Mississippi business leaders will continue to hope that the new coronavirus, COVID-19, stays away from and out of our state.But even if we avoid direct exposure to this worldwide health crisis, Mississippi companies will face risk and resulting losses.From international shipping and travel to reliance on component parts manufactured on foreign shores, Mississippi businesses may not realize the full effect of the coronavirus for years ...
In view of the impending implementation of the Portable Gratuity Retirement Fund (“PRGF”), the Minister of Labour, Human Resource Development and Training has issued The Workers’ Rights (Portable Retirement Gratuity Fund) Regulations 2020 (the “PRGF Regulations”), deemed effective as from January 1, 2020. The implementation of the PRGF was, by a decision of Cabinet on December 13, 2019, postponed from 1 January 2020 to 1 April 2020 ...
A 2019 amendment to the Kenyan Companies Act, 2015 introduced a requirement for every company to keep a register of its beneficial owners and submit a copy of this register to the Registrar of Companies (the “Registrar”) within 30 days of preparation. In order to put the above statutory requirements into action, the Attorney-General published the Companies (Beneficial Ownership Information) Regulations, 2020 (the “Regulations”) with effect from 28 February 2020 ...
The Parliament of Rwanda recently passed two key laws to counter money laundering, the financing of terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (“WMDs”), in an effort to strengthen and increase confidence in its financial system. Law No. 74/2019 of 29 January 2020 establishing the Financial Intelligence Centre (“Law No ...
The right to strike is enshrined in section 23 of the South African Constitution and regulated in some detail in the LabourRelations Act, 1995 (“LRA”). It is a valuable arrow in the quiver of strategies to be considered by employees when engaging in collective bargaining, but employers also have recourse when it comes to collective bargaining: locking out employees. In a sense, the right to strike and the recourse to a lock-out in this context are two sides of the same coin ...
Coronavirus-Related Conditional Relief and Assistance On March 4, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced that it would provide conditional regulatory relief with respect to certain filing and mailing obligations under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) for registrants, and other persons making filings with respect to a registrant, affected by the impacts of the coronavirus (COVID-19) ...
In the past months, coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak has been a major topic of interest worldwide and continues to be a source of concern for all businesses across industries. Among the significant disruptions brought to the global economy, COVID-19 has a direct impact on the workplace. Various companies have already struggled to find out solutions to mitigate risks related to COVID-19 and to ensure business continuity ...
There has been an increase in the number of businesses seeking to exploit coronavirus for commercial gain, often in breach of relevant advertising and consumer regulations. What can you do to make sure your advertising practices are above board? Background A surge in the demand for products related to coronavirus, such as facemasks and hand sanitiser gel, has led to a range of issues, particularly in relation to responsible advertising and fair pricing practices ...
On February 13, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the promulgation of certain significant sections of the Competition Amendment Act, 2018, including a change to the confidentiality regime, the new buyer power provision and the new price discrimination provision. The trade & industry minister has also published new regulations on buyer power and price discrimination ...
In our country there are a large number of transnational companies that have their operations in El Salvador, this due to the cost of labor, and the geographical position of our country that allows it to be a point of connection with other jurisdictions. It is common to realize that in many companies foreign personnel are hired and are even placed in leadership positions, so it is important that we are prepared with the applicable legislation in this type of hiring ...
Answers to important questions 1. WHAT INFORMATION OBLIGATIONS DOES THE EMPLOYER HAVE TO INFORM ITS WORKFORCE? As with other highly infectious diseases, employers have a duty to inform their staff about the coronavirus as part of their general duty of care and consideration (Sec. 241, 618 German Civil Code [BGB]). The extent of this duty to inform depends, among other things, on whether a member of staff is suspected of having caught the virus, whether or not this has been confirmed ...
The extent of disruption caused by COVID-19 is unknowable at this time. However, it is likely that there will be suppliers unable to economically weather the storm. Having represented manufacturing customers and suppliers for decades, one thing is certain: even the most sophisticated entities make costly mistakes in addressing distressed suppliers without realizing they paid more as a customer than was necessary ...
