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 ...
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The election of a majority Liberal government last October 19 signaled that there would be numerous changes to Canadian tax policy, particularly for individuals. One of these changes which has made waves in the business community is the reform of the tax regime applicable to stock options. Under section 7 of the Income Tax Act (Canada) in its current form, the benefit realized by an employee on exercising stock options is treated as employment income ...
On December 11, 2015, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC,” or the “Commission”) issued re-proposed rules (the “Proposed Rules”), as authorized under Section 1504 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank Act”) ...
The Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) adopted the final rules to Regulation Crowdfunding on October 30, 2015, which implemented Title III of the JOBS Act to allow companies to raise capital through crowdfunding. The final rules are codified as Regulation Crowdfunding in furtherance of Section 4(a)(6) of the Securities Act of 1933 ...
The main provisions of the Restructuring Law of 15 May 2015 enter into force on 1 January 2016. It will serve one of the foundations of commercial law in Poland, enabling effective restructuring of insolvent enterprises. The Restructuring Law sets forth the rules for the Polish courts to conduct four separate types of restructuring procedures. It also introduces a range of major changes to the Bankruptcy & Recovery Law of 2003, which from 1 January 2016 is renamed the Bankruptcy Law ...
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (“Federal Circuit”), in In re Simon Shiao Tam, held the seventy-year old disparagement clause of Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act unconstitutional on December 22, 2015. Under Section 2(a), a trademark shall be refused registration if it consists of “matter which may disparage…persons, living or dead… or bring them into contempt, or disrepute ...
On December 18, 2015, President Obama signed into law the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (the “Act”). The Act encourages foreign investments in REITs and ends certain tax-free REIT spin-offs. The Act also includes a largely helpful set of technical revisions to the REIT tax rules.Continue reading a summary of the more significant REIT provisions of the Act ...
Recent reports indicate that the number of mergers that were challenged by stockholders during the fourth quarter of 2015 dropped significantly, with estimates ranging from 34% to 21%.1 This is a seismic shift from prior years, when almost 95% of public company transactions resulted in litigation. The drop in lawsuits is attributable to a series of rulings by the Delaware Court of Chancery during the second half of last year ...
Although many of us still wonder at a drone cruising the sky, it has become relatively common to see these devices around. Drones are used for commercial, industrial, marketing and informational purposes, and also for pure fun and enjoyment. Drones, technically referred to as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), are now part of our lives. As many other aspects of day-to-day life, there is a regulation in Guatemala that applies to drones, though it is scarcely known by the general public ...
The Finnish Criminal Code has been recently amended to combat cybercrime more effectively. The Criminal Code now takes a tougher stance against cybercrime by amending certain provisions, introducing completely new provisions and more severe penalties. The amendments entered into force 4 September 2015. From now on, cybercrime offences, such as illegal data interference and identity theft, can be found under their own titles in the Criminal Code ...
On December 4, 2015, President Obama signed H.R. 22, Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, into law. The new law reauthorizes federal highway and transit programs for five years. While most of the attention on the legislation has focused on the new funding for transportation infrastructure, the measure also includes significant policy changes related to motor vehicle safety and enforcement actions by the National Highway Transit Safety Administration (NHTSA) ...
On December 18, 2015, Congress passed the “Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015” (the “Act”), which provides significant reforms to the Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act of 1980 (“FIRPTA”) and to the rules applicable to real estate investment trusts (“REITs”). To read the full alert, click here ...
This week, in Teladoc, Inc. v. Texas Medical Board, 1-15-CV-343 RP, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, in one of the first federal decisions interpreting North Carolina State Board of Dental Examiners v. Federal Trade Commission, 135 S. Ct. 1101 (2015), denied the Texas Medical Board immunity from an antitrust claim in a narrow reading of the state-action immunity doctrine. To read the full alert, click here ...
On November 14, 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada rendered three decisions on the application of the the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, RSC 1985, c. B-3 (BIA) and its interaction with certain provincial statutes.OVERVIEW OF THE FACTSIn Saskatchewan (Attorney General) v. Lemare Lake Logging Ltd. Ltd ...
In a situation where a taxpayer could choose between two transactions, the law does not require the taxpayer to choose a transaction which would bring along the largest amount of payable taxes. Taxpayers have the right to organise their activities in a manner which would entail the smallest possible tax burden and the state cannot reproach them for it. The only issue can be about distinguishing the permitted solutions of tax optimisation from obtaining dishonest tax concessions ...
On 2 November 2015, the South African National Treasury published a Draft Carbon Tax Bill (the “Bill”) for public comment, with the comment period commencing immediately and continuing until 15 December 2015. Measurement, reporting and verification (“MRV”) of emissions data arising from greenhouse gas related activities underpin the effective functioning of the proposed carbon tax ...
The Philippines section of The Mergers & Acquisitions Review 9th Edition contains an overview of M&A activity in the country, general introduction to the legal framework for M&A, developments in corporate and takeover law and their impact, foreign involvement in M&A transactions, significant transactions, key trends and hot industries, financing of M&A, main sources and developments, employment law, tax law, competition law, and outlook ...
Last October 30, the provincial government announced the creation of 'Passeport Entreprises', an action plan focused on two main points: to facilitate access by businesses to government contracts and make the Quebec government's tendering processes more transparent and rigorous ...
Since the new Chinese government came into power in 2013, it has proposed a host of new strategies to realise the “Chinese Dream”. One of the more significant strategies, led personally by President Xi Jinping, is known as “One Belt, One Road” plan, which will have a huge, undeniable impact on the global economy over the next 10 years. The One Belt, One Road strategy aims to provide a comprehensive roadmap for partnership between China and the rest of the world ...
Modern day company law has largely moved away from the concept of “ultra vires” which sought to limit the ability of a company to enter into transactions outside its stated objects. The British Virgin Islands officially moved away from the concept in 2005 pursuant to provisions under the BVI Business Companies Act ...
Known worldwide for its robust shipping registry, trusts, funds, and corporate law sectors, the British Virgin Islands is emerging as a globally competitive jurisdiction for registering and protecting intellectual property, thanks to the enactment of the highly anticipated Trade Mark Act, 2013. The Act, which clarifies, protects, and streamlines the trademark processes, institutes beneficial legal proceedings and conditions for the welfare of intellectual and industrial properties in the BVI ...
Systemic amendments to Poland’s Bankruptcy & Recovery Law enter into force on 1 January 2016. The main goal of the amendment is to create separate restructuring proceedings governed by the new Restructuring Law. Restructuring proceedings are to replace the former bankruptcy proceedings involving conclusion of an arrangement, as well as recovery proceedings, currently conducted under the Bankruptcy & Recovery Law ...
