The INPI (Brazilian PTO) published Ordinance/INPI/PR No. 21, of March 26, 2021, which extends the Backlog Combat Project aiming at reducing the number of invention patent applications pending decision. The ordinance came into force on April 1st, 2021, and targets patent applications filed between Jan. 1st, 2017 and Dec. 31st, 2017 ...
Earn-outs are a commonly used payment mechanism in overseas and cross-border M&A transactions. Through earn-outs, transacting parties can set flexible metrics to adjust the buyer’s payment obligation and thereby allocate the risks and benefits between the buyer and seller ...
The designation of eight new Freeports within England made headlines in the Budget and now the winning bidders have to put into effect their successful proposals. What will this mean in practice for those areas affected and what are the likely issues that Freeport authorities will face? We have pulled together some questions we are asked frequently on Freeports, together with the responses we have been providing to our clients ...
In DR Jones Yeovil Ltd v The Stepping Stone Group Ltd [2020] EWHC 2308 (TCC), England’s Technology and Construction Court ruled in favour of a contractor in its claim for unpaid retention under a JCT contract and dismissed the employer’s counterclaim for alleged defects. Certificates of Making Good were never issued and one of the questions before the court was whether that meant there could be no recovery of the balance of retention ...
The appeal in ABC Electrification Ltd v Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd [2020] EWCA Civ 1645, concerned the proper construction of a Target Cost Contract based upon the standard Institute of Civil Engineers Conditions of Contract, Target Cost Version, First Edition (ICE Conditions) and subject to standard amendments commonly used in the rail industry, known as Network Rail 12 (N12 Amendments) ...
In the recent case of Cheng Pan & Anor v Yau Lai Wah, HCA 376/2015, the Court held the Defendant liable for loss and damage caused by water leakage from his property into a neighbouring property, which resulted from the Defendant’s contractors carrying out works to pipes located in the Defendant’s property ...
The advent of blank cheque company IPOs. Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs) have taken the corporate world by storm. These “blank cheque” shell companies, which raise funds in their initial public offerings (IPO) to invest in potential but as yet unidentified target businesses, have fuelled a listing frenzy in the US. SPAC IPOs have garnered US$87.9 billion in fundraising in the first three months of 2021, already exceeding last year’s total ...
In a recent article published in écho, WSG Member Astrid Wagner, Partner, IP Communication & Technology at Arendt & Medernach, provides insight on the growing risk of damage to information systems in cyber attacks and what cyber protection measures should be taken ...
The National Security and Investment Bill will allow government intervention in transactions raising national security concerns. It will require investors in UK real estate to consider whether the regime applies and factor in any timetabling implications. The Bill is currently being examined in the House of Lords. It will introduce an independent screening regime in the UK where a transaction gives rise to national security concerns ...
In its recent decision Xuereb v Weber Construction Limited Et (decided 18 March 2021) the Civil Court (Commercial Section) weighed in once more on the appropriate tests to be applied when assessing a company's inability to pay its debts under Maltese corporate insolvency law ...
It has been a long road for everyone’s favourite cheese. The protection of halloumi cheese should have never been complicated. The firm cheese which has the unique quality of retaining its shape even when fried or grilled, has its origins in the island of Cyprus where it has been produced for many centuries ...
Did you know? The Chinese National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) and European Patent Office (EPO) recently announced a pilot-programme, which will be of particular interest to Chinese and multinational companies with R&D in Mainland China and Hong Kong, especially if they wish to file patents in Europe, US or other jurisdictions outside of Mainland China ...
What is the CTA? The CTA was enacted on January 1st, 2021 as part of the National Defense Authorization Act to prevent the use of companies to evade anti-money laundering rules or to hide other illegal activities. Under the CTA companies will be required to report information regarding its beneficial owners with a beneficial ownership registry maintained by the United States Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) ...
The grounds for appealing an arbitration award are limited. Even when the tribunal admits that it has made a mistake that is not always enough. So, when is an admitted error serious enough to permit an appeal? This was the question before the court in Doglemor Trade Ltd and others v Caledor Consulting Ltd and another [2020] EWHC 3342 (Comm). The Facts Mr Khabarov (majority owner of Caledor) was granted an option to purchase 30% of the share capital of Doglemor ...
No one can escape the basic rules of contracting, even the federal government. If the contract is clear and unambiguous, then the four corners of the agreement set the rules for the project and the parties – and there’s not much room for interpretation. The government was recently reminded of this cold, hard truth after it refused to grant a contractor an equitable adjustment of the contract price for purchasing wetland mitigation credits. In Kiewit Infrastructure W. Co. v ...
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, in BGT Holdings LLC v. United States, recently held that the government does not have the discretion to deny a contractor’s request for equitable adjustment (REA) under Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.245-1 (Government Property) where the conditions specified in that clause are present and the contractor is able to show financial loss ...
In a December 2020 opinion, the United States Civilian Board of Contract Appeals (the “Board”) reviewed and reversed a Federal Highway Administration (“FHWA”) Contracting Officer’s (“CO”) decision to terminate for default Eagle Peak Rock & Paving, Inc.’s thirty-six million dollar contract (the “Contract”) for work on a project in Yellowstone National Park (the “Project”) ...
At the end of 2020, Congress enacted the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, partially in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting economic crisis. While funding the federal government and preventing a government shutdown, the CAA also included several amendments to the bankruptcy code providing much-needed rent relief for commercial tenants. The bankruptcy code generally requires a debtor in bankruptcy to timely pay its rental obligations during the bankruptcy case ...
Dinsmore's Richik Sarkar was published in the American Bar Association's Business Law Today this week discussing a few lawsuits alleging that lack of board and management diversity constitutes a breach of fiduciary duty. An excerpt from the article, "ESG In Action: Diversifying Corporate Governance," is below. "While the purpose of these suits is laudable, significant threshold legal questions exist ...
Phasing is one of the key factors to consider and get right in planning for large scale, strategic development. A well-phased scheme divides the site into distinct parcels of land allowing reserved matters to be submitted and conditions discharged in relation to each parcel, individually, as it comes to be developed. It also allows planning obligations in section 106 Agreements to be apportioned between parcels and (in some cases) to be attached and limited to particular parcels ...
It is expected that President Biden will sign the PPP Extension Act of 2021 passed by the House of Representatives on March 16, 2021, and the Senate on March 25, 2021. The bill extends the funding for the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) Loan program through June 30, 2021, for First Draw and Second Draw Loan applications submitted by lenders to the SBA by May 31, 2021 ...
In the wake of the spate of recent business collapses the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has published a White Paper titled “Restoring trust in audit and corporate governance”. The White Paper is open for consultation until 8 July 2021, and feedback can be submitted directly online via the BEIS website or emailed to [email protected] ...
This article forms part of our ‘New How: Perspectives’ campaign: ‘The logistics industry is booming, but can our infrastructure keep up?’. Here Choisanne Man, a real estate partner in Shoosmiths’ London office, speaks with David Proctor, Managing Director, Group Investment at Segro, to discuss the state of the logistics sector including the challenges it poses for our towns and cities. 1 ...
