations contemplating a merger in the future. In 2001, two BC credit unions amalgamated to form Envision. The transaction was undertaken for non-tax reasons, but structured to obtain a particular tax outcome ...
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 ...
If you made gifts in calendar year 2012 that should be reported on a federal gift tax return (Form 709) and you extended the deadline to file your gift tax return, the deadline to submit a timely-filed return is October 15, 2013 ...
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 ...
CONTENTS The Pros and Cons of Arbitration Clauses in Commercial Contracts Pirating and Using Software Without a Licence: The BSA The Software Alliance Case Interprovincial Taxation: The Importance of Severing Residential Ties on Departure Security Under Section 427 of the Bank Act: Do the Rights of a Bank Rank Ahead of Those of the Holder of a Retention Right? THE PROS AND CONS OF ARBITRATION CLAUSES IN COMMERCIAL CONTRACTS Catherine Méthot and André Paquette Arbitration clauses
The Nation published the result of a survey that basically asked two specific issues : (i) how easy (or clear) you think the tax system? and (ii) what is the main reason why some people evade taxes? Any analysis of the tax system should take into account an absolute truth: no one likes to pay taxes . As we have discussed on other occasions ... a person can understand why you pay taxes, but like ... or want to pay ... mmmm ... I do not think: that's another thing ...
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 ...
The UK Information Commissioner’s Office (the “ICO”) experienced a surprising setback recently after the Information Rights Tribunal (the “Tribunal”) ruled that a fine of £250,000 issued by the ICO in relation to a breach of the Data Protection Act 1998 (the “DPA”) by Scottish Borders Council (the “Council”) was excessive ...
The Philippine Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has recently implemented Revenue Regulations No. 18-2012 (RR 18-2012) directing all persons, whether private or government, to secure from the BIR a new Authority to Print (ATP) and to print new receipts/invoices starting July 1, 2013 ...
One of the more stirring reforms in the past two decades in the field of education is Republic Act 10533, or the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013 (“Enhanced Basic Education Act”) ...
On July 24, 2013 the First Circuit Court of Appeals, applying an “investment plus” test, concluded that a Sun Capital private equity investment fund was engaged in a “trade or business” for purposes of determining whether the fund could be jointly and severally liable under ERISA for the unfunded pension withdrawal liability of the portfolio company ...
The Financial Services Commission (“FSC”) which was established on April 1, 2011 under the Financial Services Commission Act, 2010-21 (the “Act”) has been mandated to, amongst other things, supervise and regulate the operations of the financial services sector other than the banking services ...
We are pleased to advise that, with effect from 15 May 2013, some important changes were made to the Virgin Islands Special Trusts Act (VISTA), the Trustee Act and various other British Virgin Islands statutes relating to the trusts and estates. The main changes include the following: 1 Amendments to VISTA 1 ...
IntroductionOn 6 June 2013 the Council of Ministers approved the bill to finalise the transposition of Directive 2003/49/ EC of the Council of 3 June into the IRC (corporate income tax) Code. The Directive, which establishes a common system of taxation applicable to interest and royalty payments made between associated companies of different Member States, is commonly known as the ‘Interest & Royalties Directive’ ...
Translation of the FAQ on the New Foreign Exchange Rules:What currency should be used to pay the salaries of employees in angola?The salaries of employees who are foreign exchange residents in Angola, irrespective of the sector of activity, must be paid in Kwanzas, the national currency. When Will i start to receive my salary in KWanzas?As of 1 July 2013, in accordance with the implementation calendar of Law 2/12 of 13 January, defined by Order no ...
The financial services sector tends to define “high-net-worth individual” (HNWI) asan individual or a family possessing substantial amount of investable funds. There is no generally accepted prefixed denominationof the size of wealth that an individual must possess in order to fall within this category. However, high net worth is commonly used in terms of liquid assets exceeding a certain amount while precise figures differ by financial institution and region ...
An American organization that finds itself involved in litigation in Canada, or an American attorney advising such an organization, will find most aspects of the Canadian civil justice system to be familiar. The legal systems of the two countries are comparable in many respects, they share common historical antecedents, and their core values are the same ...
Banks are classified into universal banks, commercial banks, thrift banks (composed of savings and mortgage banks, stock savings, loan associations and private development banks), rural banks, cooperative banks, and Islamic banks. The General Banking Law governs primarily universal and commercial banks, as well as cooperative banks ...
Serbia Following the last amendments to the tax laws, the Ministry of Finance has since prepared several rulebooks to help implement the amended legal provisions. Amongst these, the Rulebook on Transfer Pricing is the most important. Other rulebooks of the Ministry prescribe new forms of tax returns for tax payable on capital gains and income from the lease of movable and immovable assets, and newly introduced withholding tax on income from the sale of scrap and waste ...
The FCA’s new webpage, published on 24 July 2013, will record permissions and passports granted under the AIFM Directive. The FCA is currently updating the Financial Service Register to include firms which have been granted new permissions under the Directive, as well as any associated management passports. However, in the meantime, information will be published on the webpage. For more information in respect of the Directive, please visit our AIFMD microsite ...
The Court has now issued its written decision. This provides further analysis and confirms the position that we previously reported. Parties represented The Scottish Environment Protection Agency, Scottish Natural Heritage, East Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire Councils and the Lord Advocate on behalf of the Scottish Ministers were all represented at the hearing ...
