One of the biggest news reports in the region last week was the acquisition ofPorto Montenegro, the luxury yacht marina located in Tivat, by the View More
1 Which legislation sets out the regulatory framework for the marketing, authorisation and pricing of pharmaceutical products, including generic drugs? Which bodies are entrusted with enforcing these rules? The relevant legislation includes the following: • Law on Medicines 1996;
On Friday, April 27, 2016, a panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit declined to reevaluate the venue rules for patent litigation. In a closely watched case titled In re: TC Heartland LLC, petitioner TC Heartland requested that the Federal Circuit reshape patent litigation venue rules, and largely eliminate the ability of patent owners to file suit in popular venues like the Eastern District of Texas ...
BOTSWANA: Protocol to treaty between Botswana and Sweden enters into force The amending protocol to the Botswana/Sweden Income Tax Treaty (1992), which was signed on 20 February 2013, entered into force on 1 December 2015. The protocol generally applies from 1 December 2015 for the provisions on exchange of information and from 1 January 2016 for the remaining provisions ...
At the opening ceremony of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (“FOCAC”) summit held in Johannesburg in December 2015, the President of the People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping, announced that China intends to invest US$60-billion in Africa over the next three years. This undoubtedly reaffirms the commitment by China and Africa to bilateral cooperation, thereby furthering China’s “One Belt, One Road” foreign policy ...
The European Commission has presented an Action Plan setting out ways to reboot the current EU VAT system to make it simpler, more fraud-proof and business-friendly. The current VAT rules urgently need to be updated so they can better support the Single Market, facilitate cross-border trade and keep pace with today's digital and mobile economy ...
The United States Supreme Court agreed on Monday, May 2, 2016 to hear argument on what one party called “the single most vexing, unresolved question in all of copyright”—determining when a feature of a “useful article” like clothing is eligible for copyright protection ...
Recently, the Texas Supreme Court issued two very important decisions on First Amendment law that could have a broad impact on media companies doing business in Texas. Both cases evolved from defamation claims filed by Salem Abraham, a school board member in Canadian, Texas. Read the full alert ...
On April 19, 2016 Association of European Business (hereinafter – “AEB”) and the Russian Federal Antimonopoly Service (hereinafter – the “FAS”) presented the Code of Good Practice in the Pharmaceuticals Industry (hereinafter – the “Code”). The full text of the Code (both in Russian and English) is available at the official web-site of the antimonopoly authority (http://fas.gov.ru/documents/documentdetails.html?id=14513). Below is short outline of the Code. 1 ...
On April 18, the Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued revised guidance regarding exclusions imposed under section 1128(b)(7) of the Social Security Act ...
Following onrecent newsregarding the mutual desire of both sides to improve the commercial relations between Slovenia and Serbia, there are now additional reports to substantiate these claims ...
On 30 March 2016, a new Industrial Property Code (the “Code”) came into force in Mozambique. We draw your attention to the following noteworthy changes brought about by the Code: · The deadline for invalidating IP rights on the basis of prior conflicting rights has been shortened from one year to 90 days, calculated from the publication of the initial decision of the Industrial Property Institute (“IPI”) granting the IP right ...
A Chinese court recently ordered a Chinese company that had blatantly infringed one of the world’s better known trade marks to pay significant damages to the trade mark owner. African companies that have heeded their lawyers’ advice and registered their trade marks in China should take heart from this. The facts in this case are simple. The 3M Company has two Chinese trade mark registrations for the trade mark 3M ...
A recent European case in which Adidas successfully objected to a two-stripe device trade mark for footwear is interesting for us in Africa. For starters, it’s a welcome respite from the almost endless stream of bad news that we get from up north regarding non-traditional trade marks – shape trade marks seem to be having a particularly hard time at the moment ...
South African Minister of Economic Development, Ebrahim Patel, has announced that, from 1 May 2016, cartel conduct (price fixing, market allocation and collusive tendering) comprises criminal activity. Directors or persons with management responsibility who participate in cartel conduct or who are aware of cartel conduct and fail to take appropriate action can be criminally prosecuted ...
The fairly long waiting time for registration of trademarks at the Polish Patent Office often means that instead of seeking protection in Poland, businesses decide to register with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO, formerly OHIM). Although much more expensive, proceedings there are generally fast and simple. Major changes have now been made to Poland’s Industrial Property Law with the aim of making the Polish Patent Office more competitive with EUIPO ...
The unprecedented arrest of two public officials in connection with alleged municipal bond fraud further escalates the government’s relentless patrol of the municipal securities industry. On April 14, 2016, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) filed civil fraud charges against the town of Ramapo, New York, the Ramapo Local Development Corp ...
On April 4, 2016, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) filed a complaint against certain ValueAct entities (“ValueAct”) for failing to comply with the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended (“HSR Act”). Specifically, the DOJ alleges that ValueAct improperly relied on the “passive investment exemption” with respect to the acquisition of shares in Baker Hughes Incorporated (“Baker Hughes”) and Halliburton Company (“Halliburton”) ...
In the latest development in the Sun Capital litigation, following remand by the First Circuit Court of Appeals, on March 28, 2016, the Federal District Court of Massachusetts found Sun Capital Partners III, LP and Sun Capital Partners III QP, LP (collectively, “Sun Fund III”) and Sun Capital Partners IV, LP (“Sun Fund IV,” and together with Sun Fund III, the “Sun Funds”) liable for the withdrawal liability of Scott Brass Holding Corp ...
The Republic of Serbia's Commission for Protection of Competition, upon completion of an in-depth procedure, has approved Imlek's acquisition of Niška Mlekara's shares, making them 100% owners of this dairy company. The fulldecision document regarding this case has been published on the Commission'sofficial website ...
2015 was a record year in the Hungarian M&A market. Both in terms of value and number of transactions, 2015 was the best year since 2008, with approximately 160 closed transactions and an aggregate value of approximately EUR 2 billion. Although the acceleration follows global trends, the Hungarian market has a few specifics that will further enhance a growing M&A market in 2016 as well ...
The United States Department of Justice launched a one-year pilot program, effective April 5, 2016, incentivizing companies to disclose facts about corporate officers, supervisors, employees, and agents involved in violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. §§ 78dd-1, et seq. The FCPA makes it a crime for a U.S. citizen or entity, among others, to bribe a foreign official to gain a business advantage ...
Using the Infrastructure Development Partnership Law (Ley de Alianzas para el Desarrollo de Infraestructura Económica) enacted in 2010 and its specific Rules, the Guatemalan Government through the corresponding government agencies (Agencia Nacional de Alianzas para el Desarrollo de Infraestructura Económica – ANADIE and the Programa Nacional de la Competitividad – PRONACOM), is promoting a project portfolio under BOP scheme (built/operate/transfer) ...
