Department of State: ∙ DOS issued public announcements for Peru, Nepal, and the Philippines alerting U.S. citizens to the general security environment, the continued potential for violence, and the possibility of terrorist activity directed at American interests in the regions. ∙ DOS issued a travel warning for Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza due to deteriorating security situations ...
Resignation of Two Argentine Presidents. In late December 2001, Argentina saw the rare occurrence of the resignation of two Argentine Presidents. First, Fernando de la Rúa resigned after public protests to the administration’s economic policies resulted in civil unrest. Also resigning at the same time was his Minister of Economy Domingo Cavallo ...
There is a multi-million dollar market segment that petroleum and energy product companies may not have considered previously -- namely sales to the U.S. Government. The principal federal government agency for the purchase and management of energy products is the Defense Energy Support Center (DESC), a part of the Defense Logistics Agency, with headquarters at Ft. Belvoir, Virginia ...
To Our Public Company Clients: The SEC has adopted new rules that generally require domestic public companies to publicly disclose information regarding the potential share “overhang” that exists as a result of all of their equity compensation plans. The new rules affect Regulation S-K and S-B Items 201 and 601, Items 10 and 14 of Schedules 14A and 14C, as well as Item 12 of Form 10-K and Item 11 of Form 10-KSB ...
Enron announced in court Friday, January 11, that it had selected UBS Warburg’s bid for its wholesale commodity trading business. Many details concerning the sale remain to be resolved through the bankruptcy court process. Importantly for Haynes and Boone’s energy clients, there are many other Enron assets remaining on the auction block ...
In a dramatic reversal, the National Labor Relations Board (the “Board”) today ruled that employers may not restrict employees from using the employer’s email to communicate with fellow employees about union matters, or other matters protected by Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (the “Act”). In doing so, the Board ruled that a 2007 decision that allowed such a restriction was “clearly incorrect ...
The recent media coverage of the ENRON crisis and the related Congressional investigations have combined to precipitate new discussions about the adequacy of corporate governance, accounting oversight and financial disclosures. As a result, there is a strong push afoot for new federal requirements in these areas primarily through new SEC regulations. We are again reminded that “bad facts make for bad law” and a crisis often leads to over reactions ...
On January 6, 2002, the Argentine Congress passed Law 25,561 (the “Law”) that revoked the convertibility regime that established the currency board system. The old Convertibility Law maintained a fixed exchange rate of 1:1 between the peso and the US dollar. In addition, on January 10, 2002, the President issued Decree 71/2002, which outlined the types of debts to be converted from US Dollars to Pesos at 1 to 1 exchange rate ...
According to the fourth quarter 2001 report of Lodging Econometrics, the accelerated decline in the operating performance of the lodging industry will continue until the middle of the first quarter of 2002 due to the events of September 11, 2001 and the recession. Further, while the operating performance of the lodging industry may show signs of improvement by September of 2002, their effects may not be felt until the first quarter of 2003 ...
Companies subject to product liability lawsuits – and their counsel – know the importance of promptly examining whether the company is subject to general personal jurisdiction or specific personal jurisdiction of the forum court. A court with general personal jurisdiction over a defendant can hear any and all claims against that defendant. After the United States Supreme Court’s decisions in Daimler AG v. Bauman, 134 S. Ct 746 (2014) and BSNF Railway Co. v ...
For a long time, socialising at work was synonymous with drinking alcohol, but in recent times we have seen this trend start to shift. This is positive news for employers who risk social events centred around alcohol inadvertently isolating those to choose not to drink. With minimal alternatives available in the past, some employees have felt a certain pressure to drink at events to ‘keep up’ with colleagues ...
Since 2009, the Alberta government has reserved for itself the right to exempt electricity transmission projects from review by the Alberta Utilities Commission. Exempted projects have been referred to as Bill 50 Projects, Bill 50 being the name of the law when it was first proposed ...
On October 25, 2007 the Alberta Government announced a new royalty regime that will see a 20% increase in royalties for the development of the province’s non-renewable energy resources. Starting in 2009, oil and gas companies are expected to be paying roughly $1.4 billion more a year in royalties ...
The issue of coalbed methane (CBM) ownership, frequently disputed between coal rights holders and holders of mines and minerals rights other than coal, has been the subject of numerous recent applications to the Alberta Energy and Utilities Board (AEUB). The AEUB recently announced that it will hold a hearing relating to legal entitlement of CBM on split-title freehold mineral lands in Alberta ...
The Alberta Court of Appeal recently granted Atco Gas and Pipelines Ltd.’s (ATCO) application for leave to appeal AEUB Decisions 2005-63 and 2007-005 and Interim Order U2005-133. In those decisions the AEUB required ATCO to maintain certain natural gas reservoir storage assets (the “Carbon Facilities”) in rate base ...
The Alberta Court of Appeal has denied the Cold Lake First Nations’ (CLFN) application to appeal a decision by Alberta’s Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB) that it did not have the jurisdiction to determine the adequacy of Crown consultation in respect of a bitumen recovery project within the CLFN’s treaty territory ...
SyCipLaw partner Hector M. de Leon, Jr. was interviewed by ALB’s Ranajit Dam for the cover story of its January issue. Entitled "The year in 2015," the article provides a forecast of 2015 economic and legal developments and trends in China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand.The article is available for viewing online at the ALB website. A copy of the entire January issue of ALB is also available through Issuu ...
The June 2016 edition of the Asian Legal Business (ALB) Asia Edition included a regional update article entitled “Philippines’ Economic Prospects Under a Duterte Presidency” by SyCipLaw partner Jose Florante M. Pamfilo. The article is found on page 11.Visit the ALB website to access an e-book copy of the publication ...
The October 2016 issue of the Asian Legal Business (ALB) includes a regional update article entitled “New Implementing Rules for Philippine Data Privacy Act”, contributed by SyCipLaw partner Rose Marie M. King-Dominguez. The article enumerated and discussed the implementing rules and regulations of the Philippine Data Privacy Act of 2012. It is located on page 11. Read the full ALB October 2016 issue on the ALB website ...
It has been almost two years since Republic Act No. 10667, otherwise known as the Philippine Competition Act (the PCA), took effect on August 8, 2015 ...
The August 2016 issue of the Asian Legal Business (ALB) Asia Edition includes a regional update by SyCipLaw partner Maria Teresa Mercado-Ferrer entitled “A Need to Clarify Powers of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority and Local Government Units Relative to Peza-Registered BPO Companies”. The regional update can be found on page 15.Read the full ALB August 2016 issue for free ...
The September 2016 issue of the Asian Legal Business (ALB) Edition included a regional update article entitled “Anti-Corruption Laws in the Philippines”, contributed by SyCipLaw partner Ronald Mark C. Lleno, and Associate Rhey David S. Daway. The article discussed examples of prohibited corrupt practices under Philippine law. It is located on page 16. Access the full ALB September 2016 issue online ...
When Alabama’s Legislature convenes for its annual session on February 2, lawmakers will once again be asked to consider a bill that would provide certain Alabamians with access to medical cannabis ...
You did not get paid for your labor and material, so you ask, what can I do? Alabama’s lien law provides you an opportunity to place a lien on the property for certain unpaid amounts for labor and materials. If you follow the proper procedures to perfect the lien and obtain a judgment in your favor, you may force the sale of the property to collect on your judgment (see Ala. Code § 35-11-226). This article focuses on the procedural basics of Alabama’s lien law ...
