The October 2015 issue of the International Financial Law Review (IFLR) included an international briefing article by SyCipLaw partner Maria Jennifer Z. Barreto entitled “Mandatory tender offers.”Read the article online at the IFLR website ...
On February 16, 2016, the recently constituted Philippine Competition Commission (“PCC”), which was created under the Philippine Competition Act (Republic Act 10667 or the “PCA”), issued Memorandum Circular No ...
Karanović & Nikolić is proud to announce the promotion of new Partners and Senior Associates. The following employees have been recognised for their hard work and dedication to our values and goals, and we hope this promotion will only increase their drive and commitment in the future ...
We have news coming from Slovenia, where it has recently been reported that the European Investment Bank (EIB) will be opening its office in the country's capital, Ljubljana, during the summer months. This piece of news does not come as too big of a surprise, since the Slovenian economy has enjoyed EIB's considerable presence over the last couple of years, with its investments during last year alone totaling EUR 798 million ...
In the past, if you wanted to borrow money you would go to your bank manager, or if your bank couldn’t help you, you approached business angels or institutional investors. Business owners now face a confusing and daunting range of funding options. In the digital age, the options include an ever increasing number of online platforms which flourished following the banking crisis and which seem to offer above market returns in our low interest rate economy ...
On 16 February 2016, the Bosnian Competition Council made a ruling in favour of the cable operator and Karanović & Nikolić's client – Telemach – in the case against HD Win, the owner of the sports channel "Arena Sport", and a subsidiary of Telekom Serbia. The authority imposed a fine against HD Win for its abuse of dominant position and ordered it to enter into agreement with Telemach in order to allow its subscribers access to Arena Sport ...
Last week, the General Court of the European Union dismissed Coca Cola's request to register its bottle shape without fluting as a Community trade mark, further denying the soft drink giant's intention, five years since the application in question was initially submitted. Back in December, 2011, Coca-Cola filed an application to the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (OHIM) for the registration of its glass bottle without fluting as a Community trademark ...
This month, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) traditionally presented their annual transition report at the National Bank of Serbia (NBS) at an event that was attended by Karanović & Nikolić's Banking & Finance partner, Maja Jovančević-Šetka ...
The legal landscape for doing business in Iran has changed significantly in the past seven months. On July 14, 2015, the P5+1 (the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, China and Russia), the European Union and Iran agreed and signed a Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (“JCPOA”) contemplating the easing of certain Iran related sanctions ...
In a third and final round of settlements with underwriters, the SEC announced on February 2, 2016 enforcement actions against 14 firms for alleged misstatements and omissions in municipal bond offerings ...
NewLegislation Enables the Public Offering of Foreign Fund Units in Israel for theFirst Time On February 10, 2016, the IsraeliParliamentary Finance Committee approved regulations ("Regulations")which will enable the public offering of foreign mutual fund units inIsrael. The Regulations will take effectwithin six months from the date of publication. Prior to the enactment of theRegulations, the Israeli Joint Investment Trust Law permitted the offering offoreign funds in Israel ...
On November 25, 2015, the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) published a White Paper for consultation. It is seeking comment on two proposals which, if approved and implemented, would change the current structure for distributing mutual funds in Canada. A “restricted practice” policy and a policy involving directed commissions are being proposed ...
The jurisdictional thresholds for premerger notification filings under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (“HSR Act”) will increase February 25, 2016, and will apply to any transaction closing on or after that date. The revised thresholds will remain in effect until the next annual adjustment, expected in the first quarter of 2017.To read the full alert, click here ...
Lavery closely monitors new developments in consumer law and is committed to keeping the business community informed of the latest developments in this area of the law by regularly publishing newsletters dealing with new case law or legislative changes which may impact, influence, or even transform practices in the retail sector ...
Less than two days after an enforcement moratorium expired, U.S. and EU officials in transatlantic data transfer talks have reached a new “Privacy Shield” framework to replace the Safe Harbor regime struck down in the Schrems case last year. The new framework, also known as Safe Harbor 2.0, is expected to increase obligations on U.S. companies that handle the personal data of Europeans, while bringing stronger privacy enforcement by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) ...
On January 1, 2016 Law No. 20,848 which sets forth a new legal framework for foreign direct investment in Chile (the “New Law”) was enacted. The New Law also regulates the effects of contracts entered into during the term of Decree Law No. 600 of 1974 (“DL 600”), in order to guarantee the full validity of the rights and duties acquired by foreign investors under said legal regime ...
Times are tough, very tough, for many mid-cap and small-cap exploration and production (“E&P”) companies. Crude oil prices have fallen from more than $100/barrel in July 2014 to a twelve-year low of less than $30/barrel in January 2016. Natural gas prices are at a three-year low. The growing consensus is that depressed prices will experience a slow recovery that may continue into the 2020s ...
To give effect to the constitutional right to privacy, on 20 August 2013, the National Assembly passed the Protection of Personal Information Bill (B9D of 2009), which is largely based on the European Data Protection Directive (to be replaced in due course by the stricter General Data Protection Regulation). The Bill was signed into law by the President on 19 November 2013 and was gazetted as the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (“POPI”) on 26 November 2013 ...
Introduction In 2015 the Belgian banking and finance law landscape underwent certain changesand numerous modifications continue to be expected in 2016. This newsletter highlightscertain changes in EU and Belgian law in the following practice areas: financetransactions; investment funds (undertakings for collective investment); andfinancial institutions. 1 ...
Yesterday the Supreme Court issued its decision in the closely-watched case of Campbell-Ewald Co. v. Gomez, 577 U.S. __ (2016) ...
On 11 December 2015, shortly before the holiday season began, the Minister of Telecommunications and Postal Services published an amendment to the Alternative Dispute Resolution Regulations (“the regulations”) in the Government Gazette. The amendment states that Internet domain names registered in the .co.za, .net.za, .web.za and .org.za are open to alternative dispute resolution under the regulations ...
A recent Trade Mark Registry decision confirms that well-known global brands are well protected in Mauritius. The case involved an application by a Mauritian company called Exparel Limited to register the trade mark JSP-JUST SAFETY PROFESSIONAL in classes 25 (the clothing class) and 35 (the business services class) in Mauritius. The application was opposed by a UK company called JSP Limited. JSP Limited is based in Oxford and was established in 1964 ...
In South Africa, the Advertising Standards Authority (“ASA”) is often used as a forum for trade mark-style disputes. As a recent decision shows, however, success isn’t guaranteed. Regular readers of our IP ENSight newsletters will know that companies are quite fond of using the ASA for what are essentially trade mark or passing off-type disputes. One reason for this is that ASA proceedings are far cheaper and quicker than court proceedings ...
loration and production (“E&P”) companies are confronting the harshest industry environment in decades. E&P companies experienced a drastic deterioration in prices for their oil and natural gas production during the second half of 2014, which remained at depressed levels throughout 2015. The velocity and steepness of the decline has resulted in deteriorating operating cash flows, results of operations and financial condition for many E&P companies ...
