On 15 March 2020, the President of South Africa, in a national address, announced the declaration of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic as a "national disaster". Since then, many significant consequential announcements have been made, relating to restrictions on movement, business activity, travel and other matters, all in the interests of preventing an escalation of the national disaster and alleviating, containing and minimising the effects of the national disaster ...
Now that South Africa is under lockdown for the next 21 days, as part of an organisation’s business continuity efforts, businesses will, to the extent possible, continue to run remotely. Two common legal issues that arise from remote working are: the electronic signing of agreements and instructions; and whether meetings can take place using technological means. In this article, we touch on both issues ...
The impact of Covid-19 is becoming more prevalent throughout the economic landscape of The Bahamas. Most recently, in an effort to contain the spread of the virus, preventative measures involving the closure of non-essential local businesses for a specified duration were introduced by the Government in exercise of its emergency powers. This has had far-reaching effects in the employment sphere ...
In recent weeks, Governments around the world have been grappling with how best to combat the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). The Bahamas is no exception. To date the Prime Minister has issued two Emergency Orders aimed at ensuring the health and safety of persons within The Bahamas ...
The regulations published on 18 March 2020 in terms of the Disaster Management Act, 2002 (the “Act”) have been amended to regulate the lockdown announced by President Ramaphosa on 23 March 2020. A new chapter 2 specifically dealing with the lockdown has been inserted into the regulations. We summarise below the most significant provisions contained in chapter 2 ...
Obligation of Czech employers to protect employees from coronavirusPursuant to Section 106 (1) of the Labour Code, an employee has the right be assured of occupational health and safety protection at work (hereinafter referred to as "OHS"), even during a pandemic.Regarding prevention, the provision in section 102 of the Labor Code remains paramount ...
State of Emergency Conditions What does "state of emergency" actually meanand what are the powers of the Government in the regard? Can someone claim damages incurred in relation to the state of emergency? State of Emergency With effect from 12 March 2020 at 2 pm, the Government of the Czech Republic (the “Government”) has declared astate of emergency for 30 daysfor the territory of the Czech Republic due to health threats related to the presence of coronavirus in the
Crisis measures issued after the announcement of the state of emergency List as of 14 March 2020 1. Temporary implementation of the protection of internal borders in the Czech Republic Underlying document: Government Declartion No. 197 from 12.3.2020 and extraordinary measures of the Ministry of the Interior dated 13.3.2020 Effectiveness from: 14.3.2020 od 0:00 hod. Effectivness until: 18.3 ...
Employers have to face a number of issues in the current situation, some of which have data protection implications. Below you will find a brief summary of the data protection issues which are typically arising as a result of the pandemic, in a Q&A format.With regard to question no ...
In an attempt to ensure that the spread of COVID-19 is contained effectively, the Indian Government has mandated a complete nationwide lockdown for 21 days beginning from March 25, 2020, 00:00 hrs. Mandatory Closure of Commercial Establishments All shops, commercial establishments, factories, workshops and offices, excluding establishments engaged in providing essential are required to be shut down ...
Financial Market Commission Announces a Package of Measures to Facilitate Credit Flow to Both Companies and Individuals By Diego Peralta and Diego Lasagna On March 23, 2020, the Financial Market Commission’s Council (“CMF”) approved new measures destined to grant more flexibility to the financial system, in the context of the coronavirus Covid-19 global outbreak ...
Having begun as a fairly localized issue in the centre of China, the COVID-19 outbreak has spread rapidly across borders, significantly impacting the global economy and causing havoc in financial markets. The impact has been across all sectors, from transport and tourism to manufacturing, technology, energy, retail and beyond ...
Article 1 of Decree 466 states that the National Guarantee Fund S.A. (hereinafter "NGF") must comply with and accredit a solvency ratio, which is determined based on the technical assets that must have a direct relationship with the risk assumed in its capacity as guarantor ...
The National Government issued Decree 434 of 2020 with the aim of mitigating the economic effects of COVID-19 in Colombian territory ...
The coronavirus (COVID-2019)[1], which today affects more than 150 countries and territories around the world, has already had, and continues to have, a significant impact on the global economy ...
Due to the health crisis derived from the COVID-19 virus, declared as pandemic by the World Health Organization on March, 11, 2020, the US and Mexican governments released a joint statement, by which travel restrictions are established, in order to reduce the spreading of the COVID-19 as it is paramount to ensure the health of nationals of both countries and at the same time, protecting cross- border essential economic and employment activities ...
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted every sector of the economy in multiple ways. For businesses whose operations are subject to environmental requirements, including waste management, storage, and disposal laws, these coronavirus-related disruptions may impact a facility’s ability to comply with mandatory reporting and submission deadlines or waste storage time limits ...
How might businesses in your jurisdiction be impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic? The Government of Estonia declared an emergency situation on March 12th due to the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic and the threat of mass infections. The government has decided to ban public gatherings and implement distance learning at schools, implemented sanitary controls at the border, and closed cultural and entertainment institutions until the 1st of May ...
The COVID-19 pandemic has hit small businesses particularly hard. And, the Small Business Administration’s disaster loan program can offer many of those small businesses a lifeline. But, it can be daunting to know what relief is available (and for what purpose), who qualifies, and how to apply. This is what you need to know. The SBA has two types of disaster loan programs—one through banks and one directly from the SBA via the U.S. Treasury ...
On March 22, 2020, the Federal Reserve Board, the FDIC, the National Credit Union Administration, the Office of the Comptroller of Currency, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and state banking regulators (collectively, the “agencies”) published an interagency statement on loan modifications and reporting for financial institutions working with customers affected by COVID-19 ...
It didn't take long. There are already 11 trademark applications pending in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for marks including the word "CORONAVIRUS". The first of these applications was filed on February 4, 2020, (CORONAVIRUS SURVIVAL GUIDE) and most recently on March 13, 2020 (I SURVIVED THE CORONAVIRUS/ COVID-19 OF 2020!). Certainly there will be more to follow ...
A trend is emerging with recently filed litigation involving the COVID-19 pandemic. Spilman attorneys are committed to providing information that allows businesses to react as quickly as possible to avert civil litigation threats or to protect your interests through litigation. Monitoring these litigation trends will allow organizations to prepare to defend against such threats in the future or to identify and pursue civil remedies when needed ...
The COVID-19 pandemic has hit small businesses particularly hard. And, the Small Business Administration’s disaster loan program can offer many of those small businesses a lifeline. But, it can be daunting to know what relief is available (and for what purpose), who qualifies, and how to apply. This is what you need to know. The SBA has two types of disaster loan programs—one through banks and one directly from the SBA via the U.S. Treasury ...
Various European countries already passed emergency legislation which, among other things, enables companies to hold general meetings without physical presence rights and obligations in the 2020 general meeting season. The German legislator is now also drafting appropriate special provisions for the current crisis ...
