On 17 June 2020, the Occupational Retirement Schemes (Amendment) Bill 2019 (Bill) was passed at the Legislative Council. The Bill introduces amendments to the Occupational Retirement Schemes Ordinance (ORSO) with a view to preventing the misuse of schemes for purposes unrelated to employment and improving the governance of ORSO schemes ...
What are trademark scams? Many scam artists attempt to solicit money from trademark owners by sending notices that appear to be authentic but are meant to mislead or fraudulently induce payment for unnecessary or nonexistent services. Unfortunately, because trademark filings are a matter of public record, many bad actors utilize the filing information to prey upon the owners by seeming legitimate. An example of a widely -known scam is shown below ...
The UAE has introduced Cabinet Resolution 31 of 2019 (as amended) (the Economic Substance Regulations) which apply to UAE onshore and free zone entities that undertake, and earn an income from, any of the Relevant Activities (listed below): Banking Business Insurance Business Investment Fund Management Business Shipping Business Holding Company Business Lease-Finance Business Distribution & Service Centre Business Headquarters Business Intellectual Property Business The Re
In its notice published on May 18, 2020, the National Employment Service (Nemzeti Foglalkoztatási Szolgálat) laid down the fundamental criteria that must be met by an applicant to be eligible for the new EU-supported wage subsidy intended to help create new jobs in Hungary in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. There is an enormous difference between the Kurzarbeitwage subsidy and this job-creating wage subsidy ...
The Guide for the Identification of Labor Risks by Covid-19 and Preventive Measures in Workplaces was published by the Guatemalan Social Security Institute ...
While the world contends with the COVID-19 crisis and its economic and financial impact, China is quietly opening its doors to its financial sector, inviting more foreign financial institutions, banks, insurance providers and other financial service companies to set up shop in China. On March 27, the Chinese government granted approval for both The Goldman Sachs Group Inc ...
As employers continue to implement and maintain the current health and safety guidance to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace, they should also be mindful not to forget their other safety obligations. On June 15, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) issued a News Release specifically reminding employers that workers need to be protected from both coronavirus and common workplace hazards ...
Considering the Covid-19 pandemic, the Agriculture and Livestock Service (Servicio Agrícola y Ganadero, "SAG") issued the Exempt Resolution No. 3,439, dated May 19, 2020 to update the Program of Exports of Origin. (View update here.) This Resolution was published in the Official Gazette on June 10, 2020 ...
“At a time when the flow of information is always expanding, this app is a smart alternative for users to stay informed about these topics without a flood of emails.”(Jean-Marc Ueberecken, Managing Partner). The CoVid-19 crisis as a trigger Arendt Insights is the only app dedicated to Covid-19 crisis management in Luxembourg. The first version of the app has been designed to give insight from Arendt experts, using the Covid-19 Solutions platform ...
The controversial issue of whether employers can check their employees' temperatures has been much debated. Both the Employment Ministry and the Data Protection Authority (DPA) have recently changed their positions in this respect ...
Bogotá DC Mayor's Office is preparing a package of new measures for the city The Bogota City Hall has advanced a series of new measures in order to continue fighting the expansion of COVID-19. Particularly, the orange alert has been declared in the hospital system of Intensive Care Units, with which, the District Health Secretariat will give guidelines on patient care and will manage their referral to ICUs ...
Analysis of the changes to the special legal rules onthe credit and financing moratorium. Through Decree-Law 26/2020 of 16 June (“DL 26/2020”), the Government has approved, a set of amendments to the special rules onthe moratorium on financing approved by Decree-Law 10-J/2020 of26March ...
On 11 June 2020, the Discrimination Legislation (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2018 (Bill) was passed at the Legislative Council. The Bill introduced amendments to Hong Kong’s four anti-discrimination legislations, namely the Sex Discrimination Ordinance (SDO), the Disability Discrimination Ordinance (DDO), the Family Status Discrimination Ordinance (FSDO), and the Race Discrimination Ordinance (RDO) (Amendments) ...
Although the data for San Francisco Bay Area remains encouraging for the first quarter of 2020*, given the economic instability brought by COVID-19, we might see more down rounds going forward. Down rounds are financings where the company is valued less than in a previous round. In practical terms this means that the new investors are buying shares of the company at a lesser price than the previous investors ...
Unexpectedly siding with the liberal wing of the Court, Justice Neil Gorsuch penned a 6-3 decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, holding that Title VII’s prohibition on sex-based discrimination also covers sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination. The Court’s decision dealt a historic victory for proponents of expanding gay and trans protections for workers under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ...
Following the Chancellor’s announcement on 29 May 2020 regarding further changes to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, we now have more detailed guidance about how the new flexibility under the scheme will work from 1 July. Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) Flexibility As we know, from 1 July 2020, employers will be able to bring furloughed workers back to work on a part time basis if appropriate while still being able to claim under the CJRS for hours not worked ...
In a landmark decision issued today, the Supreme Court of the Unites States ruled that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits workplace discrimination against gay, lesbian, and transgender people. The case involved consolidated lawsuits filed by two gay persons fired due to their sexual orientation and a transgender woman fired after revealing plans to transition from male to female ...
Up until now, there has been no suspension of a notice period served upon an employee who has been made temporarily unemployed under the ‘corona’ regime. Such a notice period started during the corona temporary unemployment and continued to run during this period. Given, as a consequence, employers would be able to dismiss employees 'cheaply', a draft bill was submitted in Parliament to have the notice period suspended in the event of corona temporary unemployment ...
This 11th edition of Unprecedented, our weekly update on COVID-19-related litigation, identifies news reports placing the number of COVID-19 filings at around 2,700, with insurance coverage disputes former the single largest category. And so unsurprisingly, one of the matters we report this week is the dispute over whether those insurance coverage disputes should be consolidated into multi-district litigation ...
The General Data Protection Regulation (the "GDPR") came into force a little over two years ago, on 25 May 2018 and the first administrative fines were imposed in Finland in late May 2020. What is noteworthy is that in two out of the four decisions, the fines concerned violations of processing of personal data of employees and job applicants ...
In light of COVID-19 we review the steps a company’s board of directors may now take to adapt the process for approving year end accounts. Preparing and filing accounts are amongst the operational challenges facing companies as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Practical difficulties include physically preparing the accounts and conduct of the audit, as well as the accounts approval process and subsequent sign-off by directors ...
With COVID-19 taking its toll on some businesses, employees may find themselves placed at risk of redundancy. This article looks at the practical steps an employer should take when carrying out an individual redundancy consultation. Individual consultation is fundamental to the fairness of any dismissal for redundancy ...
SyCip Salazar Hernandez & Gatmaitan’s (SyCipLaw) publication about the general guidelines in doing business in the Philippines has been updated. It aims to showcase the Philippines as an attractive venue for business ventures, to guide the businessmen and lawyers alike in their business decision making, and to help investors restart the Philippine economy in connection with the lifting of certain COVID-19-related quarantine restrictions ...
