On 22 May 2008, the Court of Appeal handed down its judgment in Dŵr Cymru's appeal against part of the CAT's judgement in the long running Albion Water case [FOOTNOTE: Dŵr Cymru Cyfyngedig v Albion Water Limited [2008] EWCA Civ 536 and [2006] CAT 23 and [2006] CAT 36]. The main subject of that appeal was the correct interpretation of the law on the abuse of margin squeeze ...
A new Swedish Competition Act will enter into force on 1 November 2008. The Act was passed by parliament on 11 June 2008. The new legislation means further harmonisation with EC competition rules and it also introduces a number of new features in order to enhance cartel enforcement. One of the new features is the introduction of trading prohibitions. The rules regarding fines will become both clearer and stricter in an aim to enhance legal certainty ...
On November 18, 2004, the Supreme Court of Canada released its decisions in Haida Nation v. British Columbia (Minister of Forests) and Weyerhaeuser, 2004 S.C.C. 73 (“Haida”) and Taku River Tlingit First Nation v. British Columbia (Project Assessment Director), 2004 S.C.C. 74 (“Taku”) ...
On May 28, 2008, the Quebec Minister of Natural Resources and Wildlife, Claude Béchard, presented the first Government strategy for the lumber use in construction. Entitled “Agir aujourd’hui pour demain” (Acting today for tomorrow). This initiative has the goal of a threefold increase by 2014 in the use of wood products in the non-residential sector and in construction of multi-family dwellings, thus reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 600,000 tonnes ...
On March 14, 2008, Luc Bertrand, the Chairman of the Board of the Montreal Climate Exchange, announced that the Exchange filed an application with the Autorité des marchés financiers requesting approval of the trading of environmental products on its electronic trading platform ...
Province of British Columbia Bars Exploration and Development of Uranium ResourcesOn April 24, 2008, the Province of British Columbia announced that it will not support the exploration and development of uranium in British Columbia and is establishing a "no registration reserve" under the Mineral Tenure Act for uranium and thorium. The "no registration reserve" will ensure any future claims do not include the rights to uranium ...
Yukon Supreme Court Considers the Duty to Consult on Settled Treaty LandsCanadian case law continues to refine the principles of the duty to consult and accommodate Aboriginal peoples, and the May 2007 decision of the Yukon Supreme Court in Little Salmon/Carmacks First Nation v. The Government of Yukon (Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources), 2007 YKSC 28 considers the extent of its application on recently settled treaty lands in the Yukon ...
Until recently there was a significant amount of confusion and uncertainty on whether or not it is trade mark infringement for a search engine to allow certain 'keywords' to be sponsored by a third party who is not the trademark owner. The above scenario was encountered in the recent case of Wilson v Yahoo UK Limited where Mr Wilson was the owner of several Community trade marks under the name 'Mr Spicy' ...
The Planning etc (Scotland) Act 2006 has placed the National Planning Framework (NPF) – Scotland's national planning strategy - on a statutory footing, to be reviewed every four years. The NPF was published in 2004 to largely widespread approval from industry, political and community figures. The purpose of the NPF was to introduce the Scottish Executive's strategy for the "spatial development of Scotland until 2025" ...
Review of Nigerian Gas Master Plan
On 1 April 2008, the market for non-household water and sewerage services in Scotland 'went live'. For the first time, business customers were able to choose their water and sewerage retailer in much the same way as they are accustomed to doing for other utility services, such as telecommunications, electricity and gas ...
The EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) is one of a number of policies introduced across the European Union to help it meet its greenhouse gas emissions reduction target under the Kyoto Protocol. The EU ETS is viewed by many as one of the ways that private sector investment in CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage) can be incentivised ...
The United States Supreme Court's recent decision in Stoneridge Investment Partners, LLC v. Scientific-Atlanta, Inc. et al. is one of the most important securities law decisions handed down by the Supreme Court in many years. It establishes new guidelines in cases where investors seek to hold third parties (such as vendors, as well as attorneys or accountants) liable for participating in securities fraud ...
Every day, and several times a day, we enter into contracts without knowing it or without considering and controlling their effects. This bulletin provides a brief and non-exhaustive summary to help you better understand, prepare for and monitor your contractual environment ...
In the beginning of February, the Swedish Corporate Governance Board presented a proposal for a revised Swedish code on corporate governance (the Code).Work on amending the code has been carried out in cooperation with representatives for both OMX Nordic Exchange as well as NGM ...
On 21 February 2008, the government presented a proposal for a new Competition Act. The proposal contains a number of new things, of which several aim to make the fight against cartels more efficient. In addition, amendments are proposed to the rules on concentrations. Possibility of avoiding trial through a settlement procedure Currently, the Swedish Competition Authority does not have the authority itself to decide on fines (sw. konkurrensskadeavgift) ...
Are Municipality has been ordered by the European Commission to reclaim the unlawful state aid which the municipality paid to Konsum in Jämtland? The Commission’s decision underlines the importance of governmental authorities, municipalities and county councils monitoring the provisions on state aid in business transactions involving private players ...
The last years have revealed significant divergences between the Romanian Competition Council and the High Court of Cassation and Justice regarding certain merger notification aspects. A recent High Court of Cassation and Justice decision seems however to indicate a potential reconciliation of the positions of the two authorities.The Competition Law no ...
Under Bolivian law, there is no specific set of regulations or special norm regarding a system of merger control applicable to the different sectors of the economy(1). The antitrust provisions, restrictions and penalties for each particular sector (telecommunications, electricity, hydrocarbons, transport, water, etc.) are established in the “Sectorial” laws, and in general in the Bolivian Constitution, the Criminal Code and Code of Commerce ...
The role and duties of a Chair are not defined and circumscribed in incorporating statutes (federal and Quebec) except in the case of Quebec government-owned corporations and then, only in part. Boards of directors have been at the centre of the public debate on corporate governance in recent years. This heightened focus on boards has provoked questioning and reflection on the role and liability of the Chair ...
The government's current plans to increase the UK's wind energy industry are "too late and too weak", the British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) has argued. Under recent proposals put forward by the European Commission, the UK must obtain 40 per cent of all electricity from renewable sources, such as wind and solar power, within the next 12 years ...
Three separate bids are expected to be submitted to rescue Northern Rock ahead of today's government-imposed deadline.Following a series of government interventions, the chancellor is keen on a private sector rescue for the bank, which has already received £25 billion worth of loans from the Bank of England ...
Legal system1. What is the legal system (civil law, common law or a mixture of both)?Romania has a civil law system.Foreign investment2. Are there any restrictions on foreign investment (including authorisations required by central or local government)? There are only a few restrictions on foreign investment. For example, foreign persons cannot acquire land, subject to a limited number of conditional exceptions. 3 ...
