The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has revised its Rules of Practice and Procedure (Revised RPP) which govern the proceedings before the ERC through the issuance of ERC Resolution No. 01, Series of 2021.1 The Revised RPP took effect on April 13, 2021 (or 15 days after its publication in Business Mirror, a newspaper of general circulation). It allows the ERC to adapt to changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and modernizes the ERC rules of procedure ...
According to an anonymous source, a ‘Centre for Economic Situation Administration’ (“CESA”) meeting chaired by Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha was held on Friday 4 June that approved (in-principle) a set of proposed stimulus measures aimed at encouraging wealthy expatriates to Thailand ...
There are plenty of articles which set out the "hard facts" of Freeports - the locations, tax benefits etc. - but are we all missing the real point? One of the key objectives of the UK government was to "create hotbeds for innovation" ...
MP Dr Liam Fox provided his support to a draft bill recently placed before parliament focusing on individuals with Down’s Syndrome. He has been working on the bill with a Down’s Syndrome Association in Portsmouth. If the draft bill passes through parliament and receives royal assent, the Down’s Syndrome Act will come into force. Its focus is on improving provision for those with Down’s Syndrome which includes education, health, social care and employment ...
Before adjourning its 2021 session, the Oregon legislature passed an act that will make it more difficult for health care systems, insurers, and other health care entities to merge with, acquire, or otherwise join forces with their industry counterparts. Proponents of the Equal Access to Care Act, which is also known as House Bill 2362, contend that the new legislation is necessary to combat access limitations and price increases caused by consolidation in the health care arena ...
On June 23, 2021, the Department of Telecom (“DoT”) released revised regulations relating to Other Service Providers (“OSP”) replacing the previous OSP regulations that were issued last year. This client update provides a summary of key issues that have been addressed by the new regulations. SUMMARY OF NEW OSP REGULATIONS Effective Date. The regulations are stated to come into force immediately ...
Dinsmore health care partner Joseph Zielinski was published in the most recent edition of New Perspectives on Health Care Risk Management, Control and Governance, the publication of the Association of Health Care Internal Auditors. His article, "The Effectiveness of Your Compliance Program," covers how to effectively audit your organization's compliance program while gaining valuable insights. An excerpt is below ...
On Wednesday, June 23, 2021, the United States Supreme Court issued its decision in Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L., a much-anticipated decision regarding schools’ regulation of off-campus speech. The Court held that while schools may discipline students for some off-campus speech, their ability to do so is much more limited than for on-campus speech. B.L. was a student at Mahanoy Area High School and cheered on the junior varsity team during her freshman year ...
A just-passed piece of legislation crafted to bolster countercrime defenses and crack open beneficial ownership bastions, a historical haven for criminals of all stripes, has lesser-known tethers for certain segments of the investment sector – a critical pitfall that should not be lost on compliance teams. In May 2020, a leaked investigation bulletin prepared by the U.S ...
Dear valued clients, colleagues and friends, In this article, our partner, Anand Raj, and associate, Jeevitha Thurai Rathnam, discuss the Malaysia Competition Commission’s market review exercise into the transportation sector (port logistics ecosystem and motor vehicle warranty claims) ...
The Federal Tax Authority (the FTA) has started to impose penalties on businesses that have failed to submit their economic substance notifications by the set deadline of 30 June 2020 for the financial period ended on 31 December 2019, and the economic substance reports by the set deadline of 31 December 2020 for the financial period ended on 31 December 2019 ...
The draft Occupational Pension Schemes (Climate Change Governance and Reporting) Regulations 2021 (‘Regulations’) have been laid before parliament and are due to come into effect on 1 October this year. The Pensions Minister announced on June 8 the final version of the Regulations which are designed to regulate how trustees of certain trust-based occupational schemes must engage with, and report on, climate change risk as part of their duties ...
New York State Lifts Restrictions. On June 7, 2021, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo declared that the State would lift most remaining COVID-19 restrictions when 70% of adult New Yorkers had received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. On June 15, 2021, Governor Cuomo held a press conference to announce that New York had reached the 70% first-dose threshold ...
Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) Board on 11 June 2021 approved new rules prohibiting the trading on national exchange platforms of utility tokens and certain types of ‘novelty’ cryptocurrencies such as DogeCoin, SafeMoon or MonaCoin. The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Notification No. Kor Thor. 18/2564 Re: Rules, Conditions and Procedures for Undertaking Digital Asset Businesses (No ...
Despite the pandemic, 2020 was a record year for Prop. 65 filings. There was a 46% increase in Notice of Violation filings from 2019, driven by the usual filers, as well as many new law firms and noticing parties. There have been 1,346 notices filed between Jan. 1, 2021 and June 3, 2021, compared to 1,327 Notices filed in the same time-period in 2020. These Notices consist primarily of phthalates, lead, cadmium, arsenic, BPA and acrylamide ...
On Wednesday, June 16, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a Notice of Interpretation, explaining how it interprets Title IX to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity ...
The Government has published its first statement setting out its vision for legal migration and border control as part of the new plan for immigration. This article summarises the key goals that form part of the vision. The statement sets out key delivery priorities for 2021 – 22 ...
According to the most recent Crime Survey for England and Wales, the police recorded over 1,288,000 domestic abuse-related incidents in the year ending March 2020. Against this backdrop, another startling statistic is that on average two women a week are killed by a current or former partner in England and Wales alone ...
On June 9, 2021, the National Electric Coordinator (“CEN”) opened a public consultation process on a draft Internal Procedure (the "IP") that will provide the criteria applicable to the Open Access Regime established in Articles 79° and 80° of the General Law of Electric Services ("LGSE"), as a result of the entry into force of the Regulation on Transmission Systems and Transmission Planning (the "Regulation") ...
The Government Accountability Office (GAO), in Spartan Medical, Inc., B-419503, recently clarified the scope of its jurisdiction over bid protests involving an agency's use of its other transaction agreement (OTA) authority. The GAO's decision in this case is noteworthy because agencies are increasingly relying on OTAs to meet their procurement needs ...
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 ...
The liability of online platforms for the activities of third-party vendors has always been a controversial area. With the explosion of online shopping as a result of the pandemic, the issue has come under increased scrutiny. Although cases in the UK and EU have discussed the factors that the Court will consider in deciding whether the operator of an online platform is jointly liable, the position in Hong Kong remained uncertain, until now ...
Dinsmore's Richik Sarkar was published in Bank Director this week discussing the need for diversity and inclusion within governance structures. Read an excerpt below ...
Dinsmore real estate associate Sam Brinker was recently published in Bar Briefs, the Louisville Bar Association's monthly publication. He wrote on his experience as a transgender man and what paths may be considered to defeat the many pieces of anti-trans legislation circulating the country. Read an excerpt below ...
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 ...
