On January 6, 2022, the U.S. Department of the Treasury issued a final rule on the use of Coronavirus State & Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) provided to state, local, and tribal governments pursuant to the American Rescue Plan (ARP). While the final rule largely includes the eligible uses of SLFRF funds described in the interim rule issued in May of 2021, the Treasury expanded and provided more detail on eligible uses ...
On Thursday, January 13, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay pausing implementation of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration Emergency Temporary Standard, finding that the challengers to the ETS are likely to prevail. Justices John Roberts, Amy Coney Barrett, and Brett Kavanaugh issued the decision to stay the OSHA ETS. Justices Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, and Clarence Thomas concurred with their own separate opinion ...
On January 6, 2022, the U.S. Department of the Treasury issued a final rule on the use of Coronavirus State & Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) provided to state, local, and tribal governments pursuant to the American Rescue Plan (ARP). While the final rule largely includes the eligible uses of SLFRF funds described in the interim rule issued in May of 2021, the Treasury expanded and provided more detail on eligible uses ...
While the U.S. Supreme Court continues to deliberate over whether the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) is a valid exercise of OSHA’s regulatory authority, OSHA has continued to update their ETS FAQs to provide more guidance to employers. In particular, OSHA has clarified the requirements that apply to the use of over-the-counter COVID-19 tests (OTC Tests) for compliance with the testing requirements of the ETS ...
On Jan. 13, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States lifted the injunction on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) vaccine mandate (Mandate).[1] Previously, injunctions were imposed by district courts in Missouri and Louisiana, and affirmed on appeal by the Eighth and Fifth Circuits, respectively, thereby prohibiting enforcement of the Mandate in 24 states ...
We are pleased to announce that Kudun & Partners has joined the Pride Partners International (PPI) network as the exclusive member for Thailand. Pride Partners International (PPI) is a global association of transfer pricing and financial valuation consulting firms with a presence in most entrepreneurial markets around the globe ...
On Jan. 13, 2022, the United States Supreme Court issued an order blocking enforcement of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) requiring (among other things) employers of 100 or more employees to require employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 or ensure unvaccinated employees are tested for COVID-19 weekly ...
On December 16, 2021, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board readopted the Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS), but included several revisions which will go into effect on January 14, 2022 and which will remain in effect for three months. In addition, CDPH issued updated guidance for the general public this month. That guidance on isolation and quarantine requirements has now replaced the ETS exclusion periods and return to work criteria for all workers as of January 14, 2022 ...
As the pandemic persists and the disruption of the previous two years continues to impact projects, the construction industry faces a continued period of uncertainty in 2022. Further disruption The pandemic and issues around the availability of materials may continue to disrupt projects into 2022 leading to higher costs and further delays ...
Private healthcare provider Bupa has been ordered to pay a purported record £1.04 million penalty (fine and costs combined) after admitting fire safety failings. London Fire Brigade, prosecuting, said it was the "highest ever fine for fire safety breaches in the UK, [highlighting] the seriousness of Bupa's failure to protect a vulnerable resident in its care ...
On January 3rd, 2022, the Chilean Financial Market Commission (FMC) opened a public consultation process (the "Regulatory Proposal") on new regulations regarding the procedure to authorize the existence of certain special stock corporations (SSCs) and to authorize the commencement of operations of general fund managers (GFMs) ...
On 6 December 2021, the NBC issued a Notification No. B7-021-2083 on Cessation of Granting New Microfinance Deposit-Taking Institutions License. The NBC decided to cease granting of new license for microfinance deposit-taking institutions in order to further strengthen banks and financial institutions’ capacity, inspection, financial stability and contribution to national economic development ...
In May 2021, the UK Government commissioned an independent, fan-led review of football governance in England following three “crisis events”. The report has thus far received a varied reception. Some have welcomed its recommendations, and believe that they will bring about much needed reform of the current model of football governance ...
I have recently been advising a farmer in relation to an appeal against a department penalty imposed for an alleged breach of GAEC (Good Agricultural Environmental Conditions). These are the conditions farmers claiming agricultural support payments must comply with, and which are designed to safeguard soils, habitats and landscape features on agricultural land. A breach of GAEC can lead to financial penalties being imposed on the farmer ...
The Court of Session has considered whether court proceedings can be raised to interrupt time bar, despite a contractual provision requiring adjudication before litigation. The issue Construction contracts often provide a hierarchy of dispute resolution processes. Before a party is permitted to litigate (or arbitrate), it is often required to attempt to resolve the dispute through another method (or methods) of dispute resolution ...
The recent case of John Doyle Construction (JDC) v Erith Contractors Limited provides two lessons for the construction sector concerning the enforcement of adjudicators’ decisions by companies in liquidation. First, “clear, evidenced, and unequivocal security” is necessary before enforcement is possible. Second, where a solvent and paying party asserts set-off and counter-claims, enforcement is prohibited in most circumstances ...
Certain claims in contentious executry matters, such as challenging a will, must be made within a specific time period. Where a dispute arises, seeking legal advice about the relevant time period at the earliest opportunity is of fundamental importance. In Scots law, the loss of a claim due to the passage of time is known as prescription and is presently governed by the Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973 ...
The Rating (Coronavirus) and Directors Disqualification (Dissolved Companies) Act 2021 received Royal Assent on 15 December 2021. The Act implements changes to the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986 (the CDDA). Importantly, it will allow the Insolvency Service to investigate the conduct of directors of dissolved companies. What is the current position? The CDDA allows the Insolvency Service to investigate the conduct of directors of insolvent companies ...
How will the UK become a Net Zero-aligned Financial Centre? Last month, the UK Government announced that the UK was to be the world’s first Net Zero-aligned Financial Centre. The Institute for Government defines “net zero” as “a balance between the amount of greenhouse gas emissions produced and the amount removed from the atmosphere” ...
It makes for great entertainment if a competition comes down to the last few minutes. So a dramatic final race in Abu Dhabi should have been the finishing flourish for a Formula One season that has been one of the closest in years, with Sir Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen fighting it out for the championship. Instead, the last lap generated huge controversy after a decision by the Race Director to allow some cars to unlap themselves, and order the safety car in immediately ...
This is the second article in 'Back to Basics', a series of articles looking at insolvency processes in Scotland. This article will examine the court process for sequestration, focusing on petitions by creditors. Sequestration is the Scottish legal term for personal bankruptcy ...
The unquantifiable part of subjecting a dispute to the arbitration of a court is the litigation risk. We explore what those risks are and why it is essential that they should never be ignored. The cornerstones of any case should be clear, solid and documented evidence, a series of strong witnesses and in the ideal world and a juicy piece of case law (precedent) that ties it all together and gives the judge/panel a map to direct them to their decision ...
In the second part of this article, we look at the problems that can arise through the interpretation of evidence by the tribunal and look at ways to mitigate litigation risk by ensuring that the story of the case is presented as clearly as possible ...
Law 9/2022 was published in Diário da República, the Portuguese official gazette, on 11 January 2022. This new law establishes measures to support and speed up corporate restructuring processes and payment agreements. It is the result of the incorporation into Portuguese law of Directive (EU) 2019/1023 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 (“Directive (EU) 2019/1023”) ...
Over the years, employers have become accustomed to the practice of an injured worker filing a request for compensation (typically an initial award or increase in permanent partial disability) or medical treatment days before the applicable statute of limitations in order to keep the claim alive. It has long been held that an application for such benefits tolls the statute of limitations while that issue is adjudicated before the Industrial Commission ...
