The concept of ‘predatory marriage’ may be unfamiliar to many, but the harm caused by predatory marriage can have serious and permanent testamentary effects. The term is generally applied to forced marriages faced by individuals (usually elderly) whose mental capacity is in doubt or who are vulnerable to undue influence. The estates of these same individuals are often subject to a probate claim after they have passed away ...
Many people have used their time at home to consider their health and well-being. Some have taken up exercise, yoga or getting a dog. Others have decided to find out more about their health in order to make healthier choices and use online portals like 23andMe (saliva test), Thriva (blood test) or Pharmacy2u (blood or urine test) to point them in the right direction ...
Automated activism is here now on how compliant businesses are. Are you ready for potential tech-enabled complaints on your site's cookies? In 1993 Tesco ran a trial of a loyalty scheme: the Tesco Clubcard. When the results of the trial of the scheme were presented to the board in 1994, the chair, Lord Ian MacLaurin, said, ‘what scares me about this is you know more about my customers in three months than I know in 30 years’ ...
We've seen two trade union-related decisions being handed down within a week of each other: Mercer v Alternative Future Group Ltd and Nexus v NURMT & Unite. For those employers with recognised trade unions the decisions are worth taking a closer look at. Mercer v Alternative Future Group Ltd Mercer is not good news for employers ...
In El Salvador, the Bitcoin Law was approved by the Legislative Assembly and published in the Official Gazette last June 9th of this year, establishing avacatio legisof ninety days from its publication; in that sense, its entry into force is scheduled for next September 7th ...
A Data Protection Impact Assessment (“DPIA”) is a process which helps employers to identify, analyse and minimise the data protection risks of a project. But when should employers be using a DPIA and what makes a DPIA effective? When should employers be using a DPIA? The Data Protection Act 2018 (the Act) states that a DPIA must be implemented before any processing is undertaken which is “likely to result in a high risk” to individuals ...
The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) had set a revised deadline (June 30 2021) for filing of data protection audit by data controllers. With the deadline fast approaching, we share somefrequently asked questions (FAQ) on Data Protection in our publication, accessiblehere,which may aid in undersanding what companies need to do in order to comply with NITDA’s directives ...
Rosa Ostrom (she/her/hers) Company: Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt PC Title: Associate Programs: Pronoun awareness, fighting misgendering, disability access, summer diversity associates, work with transgender prison inmates “Growing up with a substantial amount of privilege and with the support of my firm Schwabe, I feel like I am in a unique position to do this advocacy work ...
On May 14, 2021, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a new final rule that will further delay the effective date of the Medicare Coverage of Innovative Technology (MCIT) and Definition of Reasonable and Necessary Final Rule (the Final Rule) until no earlier than Dec. 15, 2021 ...
Today personal data travels instantly, and it is easy to forget the journey and the risks, but access to certain countries can be restricted without the proper paperwork, including the new SCCs. Is your personal data fit to travel? The new SCCs passport The main safeguard used to send personal data internationally, the Standard Contract Clauses (SCCs) have just been updated on 4 June 2021. Work will be needed to renew your personal data contract passport for it to travel ...
Court of Appeal revisits the position of when time runs for claim in professional negligence. Careful thought is required when assessing limitation periods where there is a delay between the negligent act and the loss crystallising. The time when a cause of action accrues is critical when assessing whether that claim has been brought within the statutory limitation period ...
Ministers announced yesterday that the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020, which allows married couples to divorce without assigning blame, will not come into force until 6 April 2022. The announcement follows the long-awaited no fault divorce bill, which gained royal assent last year, Whilst the delay is disappointing for some, at least there is now certainty as to when the reform will finally be introduced ...
Remember Nirvana? There have been reports about an interesting copyright infringement case involving the grunge band Nirvana, a band that is still associated by many with frontman Kurt Cobain. Yet this case does not involve music copyright. Rather it deals with copyright in an artistic work, a drawing. How about Dante’s Inferno? The case has been brought by a lady called Jocelyn Susan Bundy. Bundy is the granddaughter of C.W. Scott-Giles, a heraldry expert who died in 1982 ...
