Heightened concerns over recent National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) complaints authorized against McDonald’s, USA, LLC—which threaten to undermine the common understanding of a franchisor-franchisee relationship and expand the definition of “employer”— caught the eye of Texas legislators during the recently concluded 84th Regular Texas Legislative Session ...
A wave of settlements with municipal underwriting firms under the SEC’s Municipalities Continuing Disclosure Cooperation (MCDC) Initiative has brought renewed attention to continuing disclosure obligations in municipal offerings. But, it also raises questions about the initiative’s purportedly favorable settlement terms. On July 18, 2015, the SEC announced settlements with 36 municipal underwriters for willfully violating Section 17(a)(2) of the Securities Act ...
Directors’ liability for payroll withholding taxes Due diligence: An evolving standard To what risks of liability or being found guilty are directors exposed? Environmental liability of directors and officers DIRECTORS’ LIABILITY FOR PAYROLL WITHHOLDING TAXES Luc Pariseau and Audrey Gibeault
Is your business affected by counterfeiting? If so, you are not alone. A newly released study shows that almost all intellectual property dependent companies listed on the NASDAQ OMX Stockholm 30 Index have been affected. Moreover, most expect that the problem will continue to grow. Better political support is required to stem this development, but companies already have several weapons available to use against the counterfeiters ...
Last June 10, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) announced that the floor amount for obtaining a public contract dealing with services without its prior authorization would be reduced to $1 million ...
Recently adopted regulations from the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) came into effect on June 19, 2015, facilitating qualifying companies’ access to capital and providing investors with additional investment choices. Commonly referred to as Regulation A+, the regulations amend and expand the exemption for smaller public offerings under Regulation A (Rules 251 to 263 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”)) ...
Internal investigations conducted by enterprises in-house when irregularities are suspected offer many advantages to businesses compared to initiatives undertaken by public law enforcement authorities ...
On April 21, 2015, the State Council of China (i.e. the central government) adopted the proposed draft of Administrative Measures on Concession of Infrastructure and Public Utilities Projects (the “Infrastructure Measures”) ...
Merger control in Ukraine: overviewRegulatory framework1. What (if any) merger control rules apply to mergers and acquisitions in your jurisdiction? What is the regulatory authority?Regulatory frameworkMergers and acquisitions, as well as establishment of an undertaking and appointments to corporate positions under certain circumstances, are subject to merger control in Ukraine ...
The possibility of buying real estate rests normally on the capacity of an individual or company to acquire debt, reason why credit entities play an essential role in the success of the real estate market. Lately, we have noticed that in addition to the traditional loan guaranteed by a mortgage, there is an offer for loans guaranteed by a security trust ...
The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) touted 2014 as a record year for its enforcement program and noted cases that spanned the spectrum of the securities industry. Actions against municipal securities issuers and underwriters particularly stand out among the many areas of aggressive enforcement in 2014 ...
The Wills and Probate Registry in the Dubai International Financial Centre (the “Registry”) opened in late April of this year. It is now possible to register a will in Dubai, and to have a high degree of confidence that it will be enforced in accordance with its terms. Prior to the establishment of the Registry, it hadn’t been possible to be so confident that foreign wills would be enforced in the United Arab Emirates ...
The SEC’s Division of Investment Management issued a guidance update last week reminding registered investment advisers and registered investment companies of the importance of cybersecurity and providing recommendations on specific measures that advisers and investment companies should consider in addressing their cybersecurity risks. Last week’s guidance update demonstrates the SEC’s continued focus on cybersecurity as part of its compliance initiatives ...
To allow for adequate planning, the Quebec government phased in the coming into force of certain regulatory amendments on building safety that were adopted in the past few years. These new standards were previously discussed in bulletin Nos. 6 and 9, issued in April 2013 and June 2014 respectively, of our Lavery Real Estate and Construction series. This newsletter serves as a brief reminder of the most imminent deadlines ...
