COVID-19: health and safety protocol - Last night the Italian Government and National representatives of employers’ associations and unions have reached an agreement over a COVID-19 health & safety protocol that employers need to implement to ensure the maximum possible protection of their employees against the COVID-19 virus. This protocol is a crucial step to allow business continuity for manufacturing companies and professional service providers ...
During the press conference of 13 March 2020, Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager made a statement regarding the enforcement of EU State aid in connection with measures adopted by Member States to combat the negative repercussions of COVID-19 on the economy ...
As the number of novel coronavirus infections (“Covid-19” or “Coronavirus”) and fatalities continue to rise, on 11 March 2020 the Italian Prime Minister issued a decree to impose new emergency measures to contain and manage the spread of the virus (the “11 March Decree”). Always on 11 March, the World Health Organisation has declared that Covid ...
We regularly work with financial institutions to navigate the challenges of implementing, maintaining, and using security procedures for commercial customers’ use of treasury management services. Security procedures are an integral part of the relationship between the financial institution and its commercial customers ...
This is a question being asked by many companies. Is the severity of this event such that it enables companies to temporarily (or permanently) be excused from performance of their contractual obligations? As is often the case with legal questions, it depends. The term “force majeure” does not have a recognised meaning under English law ...
Introduction The supply chain effects from the global spread of the novel coronavirus have been building for nearly two months, and are expected to reach a peak in the near future (if not necessarily then to recede).[1] The effects have centered on China to date, but the epidemic has spread to other centers of production and the duration of its threat to public health and of the governmental and social measures taken to address its spread remains unknown ...
The outbreak of COVID-19 comes on the back of an already tumultuous two years for the global economy, markets and trade where the US-China "trade war" and other trade tensions and macroeconomic factors have created uncertainty, commercial losses and subdued growth prospects ...
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 ...
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 ...
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) ...
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 ...
New anti-harassment law in time for new virus panic. The COVID-19 crisis that began in Wuhan, China, brings to mind earlier epidemics. In 2003, we were in the grip of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars). It was the first pandemic in the era of the Internet, blogging and social media. Amid the panic about infections, one individual was widely labelled a “super spreader”. Her name and personal details were published ...
The outbreak of the coronavirus and the measures taken by the Chinese government to contain it have brought production in China as the world's workbench to a complete standstill. Companies that operate in China or purchase such goods are currently facing delivery shortfalls. A similar situation could soon threaten Italy, where the first factory closures have already taken place ...
In response to the impact of COVID-19 and the partial withdrawal of EBA benefits – see our update here – the Cambodian government have issued a number of regulations which are intended to provide some relief to affected businesses in Cambodia. We outline these updates below: Letter 1313 MEF – dated 25 February 2020 Notification no ...
Today, artificial intelligence (AI) based on neural networks may come up with ideas that are not dependent on human input. This raises questions as to who shall be regarded as the inventor of an invention created solely by a machine. Could an AI system be considered the inventor behind a patented invention? The answer is no, concludes EPO – the European Patent Office - in two recent applications ...
There had been several drafts of the law on Personal Data Protection until the final draft that was submitted by the Indonesian Government to the House of Representatives on 24 January 2020 (“Final Draft Law”). When passed, it will be Indonesia’s first framework legislation to specifically deal with and serve as the ‘umbrella regulation’ on personal data protection ...
South African readers will know that Meghan Markle was a recent visitor to our shores. Meghan’s husband Prince Harry came too, but people weren’t too interested in him. As far as I am aware, Meghan had no problems with the South African press. She also had no copyright issues in South Africa. So, a far cry from what she is experiencing right now in the UK, her adopted home. Meghan is now involved in legal proceedings with the Mail on Sunday, a major British newspaper ...
Thailand is at a powerful crossroads in its economic development. After several decades of consistent growth, it is now preparing to finally break through and become a high-income nation. To do this, it is focusing on smart industry. A high-income Thailand is one driven by technological progress, so the government has begun pouring money into robotics and automation ...
Thailand’s future is set to be more connected, technologically advanced and economically prosperous than ever. This being driven by one development in particular: the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) ...
Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the world of Intellectual Property has raised some very interesting questions and debate. The patentability of AI related inventions, proprietary issues of inventorship and the lack of adequate regulations and standards have left some open-ended questions. AI related inventions generally use techniques like machine learning, deep learning and neural networks ...
The Issue: The explosive subject of sex trafficking has emerged in the media and in the public's consciousness around the world. Sexual activity in hotel rooms is not new, nor is it illegal for consenting adults. However, there are greater risks for hospitality operators who fail to maintain a certain level of vigilance about whether they may be enabling sex traffickers and facilitating their activities ...
The Issue: The explosive subject of sex trafficking has emerged in the media and in the public's consciousness around the world. Sexual activity in hotel rooms is not new, nor is it illegal for consenting adults. However, there are greater risks for hospitality operators who fail to maintain a certain level of vigilance about whether they may be enabling sex traffickers and facilitating their activities ...