Some opening words In South Africa, as in many jurisdictions, the concept of good faith (bona fides) crops up a lot. So, for example, in order to get registration of a trade mark, the applicant must have a good faith intention to use the trade mark. Once the trade mark is registered the owner must use it in good faith in order to keep the registration alive. In the words of George Michael, “You gotta have faith". Good faith ...
We tend to keep an eye on trade mark developments in Europe. It makes sense because South African trade mark law is very similar to EU trade mark law and there’s far more activity in the EU. South African courts do, of course, often consider EU trade mark judgments. Here are a few recent cases: Rounded curves, thicker lines and a horizontal orientation…was the judge’s mind wandering a little? This was an interesting one ...
The rapid spread of Covid-19 has placed the healthcare system in Thailand under severe pressure. Following the outbreak of the pandemic, new startups focusing on telemedicine have sprung up to take on the challenge of innovating the way healthcare services can be provided to patients ...
Saravut Krailadsiri, our tax partner and Pichaya Nimcharoen, our tax associate recently published a journal for Thailand’s Office of Judicial and Legal Affairs of the Court of Justice, Thailand as part of “Dunlaphaha: Journal of the Court of Justice ...
Gilbert P. Hyatt v. Andrew Hirshfeld, Appeal Nos. 2018-2390, -2391, -2392, 2019-1038, -1039, -1049, -1070 (Fed. Cir. June 1, 2021) This week’s Case of the Week explores a long-running dispute between controversial inventor Gilbert Hyatt and the Patent Office concerning patent applications filed in 1995 that claim priority to applications filed in the 1970s and 1980s. They can be fairly described as submarine patents ...
Key Points Starting July 31, 2021, all employees who are not fully vaccinated shall be provided respirators for voluntary use. Exclusion pay is required even if an employee is not able to work. Employers should amend their COVID-19 Prevention Plans. Introduction On June 3, 2021, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board (Board) passed changes to the COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS). Initially, the Board voted 4-3 against the proposed ETS ...
On 4 June, the European Commission adopted new standard contractual clauses («SCC»), which replaces previous standard clauses for the transfer of personal data to countries outside the EEA (third countries). In addition, the Commission has for the first time adopted a standard data processor agreement governing the data processor’s processing of personal data on behalf of the data controller ...
JOINT PRAKAS 315 AND 316 ISSUED BY THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND THE MINISTRY OF ECONOMY AND FINANCE, dated 12 May 2021 The Ministry of Commerce (“MOC”) issued a new announcement (“Announcement”) on the Granting of E-Commerce Permits and Licenses on 26 May 2021. Eligible applicants may now apply for e-commerce permits or licenses with immediate effect from the MOC through an online portal – www.ecommercelicensing.moc.gov ...
When the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (“POPIA”) comes into effect fully from 1 July 2021, there are some areas of possible dispute that could arise between employers and employees, including the monitoring of employee emails. In a recent Constitutional Court judgment in Turkey, the personal data protection rights of an employee were considered, and could provide some guidance as to how a similar situation may be handled in a South African context ...
The South African President has signed the Cybercrimes Bill into law, which means it is now an Act of Parliament. The date on which the Cybercrimes Act, 2020 comes into force is yet to be announced, but there are a few key things to note: The majority of the offences created by the Cybercrimes Act relate to data, messages, computers, and networks involving hacking, the unlawful interception of data, ransomware attacks, cyber forgery and uttering, and cyber extortion ...
In May 2021, the total value of cryptocurrency globally surpassed USD $2.5 trillion, and continues its emergence as a new asset class.[1] Governments in Canada and around the world are updating regulatory requirements in response to the new innovations in financial technologies. Historically, there has been regulatory uncertainty surrounding cryptocurrencies in Canada ...
Since the European Court of Justice declared the EU-US Privacy Shield as an invalid legal basis for the transfer of personal data to the US, stipulating increased requirements for the use of the EU standard contractual clauses in July 2020 (C-311/18, 'Schrems II'), uncertainty has been rife within many companies: a legally compliant data transfer to the USA on the basis of the Privacy Shield is no longer possible and the new EU standard contractual clauses announced in November 202
