On January 17, 2014 the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware issued a ruling in Fisker Automotive Holdings, Inc., et. al., Case No. 13-13087 (KG), which highlights potential risks to both secured creditors and purchasers of claims in bankruptcy section 363 sales. The facts in Fisker are straightforward ...
On January 17, 2014, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced increased jurisdictional thresholds for premerger notification filings under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (HSR Act). The FTC adjusts the thresholds annually to reflect changes in the gross national product. The revised thresholds will apply to any transaction closing on or after the effective date, which is 30 days after formal notice is published in the Federal Register ...
On January 9, the US District Court for the Northern District of California found that Bazaarvoice Inc. violated Section 7 of the Clayton Act by acquiring its primary rival, PowerReviews Inc. — launching the new year with a significant merger trial win for the Antitrust Division of the US Department of Justice (DOJ). But, this case also is important for businesses analyzing antitrust risks associated with potential competitor acquisitions ...
Sierra Club v. Bostick (W.D. Oklahoma) In June 2012, environmental groups filed suit in the US District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma challenging the US Army Corps of Engineers’ issuance of Nationwide Permit (NWP) 12 for utility line projects, and use of NWP 12 for the Keystone Pipeline Gulf Coast Project.Sierra Club v. Bostick, 5:12-cv-00742-R (W.D. Oklahoma) ...
In the United States, new rules will soon be taking effect making consideration of vapour intrusion risk a mandatory step in the Phase I environmental site assessment (ESA) process. Companies should review their real estate portfolios and consider whether properties may be at risk. In Canada, mortgage financing and asset sales are expected to be affected by the new diligence standard (that includes checking for vapour intrusion risks) in the near future ...
Traditionally, the estate administrator’s main duty has been to liquidate the machinery of the estate as quickly as possible. But there are alternative possibilities. Instead of seeing the bankruptcy estate as a pile of assets left behind by a company that has gone through financial hardship, smart thinking says you should see this as an opportunity to start a new business. At its best, bankruptcy means a fresh start for a successor company without burdens of the bankrupt one ...
CONTENT Notifying your insurer of potential legal proceedings : A sensible measure which may help you avoid significant costs!The ABCs of Managing Absenteeism at Work NOTIFYING YOUR INSURER OF POTENTIAL LEGAL PROCEEDINGS: A SENSIBLE MEASURE WHICH MAY HELP YOU AVOID SIGNIFICANT COSTS! Jonathan Lacoste-Jobin Company directors sometimes have the reflex of minimizing the importance of a letter of demand or of the threat of a legal action ...
Facts and judicial history The Supreme Court of Canada has rendered a decision which is likely to generate a lot of commentary in the Canadian class action scene. On December 12, 2013, the Court issued a ruling in the case of AIC Limited v. Fischer1 (hereinafter ''Fischer''), now frequently referred to as the ''market timing decision'' ...
A federal jury in Nevada recently convicted 22-year-old David Ray Camez of violating the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”) for his association with a “carder” website, Carder.su. The Department of Justice is touting this conviction as the first RICO conviction arising from computer-related crimes, and we anticipate that RICO will become an effective tool for prosecutors and private businesses to use in combatting cybercrime going forward. RICO (18 U.S.C ...
On June 12, 2013, the Quebec Court of Appeal rendered a decision in the case of Fers et Métaux Américains S.E.C. et als v. Picard et als1 (“Fers et Métaux Américains S.E.C.”) confirming that the courts can issue Norwich-type orders in Quebec. This decision is consistent with the judgment rendered by the Quebec Court of Appeal, in 2002, in Raymond Chabot SST inc. v. Groupe AST (1993) inc.,2 which recognized that Anton Piller-type orders could be validly issued in Quebec ...
The federal Endangered Species Act is designed to prevent the taking of endangered species and imposes a regulatory program geared toward the protection and conservation of federally listed species and their critical habitat ...
In Jaffé v. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., et al ...
Jorge Carey:“Analyzing the repeal or modification of DL600 is an issue that can bediscussed” Jorge Carey, who has been involved in several businesses with foreigninvestors, has doubts about a reform, believing that it is not a good idea thatthis type of changes are implemented by a left or center-left governmentsbecause it risks to bring unnecessary (political) noise ...
On October 23, 2013, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) issued proposed rules to effect Title III of the Jumpstart Our Business Startup (JOBS) Act, enacted on April 5, 2012. Title III and the proposed rules provide the framework for companies to raise capital through securities offerings using crowdfunding. Below is a summary of the proposed rules ...
A recent court order in favor of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (or CFTC) and new rules issued by CFTC establish a standard of liability for depository institutions that fail to fulfill their customer funds protection obligations under the Commodity Exchange Act (or CEA) and, thus, requires them in certain circumstances to monitor the activities of clients that are registered with CFTC as futures commission merchants (or FCMs), commonly known as commodity brokers ...
THE 1979 STATUTE It is well known that, under the legal regime for the protection of agricultural lands, the acquisition of agriculturally zoned lands with a surface area of four hectares or more by a person not residing in Quebec is subject to the authorization of the Commission de protection des terres agricoles. This is the object of the Act respecting the acquisition of farm land by non-residents (CQLR chapter A-4.1) (the “Act”), which has been in force since December 21, 1979 ...
Purchasers and lessees of commercial or industrial properties know to obtain Phase I environmental site assessments to identify the presence of contamination - so-called recognized environmental conditions (RECs) - because of the very substantial liabilities these conditions may create. And their lenders generally require them. The industry standard for Phase I’s is based on EPA regulations that flesh out Superfund’s “all appropriate inquiry (AAI)” standard ...
In In re KB Toys,1 a recent decision by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, the Court held that a claim that is disallowable under § 502(d)2 if held by the original claimant is also disallowable in the hands of a purchaser or subsequent transferee ...
In October 2013 the Department for Business Innovation & Skills (BIS) published a consultation on company filing requirements as part of its Red Tape Challenge (RTC) to reduce unnecessary regulatory burden. The consultation aims to consider where opportunities may exist to improve and simplify the current requirements for companies to file certain information with the Registrar of Companies at Companies House ...
The FCA has published a consultation paper CP 13/15. The paper sets out a series of amended Listing Rules in near-final form, along with some new and revised proposals based on feedback from a previous consultation (CP 12/25). The paper contains a package of measures designed to strengthen minority shareholder rights where they are at risk of being abused ...
Introduction Last week, the federal government took a big step toward bringing the Fisheries Act (Canada) and its application into line with the federal government’s responsible resource development plan ...
On October 31, 2013, the Supreme Court rendered three judgments with respect to class actions at the authorization or certification stage, one from the Province of Quebec1 and the other two from the Province of British Columbia.2 In all three cases, the facts raised issues with respect to the price fixing of consumer products in contravention of the Competition Act,3 notably through a conspiracy ...
The European Parliament’s Auken Report made it clear that Spain is coming up short as far as protecting its coastline is concerned. Application of Coastal Law 22/1988, of July 28, 1988, fast-tracked in recent years, not only brought with it no little confusion for all concerned, it also failed to contribute to the protection of the coastline, which clearly leaves a great deal to be desired along certain stretches of the Spanish coast ...
