On June 17, 2021, the Law No. 21,353 was published, which contemplates the following new tax measures to support micro, small and medium-sized companies in the context of the crisis generated by Covid-19: Temporary reduction of the penal interest rate for SMEs from 1.5% to 0%, for each month or fraction of a month, in case of default in the payment of all or part of any kind of taxes and contributions due ...
On June 10, 2021, the National Congress approved the bill that establishes new tax measures to support micro, small and medium-sized companies in the context of the crisis generated by Covid-19. The bill, which is awaiting the final formalities of enactment and publication, includes the following tax measures: Temporary reduction of the penal interest rate for SMEs from 1 ...
In El Salvador, the Bitcoin Law was approved by the Legislative Assembly and published in the Official Gazette last June 9th of this year, establishing avacatio legisof ninety days from its publication; in that sense, its entry into force is scheduled for next September 7th ...
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 ...
Some opening words In South Africa, as in many jurisdictions, the concept of good faith (bona fides) crops up a lot. So, for example, in order to get registration of a trade mark, the applicant must have a good faith intention to use the trade mark. Once the trade mark is registered the owner must use it in good faith in order to keep the registration alive. In the words of George Michael, “You gotta have faith". Good faith ...
We tend to keep an eye on trade mark developments in Europe. It makes sense because South African trade mark law is very similar to EU trade mark law and there’s far more activity in the EU. South African courts do, of course, often consider EU trade mark judgments. Here are a few recent cases: Rounded curves, thicker lines and a horizontal orientation…was the judge’s mind wandering a little? This was an interesting one ...
On 9thDecember 2020, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) issued a circular on “New License Categorisations for the Nigerian Payments System” (NPS Circular). The NPS Circular set out the different licences, their permissible activities and the share capital requirements. You may access our earlier article on the NPS Circularhere ...
On 25 May 2021, the Central Bank of Nigeria (“CBN”) issued a circular to deposit money banks, payment service providers and other financial institutions notifying them of the release of the Regulatory Framework for Non-Bank Acquiring in Nigeria (“the Framework”). In this article, our Olubusola Oyeyosola Diya examines the provisions of the Framework and considers its impact on financial service providers ...
Saravut Krailadsiri, our tax partner and Pichaya Nimcharoen, our tax associate recently published a journal for Thailand’s Office of Judicial and Legal Affairs of the Court of Justice, Thailand as part of “Dunlaphaha: Journal of the Court of Justice ...
The final phase of the Esterra Park development in Redmond, Washington, is a carbon-neutral development. Schwabe client JTM Construction is the general contractor for that project. As attorneys, we are interested in staying up to date on market trends, so we asked JTM to put together a panel to brief Schwabe’s Real Estate and Construction industry group on the carbon-neutral aspects of the project ...
Fast becoming the Monaco of the East, Singapore is luring global UHNWIs to set up family offices here due to its wealth-friendly tax and regulatory regime, and its position at the global economic growth epicentre. Sergey Brin (net worth: US$104 billion). Google’s co-founder and the world’s ninth-richest person set up a branch of his single family office (SFO), Bayshore Global Management, in Singapore to manage his local assets late last year ...
On 1 June 2021, the Competition Commission released a media statement indicating that it had, on public interest grounds, prohibited a proposed transaction whereby a private equity firm, ECP Africa, intended to acquire Burger King (South Africa) and Grand Foods Meat Plant from Grand Parade Investments ...
Virtual shareholder meetings have become ubiquitous for both public and private companies since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Canadian securities regulators, stock exchanges and federal and provincial governments quickly responded to accommodate electronic meetings where it was otherwise not permitted. In British Columbia, Ministerial Order No ...
On Wednesday, a federal judge in Texas denied Factory Mutual’s Rule 12(c) motion for judgment on the pleadings, finding that the plaintiffs adequately alleged that the presence of COVID-19 on their property caused covered physical loss or damage in the case of Cinemark Holdings, Inc. v. Factory Mutual Insurance Co., No. 4:21-CV-00011 (E.D. Tex. May 5, 2021) ...
According to the Russian Government Order, dated 18th May 2021, the list of foreign citizens, who may enter Russia, has been expanded (the 'Order'). The text of the Order is available in Russian here. From 19th May 2021, the following persons are allowed to enter Russia: owners or heads of companies operating in Russia; foreign citizens entering to participate in negotiations on investment projects’ implementation ...
2021 has continued to see steady activity with respect to acquisitions and re-structuring of businesses in the Cambodian market. There are a number of factors at the forefront of this activity, not least the pending capital gains tax implementation date of 1 January 2022, bargain hunting of distressed assets, and internal re-structuring of multi-national organizations, to name a few ...
On May 28, 2021, Exempt Resolution No. 310, dated April 16, 2021 of the Ministry of the Environment was published in the Official Gazette. By means of such resolution, the Ministry of the Environment initiates the process of drafting the Supreme Decree that will set forth collection and recovery goals and other related obligations for batteries and electrical and electronic devices. Regulated priority products: "Batteries" and "Electrical and Electronic devices" ...
The Ministry of Security, through theExecutive Decree No. 199 of May 7th, 2021(hereinafter the “Decree”), adjusts the requirements for obtaining atemporary residence permitand apermanent residence permitas a Forest Investor, as follows: The forest investor residence permit may be requested in the following modalities: (i) temporary residence permit, (ii) permanent residence permit in 2 stages, and (iii) permanent residence permit in 1 stage ...
The Ministry of Public Security modifies the requirements to request the residence permit for foreigners from specific countries who maintain friendly professional, economic and investment relationship with the Republic of Panama. Panama, May 24, 2021. The Ministry of Public Security through Executive Decree No ...
On May 12, the Cyberspace Administration of China (“CAC”) issued for public comments the Several Provisions on Administration of Automobile Data Security (Draft for Comment) (“Draft Provisions”). The Draft Provisions would be the first departmental rules dedicated to addressing data compliance requirements in the automobile industry. Unlike previous draft standards[1] proposed for connected vehicles, the Draft Provisions would apply to vehicles of all types ...
The ethical consumer market in the UK has increased four-fold since 1999, and now is conservatively estimated at over £40bn per annum. Consumers are actively changing their behaviours in favour of more sustainable and ethical choices. As a result, companies are increasingly creating or adapting their offerings to appeal to these consumer preferences ...
On May 19, 2021, Superintendent Resolution Nº 045-2021-SMV/02 was published, apdopting the Regulation of the Financial Participative Financing Activity and its Management Companies (the “Regulation“), which clarifies the provisions of Emergency Decree Nº 013-2020 – Emergency Decree that Promotes the Financing of MSMEs, Entrepreneurships and Startups ...
Legal due diligence processes are widely known in the context ofmergers and acquisitions (M&A) and corporate reorganisation projects. Their aim is to analyse the operations and organisation ofcompanies to identify their degree of compliance with applicable legal and contractual regulations, the level of risk of non-compliance, and the potential sources of legal and contractual liability ...
Decree-Law 36/2021, which amends Decree-Law 176/2006 of 30 August ("Medicines Statute"), was published on 19 May. The new Decree-Law introduces a ban on the advertising of discounts on the price of medicines subject to medical prescription that are reimbursed by the National Health Service ("NHS") or that contain narcotic or psychotropic substances ...
