Until recently there was a significant amount of confusion and uncertainty on whether or not it is trade mark infringement for a search engine to allow certain 'keywords' to be sponsored by a third party who is not the trademark owner. The above scenario was encountered in the recent case of Wilson v Yahoo UK Limited where Mr Wilson was the owner of several Community trade marks under the name 'Mr Spicy' ...
Every day, and several times a day, we enter into contracts without knowing it or without considering and controlling their effects. This bulletin provides a brief and non-exhaustive summary to help you better understand, prepare for and monitor your contractual environment ...
In the beginning of February, the Swedish Corporate Governance Board presented a proposal for a revised Swedish code on corporate governance (the Code).Work on amending the code has been carried out in cooperation with representatives for both OMX Nordic Exchange as well as NGM ...
On 21 February 2008, the government presented a proposal for a new Competition Act. The proposal contains a number of new things, of which several aim to make the fight against cartels more efficient. In addition, amendments are proposed to the rules on concentrations. Possibility of avoiding trial through a settlement procedure Currently, the Swedish Competition Authority does not have the authority itself to decide on fines (sw. konkurrensskadeavgift) ...
In the autumn of 2007, the rules in the Environmental Code on liability for environmental damage in the form of pollution were made more stringent. The changes were due to the EC directive on environmental liability (1). The liability of businesses operators and property owners has thus become more extensive. Amendments have, inter alia, been made to chapter 10 of the Environmental Code ...
Under Bolivian law, there is no specific set of regulations or special norm regarding a system of merger control applicable to the different sectors of the economy(1). The antitrust provisions, restrictions and penalties for each particular sector (telecommunications, electricity, hydrocarbons, transport, water, etc.) are established in the “Sectorial” laws, and in general in the Bolivian Constitution, the Criminal Code and Code of Commerce ...
The role and duties of a Chair are not defined and circumscribed in incorporating statutes (federal and Quebec) except in the case of Quebec government-owned corporations and then, only in part. Boards of directors have been at the centre of the public debate on corporate governance in recent years. This heightened focus on boards has provoked questioning and reflection on the role and liability of the Chair ...
CMS recently released new regulations intended to curb the ability of a physician to earn a profit on either the technical component (TC) or professional component (PC) of tests ordered by the physician, but performed by another party. The regulation is effective January 1, 2008 and applies to all Medicare-covered diagnostic tests including imaging and anatomic pathology, but excluding clinical laboratory tests ...
Legal system1. What is the legal system (civil law, common law or a mixture of both)?Romania has a civil law system.Foreign investment2. Are there any restrictions on foreign investment (including authorisations required by central or local government)? There are only a few restrictions on foreign investment. For example, foreign persons cannot acquire land, subject to a limited number of conditional exceptions. 3 ...
Companies found guilty of manslaughter under new law could have their finances and reputations ruined. The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 comes into force on 6 April 2008. After much controversy and delay the legislation is almost with us. In a nutshell: The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 (the “Act”) comes into force in the UK on 6 April 2008 ...
Being the smartest lawyer in the room does not always guarantee success. Rather, success in the field of law almost always results from an attorney’s determination and dedication ...
Over a decade has elapsed since Bosman (a relatively unknown Belgian footballer but now a regular on the Question of Sport picture round) put EC free movement law firmly on the Match of the Day agenda. Over the ensuing years, the European Court of Justice and the European Commission have articulated (sort of…) clearly that sport does not benefit from some "white card" exemption to the application of EC free movement rules ...
A Georgia intermediate appellate court has affirmed summary judgment in favor of an insurer, holding that there can be no “advertising injury” coverage under a commercial general liability insurance contract where an underlying lawsuit concerning division of profits from a joint copyright work fails to allege a misappropriation of advertising ideas. James C. Shafe, et al. v. American States Insurance Co., No. A07A0879, 2007 Ga. App. LEXIS 1193 (Ga ...
The rule that a party receiving documents in litigation holds them subject to an implied undertaking to use them only in the proceedings in which they were produced has been a fixture of practice in British Columbia since 1995. However, while the rule is easy to state, it often proves more difficult to apply in practice and carries with it the potential for very serious sanctions for breach ...
On certified questions from the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire, the New Hampshire Supreme Court has decided that New Hampshire will allocate liability for long-tail environmental claims pro rata by years and limits among triggered policies. See EnergyNorth Natural Gas, Inc. v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s, No. 2006-745 (N.H. Oct. 18, 2007). BackgroundEnergyNorth Natural Gas, Inc ...
On 18 October 2007, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) issued a circular which allows delegation of investment management functions by managers of authorised funds to affiliates not based in an Acceptable Inspection Regime (AIR), subject to certain requirements being met. Previously the fund management company of an SFC authorised fund, and all of its delegates with investment discretion, had to be based in Hong Kong or an AIR ...
This newsletter intends to provide our colleagues and friends with a rapid overview of the reforms that recently occurred in Portugal within commercial and corporate law, in respect of the debureaucratization of the treatment of commercial companies. I. ReformsThus, a substantial range of amendments has been implemented in the last years, with the purpose of simplifying the commercial companies’ incorporation, registration, merger, division, etc. procedures ...
IFLR Taiwan M&A SummaryJuly 20, 2007IntroductionAs Taiwan heads into an election year in 2008 and beyond, market observers may look back at the last 12 months as an important watershed period for the modernization of Taiwan’s financial sector. There is abundant and growing interest from foreign investors, particularly private equity investors, and mergers and acquisitions, together with other domestic and cross-border deal-making, are at an all time high ...
The Environmental Liability Directive aims to establish a common framework of environmental liability across the EU to prevent and remedy certain types of environmental damage. The framework is based on the “polluter pays principle”. The implementation date for member states was 30 April 2007. Ireland has not complied with this transposition date and will not have transposed it as a current estimate until early 2008 ...
HIGH LIGHTS• the Code also applies to in-house counsel;• non-compliance may result in disciplinary sanctions;• failure to comply with the standards established by the Code could constitute civil wrongs or “faults” resulting in contractual liability (towards the employer) and even extracontractual liability (towards third parties with whom the lawyer negotiates on behalf of the organization);• concept of client: difference between the representative of the client or in-house c
On July 11, 2007 the European Court of First Instance (“CFI”) ruled that Schneider Electric SA should be compensated for some of the losses suffered following the European Commission’s unlawful prohibition of its merger with Legrand SA in 2001.[2] The CFI’s decision is undoubtedly historic. It is the first case in which damages have been awarded against the Commission for getting a merger wrong ...
On May 7th, 2007, the British Columbia Court of Appeal overturned the certification of a major pension class proceeding in Ruddell v. BC Rail Ltd., 2007 BCCA 269. In doing so, the court ruled that BC Rail had properly invoked its right to have the dispute determined by arbitration. The court found that, in the circumstances of this case, arbitration took precedence over the class proceeding, which had to be stayed ...
