Originally published in DRI - For the Defense. By Hakim Bouadi, Stephanie U. Eaton, Matthew W. Georgitis, and Robert A. Plichta Bringing an engineer and an architect onto the legal team as soon as a building catastrophe happens has more than just legal benefits ...
In a slightly surprising, but nevertheless welcome, South African 2020 Budget Speech today, the Honourable Minister of Finance announced that there would be no significant tax increases to the major taxes for the forthcoming tax year. Widely anticipated increases to value-added tax (“VAT”), income tax, capital gains tax and estate duty did not materialise ...
A loud warning has been sounded to those inclined to follow practice rather than the strict letter of the law in divorce matters in Uganda. In Nagidde v Mwasa (Civil Appeal No, 168 of 2019), the trial judge granted a divorce without holding a hearing or receiving evidence from the parties, stating that the marriage had irretrievably broken down on account of irreconcilable differences ...
The 2020 Regular Session of the West Virginia Legislature is now entering the final stretch with only a little less than two weeks left. No new bills may be introduced in either chamber (though a committee may still originate a bill) and all bills, with the exception of appropriations bills, must be out of committee and passed by their respective house of origin by February 26. As of today, the House has introduced 1,528 bills, while the Senate introduced 853 ...
On February 13, 2020, in Frlekin v. Apple, Inc., No. S243805 (Cal. 2/13/2020), the California Supreme Court determined that Apple employees must be paid for time spent waiting for and undergoing exit bag searches. Although Apple does not require its employees to bring bags to work, the Court concluded that the search time amounts to time under which the employees are under Apple's "control," as that term is defined in the California Wage Orders ...
On February 19, 2020, The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, Eastern district, issued its opinion in Roverano v. John Crane, Inc. and Brand Insulations, Inc. on two critical questions: 1. the applicability of the Pennsylvania Fair Share Act, 42 Pa.C.S. Section 7102, to strict liability asbestos cases pending in the Commonwealth’s courts; and 2. Inclusion of bankrupt entities on the verdict sheet for purposes of liability only ...
The novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”) epidemic has spread across the country since December 2019. So far, 31 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions have launched Class A major public health emergency responses ...
Summary On January 13, 2020, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) issued final regulations to implement the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act of 2018 (FIRRMA)1 (the “Regulations”2). The Regulations go into effect on February 13, 2020. CFIUS’s existing regulations (the “Pilot Program”) will continue to apply to transactions that close prior to February 13, 2020 ...
On 30 January 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that the outbreak of novel coronavirus or COVID-19 constituted a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). The COVID-19 is a respiratory illness caused by a new coronavirus which first originated in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, the death toll from which has reportedly surpassed 1,000 on mainland China, while confirmed infections have passed 40,000 globally ...
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 ...
NEWSFLASH The commencement date of POPIA is no April Fool’s joke. the Chairperson of the Information Regulator, Advocate Pansy Tlakula, recently sent a request to President Cyril Ramaphosa to declare that the remaining provisions of the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (“POPIA”) commence on 1 April 2020 (“commencement date”). it is expected that the president will act on this request ...
Case Law The Tax Court of South Africa, Cape Town IT 24819 whether insufficiency of funds was not reasonably foreseeable, and therefore constitutes reasonable grounds for non-payment of employees tax, considered. correct interpretation of the number of days for payment of employees tax considered as a point in limine. find a copy of this judgment here ...
Following the presentation of the 2020 Budget proposal and Finance Bill, 2019 to the National Assembly in October 2019, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, MR. Muhammadu Buhari, signed the Bill into law on 13 January 2020. The Finance Act, 2019 (the “Act”) introduces amendments to the Companies Income Tax Act, Value Added Tax Act, Petroleum Profits Tax Act, Personal Income Tax Act, Capital Gains Tax Act, Customs and Excise Tariff Act and Stamp Duties Act ...
The False Claims Act (FCA) was enacted to punish and deter fraud against the United States, and to recover moneys obtained through such fraud. Whether an alleged fraud was actually against the United States is a threshold question not posed in the typical FCA case, where allegations usually involve claims for payment submitted to the Army, Navy, Medicare, or other entity clearly part of the federal government. But some cases are not so clear ...
Afridi & Angell was recently successful in obtaining interim orders from the Dubai Courts attaching bank guarantees pending commencement of arbitration proceedings. The first matter involved two guarantees issued as performance bonds in two separate construction contracts, both which contained an arbitration clause under the Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC) Rules ...
On Feb. 6, 2020, the Ohio Supreme Court affirmed a decision of the Ohio Board of Tax Appeals (“BTA”), finding the sale price of interests in a limited liability company (“LLC”) was the best evidence of the true value of the LLC’s real property for tax purposes. In Columbus City Schools Bd. of Edn. v. Franklin Cty. Bd. of Revision, Slip Opinion No ...
The 2020 Regular Session of the West Virginia Legislature just reached the 30th day, or its half way point. As of today, the House has introduced 1289 bills, while the Senate introduced 725. We will continue reporting on and tracking the progress of significant legislation during the course of the session. During the legislative process, certain critical deadlines are imposed by the Legislature that impact the consideration of pending bills and their chances of success ...
In another step in President Trump's ongoing efforts to relax environmental restrictions impacting economic development, on January 10, 2020, the Council on Environmental Quality published its proposed rulemaking to update its regulations for implementing procedural provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act ("NEPA") ("Proposed Rule"). The deadline for filing comments on the Proposed Rule is March 10, 2020 ...
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 ...
In light of ongoing litigation between General Motors and Fiat Chrysler, Dinsmore partner Mark Carter wrote an article for Automotive News explaining the basics of RICO actions: "Any person injured in his or her business or property by a pattern of racketeering activity may have standing to seek relief pursuant to the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970 ...
The novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) outbreak has affected the performance of numerous civil and commercial contracts. In this article, we examine the general legal impact of the outbreak on the performance of contracts from two perspectives, namely: 1) force majeure and 2) change in circumstances. We identify the relevant legal issues involved from these two perspectives and put forward our preliminary analysis for your reference ...
The sharing economy enters the home as rising property prices drive nomadic millennial singletons to seek an alternative to the inflexible rented apartment.An impromptu foosball game with your neighbour while waiting for the laundry. Cooking classes in a communal Masterchef-inspired kitchen. Movie screenings, board game nights, and in-house yoga and meditation sessions. These are but some of the activities to look forward to if you take up quarters in a co-living facility ...
