Financial technologies need specific legal solutions and an open approach to the law. There are lots of indications that financial technology, or FinTech, is one of the next chapters in the digital revolution unrolling before our eyes. The role of finance in the economic life of the society was laid bare by the last financial crisis. The tragic consequences of errors committed on Wall Street, i.e ...
On 24 August 2016, the Davis Tax Committee (“DTC”) released its long-awaited report on estate duty, which was submitted to the South African Minister of Finance (“the Minister”) for consideration on 28 April 2016. The report takes into account public commentary and submissions received following the release of the committee’s first interim report ...
An interesting trend can be noticed recently as the Serbian Tax Administration and Tax Police have raised their level of activity in conducting routine tax inspections in companies across the country ...
The contemporary business world has become fundamentally tied in with the progress of globalisation, and for anyone involved in it, that is no secret. Anybody would be hard pressed to find an industry that can exist and sustain itself in a purely national context, without – at least in some regard – relying on either a piece of legislation or a practice trend that is related to whatever kind of international functioning ...
In a precedential decision (June 7, 2016), the U.S. Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (Board) held that when a petitioner files a petition to cancel an existing registration when the registration is less than five years old, the five-year bar in the Lanham Act Section 14 (15 U.S.C. Section 1064) is tolled for the purpose of adding an additional claim against that registration.Ashland Licensing & Intellectual Property LLC v. Sunpoint International Group USA Corp ...
contingency fees VAT inclusive or exclusive The High Court, Gauteng Local Division, considered in a recent case (case No 2012/21359, 31 August 2016) whether an agreement in terms of which a legal practitioner charged contingency fees to a client under the Contingency Fees Act, No 66 of 1997 (the “CFA”), is valid ...
Global Transfer Pricing Risk Management The realities of the business environment in which multinational groups operate today consist of a shrinking domestic market and an ongoing pressure to reduce costs. In addition, multinational groups are also faced with the different expectations of different stakeholders and the increased disclosure requirements of financial data ...
The Davis Tax Committee Issues Its Second Report on Estate Duty The Davis Tax Committee (“DTC”) released its much-anticipated second (and final) interim report (the “Report”) on estate duty on 24 August 2016. The Report has been published with amendments taking into account the public’s comments that were submitted in respect of the first interim report ...
The South African Taxation of Trusts Recent Developments The Davis Tax Committee’s (“DTC”) first interim report was released in July 2015 (the “First Report”) and made various significant recommendations to the Minister of Finance regarding (among other topics) the taxation of trusts in South Africa ...
The Series Limited Liability Company (“Series LLC”), a variation of the traditional limited liability company (LLC), is the newest entity enterprise on the business scene today.1 Within this legal entity, separate “series” or “cells” can be created and established under the umbrella of a single LLC ...
Institutions of Higher Education serve a key role in fostering new ideas and spurring innovation. Recognizing the value of such innovation, the Bayh-Dole Act of 1980 permits universities to own patents directed to the technologies they develop. While some large research institutions pursue patents to protect their inventions, many colleges and universities forego patent protection based on the perception that patent applications are cost-prohibitive. http://www.ticua ...
By way of -providing guidelines for implementing the Tax Law No.106/2016/QH13 (Law 106) effective from 1 July 2016, the government has issued Decree 100/2016/ND-CP (Decree 100) on 1 July 2016 and the Ministry of Finance has issued Official Letter 10315/BTC-TCT dated 25 July 2016 (OL 10315) and Circular 130/2016/TT-BTC dated 12 August 2016 (Circular 130) ...
Despite being in existence for years, many have only recently become familiar with encryption. This follows heightened publicity around its use on popular social media platforms purportedly offering end-to-end encryption. Encryption (or cryptography) has been described as a mathematical formula or algorithm that encodes and decodes information, with only authorised persons having access to such information through a key ...
IN THIS ARTICLE, CHRISTOPHER TAY HANMIN BRIEFLY REVIEWS SOME OF THE OFFENCES UNDER THEGOODS AND SERVICES TAX ACT 2014("GST ACT").IntroductionOne of the most significant tax Acts to be introduced in the past 30 years is the GST Act which was gazetted on 19 June 2014 and has set 1 April 2015 as the effective date for the imposition of the Goods and Services Tax ("GST") ...
The February 2016 resolution of the five-year-old trademark dispute between Macy’s Inc. and Strategic Marks, LLC in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California (Macy’s Inc. et al. v. Strategic Marks, LLC, Case No. 15-0612, N.D. Cal. 2016) is a reminder that zombie trademarks still walk among us ...
I’ve had bad experiences with water. Pouring out of broken washers and gushing from burst pipes, water has repeatedly defied my attempts to keep it contained. But I need water, so I maintain my plumbing, use water sensibly, and, if I suffer a leak, I clean up the mess and go on. Why am I talking about water? Modern businesses need data, like we need water ...
Regulation 2016/679 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC ("Regulation") will replace Directive 95/46/EC on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data ("Directive"). The Regulation will be enforced after 25 May 2018, thus, entities are required to prepare for compliance by then ...
Bayer AG, a German chemical company, and Monsanto Co., an American agrochemical corporation recently announced they have signed a definitive merger agreement under which Bayer plans to acquire Monsanto to create “a Global Leader in Agriculture ...
Recent media reports have informed us that the European Commission has issued an official charge sheet accusing Google of an abuse of dominance concerning its Android mobile operating system and contracts with smartphone producers and telecom operators. The European Commission considers Google dominant in the markets for general internet search services, licensable smart mobile operating systems and app stores for the Android mobile operating system ...
The Serbian Minister of Finance issued the Rulebook on the Manner and Procedure of Delivering and the Content of the Tax Administration's Notification on Commencement or Finalization of Tax Audit ("Rulebook"). Under the Rulebook, the Tax Administration ("TA") will start to deliver notifications on initiated tax audits of the legal entities and entrepreneurs to the Business Registers Agency ("BRA"). Notifications will be delivered once a day ...
Whether you are a garage tinkerer or an engineer at a technology company, you probably have considered obtaining a patent to protect one of your ideas or innovations. There is an allure to a government issued document declaring that you are the inventor of a patent that grants you exclusive right to your innovation. However, the next time that light bulb goes off above your head, here are five things you should consider before calling your patent lawyer. 1 ...
The United States Patent and Trademark Office has published its first major update to the rules for trademark trials and appeals in nearly a decade. The final changes to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“TTAB”) Rules of Practice appear in the October 7, 2016 Federal Register (81 Fed. Reg. 69950) and are scheduled to go into effect on January 14, 2017 ...
Maxim Alekseyev, ALRUD Senior Partner, and Kira Egorova, ALRUD Of Counsel, prepared an article for Trusts&Estates journal “Family Offices in Russia”. Trust&Estates is one of the most reputable journals for wealth management professionals serving the needs of high-net-worth clients and their families ...