The Securities Exchange Commission (“SEC”) is continuing to promote its whistleblower reward program and recently announced awards to two individuals who provided key information leading to successful SEC enforcement actions. One whistleblower, a compliance officer, will receive an award of approximately $1.5 million. The other whistleblower, a former head trader, will receive a maximum payout of 30 percent of the amounts collected (which totals over $600,000) ...
Last week the U.S. Department of Justice’s Cybersecurity Unit (“DOJ”) issued guidance to organizations concerning preparing for, responding to, and remediating cyber incidents. DOJ based its publication on lessons learned by federal prosecutors who handle cyber investigations and prosecutions, as well as feedback from private sector victims of cyber attacks and intrusions ...
In recent enforcement actions, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) sued four payment processing companies – not for engaging in illegal debt collection – but rather, for ignoring warning signs in processing payments for debt collectors who were engaged in fraudulent debt collection schemes. The CFPB charged the payment processors with violating 12 U.S.C ...
Growth of the real estate industry in Panama is evident everywhere. Skyscrapers that could very well be found in large cities such as Singapore, Hong Kong or Miami, rise proud in former residential and colonial areas of Panama city. Panama’s architectural identity is driven by important local and international architects, and symbolic buildings such as the Biodiversity Museum and the F&F Tower, also known as ‘the Screw’ ...
In recent years, representation and warranty insurance has gained popularity as a tool to decrease transaction liability exposure in M&A transactions. These policies can be particularly useful in the context of cross-border transactions, for both financial and strategic parties, to facilitate middle-market transactions involving foreign buyers or sellers of domestic U.S.-based businesses. The product is also beginning to gain traction in transactions outside of the United States ...
Target Corporation recently announced that it entered into a settlement agreement with MasterCard International Incorporated, agreeing to pay up to $19 million to MasterCard for payments to reimburse issuing banks for card-replacement and fraud losses allegedly associated with the 2013 data breach at Target ...
SyCipLaw Partner Rose Marie M. King-Dominguez and Senior Associate Franco Aristotle G. Larcinacontributed to the Philippine section of the Asia-Pacific Property Investment Guide, a publication produced by Ashurst Australia and Jones Lang LaSalle ...
The Court of Appeal of Quebec has issued an important judgment pertaining to a franchisor’s implicit obligations towards its franchisees. In June 2012, the Superior Court of Quebec ordered Dunkin’ Donuts Brands Canada Ltd. (“Dunkin’ Donuts”) to pay an amount of $16.4M (plus interests and costs) to 21 of its franchisees in Quebec the sum of $16 ...
There are two reasons why Latin American clients keep coming to US law firms to handle their cross-border M&A deals. The first reason is our execution capabilities: US law firms have been advising on cross-border M&As for more than 100 years. The second reason is the predictability of a tried and tested legal system: US law remains the preeminent choice for large cross-border M&A deals because of the certainties and guarantees it offers to everyone involved ...
ON FEBRUARY 19, 2015, THE COURT OF APPEAL OF QUEBEC1OVERTURNED A JUDGMENT RENDERED BY THE SUPERIOR COURT2, ON JULY 12, 2013, WHICH GRANTED THE DEFENDANTS’ MOTION TO DISMISS. ESSENTIALLY, THE COURT HAD TO DETERMINE WHETHER COVERAGE UNDER A BUILDER’S RISK INSURANCE POLICY EXTENDS TO DAMAGE CAUSED BY THE WORK TO AN EXISTING STRUCTURE, OR WHETHER IT IS LIMITED TO THE SITE ON WHICH THE WORK IS BEING DONE ...
The 2015 Mergers Control Survey by Margaret Huang and Victor Chang of LCS & Partners reviewed the merger control regime in Taiwan for IFLR. 1. REGULATORY FRAMEWORK1.1 What is the applicable legislation and who enforces it?The Fair Trade Act (FTA), which entered into force in 1992, is the main legislation governing Taiwanese merger control. Merger control is enforced by the Taiwan Fair Trade Commission (TFTC) ...