The sudden rise in the number Covid-19 (“Coronavirus”) cases in Lombardy and other Italian Regions has prompted the relevant governmental authorities to adopt urgent measures to prevent and limit the spread of the virus, and this is starting to have an impact on the economy. In connection with these measures, on 31 January Italian government has declared a six-month state of emergency, which expires on 31 July 2020 (unless it is extended) ...
The stock market is undoubtedly one of the most important economic forces in the world. Every year, billions of dollars are moved through stock exchange operations, and year after year, in most jurisdictions, the stock market is promoted as a tool for financing or capturing capital for issuers and as an investment for thousands of participants seeking to place their funds in higher yield investments ...
The UK Government believes that up to a fifth of the workforce may be off sick during the peak of a Coronavirus epidemic. It remains to be seen whether Coronavirus will affect that volume of people, but there are already clear signs of how it is disrupting the day-to-day operations of businesses in the UK and around the rest of the world ...
With the economy facing downward pressure, the Hong Kong Government is rolling out various supporting and funding measures to help enterprises. The $30 billion HK$ Anti-epidemic Fund The Legislative Council Finance Committee approved the $30 billion Anti-epidemic Fund on 21 February 2020, more than half of which - HK$16.9 billion - will serve as one-off cash injections to retailers, food and beverages service providers, start-ups and other businesses ...
Covid-19 (coronavirus) is already affecting business relationships in most parts of Europe. Starting February 26th The state of emergency announced by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania obliges businessmen, event organizers and other public figures to adjust even international long-term plans. Thus, the influence of coronavirus already manifests itself in supply chain disruptions, travel and import restrictions, event cancellations, and so on ...
On February 13th, 2020 was published in the Official Gazette the “Regulation of the Do Not Disturb or Antispam system”, with the purpose of regulating its existence and functionality. This Regulation seeks to clearly stablish consumer’s and supplier’s rights and duties, as well as the proceedings associated with the Do Not Disturb System, the website tool provided by the National Consumer Service (SERNAC) ...
SERNAC issued the new version of the Interpretative Guideline on the scope and content of compliance plans in regulations regarding the protection of consumer rights. This, with the purpose that companies can develop their compliance plans, strengthening their compliance culture in Chile. Amongst the main advantages of said plans are acting as attenuation of liability for companies that have infringed the consumer protection regulations ...
From the end of January to the beginning of February of this year, the Republic of El Salvador declared an emergency due to a coronavirus, not because any case has been detected in the country, but precisely to prevent the entry of people infected with it ...
They’ve finally taken the plunge and decided to go it alone, they’re just about to launch the brilliant business plan that’s going to set them up for life and then, out of the blue, granny puts her oar in and everything goes pear-shaped. Just a month ago, we wrote about how Harry and Meghan were set to launch their Sussex Royal brand ...
David Beckham is in the news again. This time it’s all about a new US football venture. A venture that has run into a trade mark problem. Beckham is heavily involved in the formation of a new Major League Soccer (“MLS”) professional football team that will be based in Miami, Florida. The team’s first home game is scheduled to take place very soon, 14 March 2020 ...
An article entitled “Cyprus Gets Its Halloumi Back” would leave most people scratching their heads. But a reader of Trademark Lawyer Magazine would immediately appreciate that it deals with the increasingly important issue of geographical indications and designations of origin. The issue described in the article is almost comical. Halloumi is, of course, a type of cheese, one that is closely associated with the island of Cyprus ...
When dealing with a workplace issue, an employer should be careful to identify the problem in question correctly so that the appropriate steps are taken. Failing to do so could lead to unnecessary or incorrect processes being followed, which could expose the employer to claims of unlawful or unfair conduct ...
Amazon is apparently the world’s most valuable brand, and is one that plays an increasingly important role in our lives. Although most of us know it as an online retailer, a recent BBC documentary describes it as being every bit as much a data-company, one that knows more about us than we know ourselves. We’ve reported on how Amazon is under considerable pressure to deal with the fact that counterfeit goods can be and are sold on its online platform ...
