The Competition Commission of Mauritius (“CCM”) has issued acommuniquéon 9 April 2020 stating that it understands that: enterprises may have to collaborate during these uncertain times in order to ensure provision of essential products and services; certain prohibitions as contained under the Competition Act 2007 (the “Act”) may create uncertainty as to what may be permissible in terms of collaboration in the context of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) ...
The outbreak of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the incidental measures adopted by the Mauritian government represent serious potential impact for financial institutions in general. Below, we examine the recourses available to borrowers facing financial hardship as a result of the pandemic and its aftermath. We consider only credit facilities, that is, agreements by which financial institutions advance money to their clients for repayment either in instalments or at term ...
In response to efforts to curb the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, the Ministry of Health published regulations providing for the closure of various places including bars, schools and institutions of higher learning, bars, cinema halls, shopping malls, arcades, hardware shops, all shops and stores selling non- food items, salons, gymnasiums, massage parlours, hotels and lodging houses, motor repair workshops and garages, with a few exceptions ...
The recent Constitutional Court judgment inNational Director of Public Prosecutions v Botha N.O. and Anotherconsidered the issue of whether a proportionality analysis is required for the forfeiture of unlawful proceeds in terms of section 50(1)(b) of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act, 1998 (“POCA”) ...
What Is It? On April 9, the Federal Reserve Board revealed details about the previously announced Main Street Lending Program. Even larger than the Paycheck Protection Program, the Main Street Lending Program is geared toward mid-sized businesses. Its principal purpose is to get 4-year loans with deferred principal and interest payments to mid-sized businesses with up to 10,000 employees or less than $2.5 billion in revenue ...
Law Decree n. 23 of 8 April 2020 (the “Liquidity Decree”) has introduced significant changes to the socalled “golden power rules” and to the disclosure duty of relevant shareholdings in listed companies. These rules are aimed at discouraging “predatory purchases” of Italian strategic and listed companies in times when their share price may be particularly depressed due to the COVID-19 emergency ...
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, signed into law March 27, 2020, provides $2 trillion in relief funds for individuals and businesses, including $500 billion in direct aid for large companies and more than $300 billion for small companies. Businesses applying for and receiving funds under the CARES Act should be mindful of risks associated with stringent government oversight and inevitable investigations targeting waste, fraud, and abuse ...
Background On 15 February 2019, a petition for a judicial review was submitted by two individuals (“Petitioners”), claiming that their constitutional rights had been violated by Article 15 (2) and Article 15 (3) of Law No. 42 of 1999 on Fiduciary Security (“Fiduciary Security Law”) ...
Following the announcement of economic measures aimed towards responding to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Serbian Government issued two regulations on 10 April 2020 that determine the conditions and criteria for compliance of the state aid (i) for remedying the negative effects caused byCOVID-19 and (ii) for remedying a serious disturbance in the economy caused byCOVID-19, whereas both regulations will be valid until 1 July 2021 ...
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is devoting significant resources to combat deceptive COVID-19 advertising in a range of industries as consumer complaints to the FTC pick up steam. Companies are shifting marketing spend to cover COVID-19 messaging and should be mindful of the FTC’s increased scrutiny. Through April 9, 2020, the FTC has received 15,006 consumer complaints relating to COVID-19 advertising and business activities ...
Across the country, construction projects of every nature are impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The situation and governmental response to the pandemic continue to evolve, and owners must keep abreast of these changes to ensure they manage their construction projects appropriately. There are a litany of issues, legal and practical, that owners need to assess when deciding how to manage ongoing projects and those in the pipeline ...
In passing the $2.2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES), Congress provided much-needed relief to project owners by making it easier to modify construction loans. Under the Act, an owner may qualify for a forbearance arrangement, an interest rate modification, or a repayment plan, among other options, and the modification does not adversely impact the credit of the borrower ...
The IRS continues to provide clarity regarding application of the various Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security ("CARES Act") modifications to the Internal Revenue Code (the "Code") (see prior coverage here). In addition to recent guidance regarding bonus depreciation, the IRS on April 9 released Rev. Proc. 2020-24 and Notice 2020-26, both of which address CARES Act amendments applicable to net operating losses ("NOLs") ...
By means of the Decree 531, 2020 issued by the Ministry of the Interior under the economic, social and ecological emergency, the national government extended the current mandatory preventive isolation from April 13 at 00:00 hours until April 27 at 00:00 hours to continue the mitigation process of the sanitary emergency caused by the Covid-19. Pursuant to this Decree, the free circulation of individuals is restricted in the entire country ...
By means of Decree 106 of 2020, it is ordered to give continuation to the mandatory preventive isolation in Bogotá D.C., from April 13, 2020, until April 27, 2020. This, taking into account that it was instructed by the president of the Republic, as a measure to avoid the extension of the COVID-19 contagion, within the framework of the declaration of economic, social and ecological emergency declared in the national territory ...
In this Informative Guide you will find important information about the following: tourist stays, visas and residence permits, work permits, traveling, and mobility inside the country including curfews, circulation permits (Salvoconductos), and driver’s licenses. Tourist stays Panamanian authorities have informed that tourist who have expired stays from 13 March 2020, as a consequence of the Covid-19, will not be fined. And they will be able to circulate ...
1. Force Majeure - Meaning. The term ‘force majeure’ translates literally from French assuperior force. It is also generally defined in the Merriam Webster dictionary as ‘an event or effect that cannot be reasonably anticipated or controlled’ ...
TOP STORY: Coronavirus (COVID-19) In recognition of the unique hardships presented by Novel Coronavirus/COVID-19, the SEC has issued a variety of relief orders across the securities industries. Many of these have come in the form of deadline exemptions or extensions. Our newsletter is focused on providing updates and information primarily concerning the investment advisory business ...
Due to the current lockdown, companies were not able to hold shareholders meetings and pass resolutions on certain matters requiring urgent attention/approval of the shareholders. With a view to facilitate such companies, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has issued a recent circular no. 14 of 2020on April 8, 2020 permittingcompanies to convenetheirExtraordinary General Meetings (EGM)s through video conferencing or other audio-visual means ...
The Financial Services Authority (Otoritas Jasa Keuangan/“OJK”) recently issued OJK Regulation Number 12/POJK.03/2020 of 2020 on the Consolidation of Commercial Banks (“OJK Reg 12/2020”). This new regulation aims for strengthening the structure, resilience, and competitiveness of the national banking industry to support national economic stability and growth through the strengthening of bank capital and the consolidation of banks in Indonesia ...
With the UAE in virtual lockdown and the majority of businesses required to operate remotely, an increasing number of documents are required to be signed electronically. Although electronic signatures were not commonly used prior to the onset of COVID-19 in the UAE, the legal framework for the use of electronic signatures has been in place for quite some time ...
The Government of Serbia adoptedthe Regulation on Fiscal Benefits and Direct Aid to Private Sector Entities and Financial Aid to Citizens to Mitigate the Economic Impact ofCOVID-19 (“Regulation”) on 10 April 2020, ten days after the announcement of the proposalof the Program of economic measures aimedat reducing the negative effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Regulation provides tax benefits and direct payments to private sector companies ...
The health crisis caused by COVID-19 (better known as “Coronavirus”) has had a significant impact on both global and local trade. In our country, the first case, which was confirmed on March 9, triggered the implementation of significant sanitary measures that led to the necessary temporary closure of multiple enterprises, as well as limited the movement of the population, and restricted commercial [1] and governmental [2] activity ...
