As we discussed in prior updates, on July 13, 2022, Christian Bruckner filed a lawsuit in the federal district court in Tampa, Florida, seeking to enjoin the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act’s set-aside of 10% (around $37 billion) of transportation funding for “small business concerns” owned and controlled by “socially and economically disadvantaged individuals ...
On October 28, 2022, the Department of Defense’s amendments to FAR 52.212-3 and FAR 52.219-1 became effective. These changes amended the Federal Acquisition Regulations to be in line with prior changes by the SBA to its mentor-protégé program, and recognize that a mentor-protégé joint venture qualifies for a socioeconomic program (8(a), HUBZone, WOSB, etc.) if one of the parties to the joint venture meets the associated requirements of the socioeconomic program ...
On 17 November 2022, the State Administration Council (“SAC”) enacted the Law Amending the 2022 Union Tax Law (“2022 UTL Amendment”). This law provides tax exemptions for Battery Electric Vehicles (“BEVs”) and increases the corporate income tax rate of companies engaged in the oil and gas exploration and production sector in Myanmar. We highlight below the major changes under this law: 1 ...
Following the 2018 enactment of regulations governing contractual terms contained in vehicle hire-purchase agreements, the Office of the Consumer Protection Board (“OCPB”) has recently resolved to adjust such regulatory scheme as part of their initiatives to alleviate the ongoing economic downturn and financial hardships suffered by consumers as a result of the pandemic, and to prevent consumers being subject to any unfair contractual terms in this respect ...
Congratulations! You won your case in court and all the expense and hard work of the past few months, or years (not to mention the broken business relationships and sleepless nights along the way) might just have been worth it to experience this moment of jubilation ...
On June 23, 2022, Bill C-19 received Royal Assent. The bill was introduced by the Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, and resulted in amendments to the Copyright Act1 that will come into force on December 30, 2022, further to an order in council issued earlier this week ...
2022 saw the removal of all COVID-19 related restrictions. As we enter our first winter restriction free, we are likely to see a significant spike in COVID-19 cases in addition to other cold or flu viruses. So, what should employers do to manage this? It is imperative that employers consider what they can do to effectively manage COVID-19 within the workplace this winter and how best to protect their employees from associated risks ...
Over the last 10 years or so, we have seen a lot of buzz and excitement around Black Friday and Cyber Monday. According to research conducted by Which? into a selection of deals from last year it seems that the lure of a Black Friday deal isn't all it cracks up to be and that it isn't necessarily the cheapest time of the year to shop ...
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has this morning handed down a landmark judgment in which it has ruled that the EU's Fourth AML Directive (EU2015/849) whereby Member States must ensure that the information held on beneficial ownership registers is accessible to any member of the general public is INVALID as being a breach of Articles 7 and 8 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union ...
On 18 November 2022, the People's Bank of China and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange ("SAFE") jointly promulgated the Provisions on Administration of Funds Invested in China's Bond Markets by Foreign Institutional Investors (《境外机构投资者投资中国债券市场资金管理规定》, the "New Rules") ...
On November 18, 2022, Ekachai Chotpitayasunon and Kongkoch Yongsavasdikul, partners from Kudun and Partners, together with senior associate, Supatra Kerinsaguna and Warathorn Wongsawangsiri from Herbert Smith Freehills visited Bangkok University as guest lecturers to provide insights on the regulations governing public listed companies and the definition of initial public offering (IPO) and the processes involved in an IPO ...
On November 15, 2022, Governor Andy Beshear announced two executive orders related to cannabis in Kentucky. The first executive order allows certain individual Kentuckians and their caregivers to bring and use medical marijuana into the state without facing legal consequences beginning January 1, 2023, so long as they meet a set of three criteria ...
On Oct. 13, Mississippi's highest court ruled that a South Korean company, LG Chem Ltd., which manufactured a battery that powered a vaping device, could be sued in Mississippi, despite that company having no physical presence in Mississippi and not being registered to do business in the state ...
While originally opened to great fanfare between 2017 and 2019, over the course of 2022 Shell has discreetly closed down all of its UK hydrogen filling stations, citing that "the prototype technology had reached the end of its life". This decision is perhaps not surprising, given the low volume of domestic fuel-cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) on UK roads ...
Launching Lavery’s Brand Into the Future Anik Trudel likes to take risks. When she began her legal career, she decided to pursue litigation. She didn’t make this choice because it played to her strengths. “I decided to go into litigation because I was rather shy and quite afraid to speak in public,” she says. “I said to myself, ‘I might as well fix that issue ...
In conjunction with Malta Enterprise, Residency Malta Agency has launched a new residence programme for beneficiaries under the Malta Start-Up Residence Programme. Similar to the Nomad Residence Permit , the Malta Start-Up Residence Programme seeks to attract business-driven individuals to set up their new business venture in Malta ...
On November 21st 2022, Law No. 21,505 that promotes electric energy storage and electromobility (hereinafter, the "Law") was published, which is a relevant element for Chile to reach the goal of carbon neutrality by 2050. The Law, approved unanimously by the National Congress of Chile, promotes the participation of NCRE in the electric matrix, allowing its storage and avoiding the dumping of production ...
On November 9, 2022, the Financial Market Commission (“CMF”) published General Instruction No. 2,325 which updates the regulations on the prevention of money laundering, financing of terrorism and non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (“New Instruction”) applicable to: (i) banks (including their subsidiaries and support companies); (ii) savings and credit cooperatives; (iii) and payment card issuers ...
On 15 November 2022, the Secretary of the Department of Energy (“DOE”) signed DOE Department Circular (“DC”) No. 2022-11-0034 which amends the Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act No. 9513 (otherwise known as the Renewable Energy Act of 2008). The amendment removes the nationality restrictions on the exploration, development, and utilization of renewable energy resources such as solar, wind, biomass, ocean or tidal energy ...
On May 20, 2021, President Biden issued Executive Order 14030, Climate-Related Financial Risk, which directed the implementation of policies that would “advance consistent, clear, intelligible, comparable, and accurate disclosure of climate-related financial risk ...
American National Manufacturing Inc. v. Sleep Number Corporation, Appeal Nos. 2021-1321, -1323, -1379, -1382 (Fed. Cir. Nov. 14, 2022) In an appeal from inter partes review proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB), the Federal Circuit, among other issues, addressed whether PTAB erred in allowing patent owner Sleep Number to amend challenged claims by adding changes that did not directly respond to challenges by petitioner American National ...
Due to recent global events causing high inflation, the Small Business Administration (“SBA”) issued a final rule on November 17, 2022. This final rule has two primary components. First, it adopts, without change, the interim final rule published by the SBA on July 18, 2019 that increased in all industry-specific monetary size standards. Second, in an effort to account for inflation that has occurred since 2019, the final rule also increases by an additional 13 ...
On November 18, 2022, the State Administration for Market Regulation and the Cyberspace Administration of China jointly released the Rules on Implementation of Personal Information Protection Certification (《个人信息保护认证实施规则》) (the"Rules"). The Rules mark a major step toward improving China's specialized institution certification regime for personal information (the "PI") protection.The Rules (in Chinese only) are available at:http://www.cac.gov.cn/2022-11/18/c_1670399936983876.htm ...
