Monthly Archives: October 2011

ILN Today Post
October 5, 2011

Fallout of New FDI Policy: “In built Options”– When Foreign Investments can become Loans

By LexCounsel Law Offices

Background

Section 3.3.2.1 of the new FDI Policy states that only:

(i)         equity shares,

(ii)        fully, compulsorily and mandatorily convertible debentures; and

(iii)       fully, compulsorily and mandatorily convertible preference shares,

in each case with no in-built options of any type, would qualify as eligible instruments for FDI. Equity instruments issued/transferred to non-residents having in-built options or supported by options sold by third parties would lose their equity character and such instruments would have to comply with the extant external commercial borrowings (“ECB”) guidelines.

Posted in Asia Pacific | Legal Updates
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October 4, 2011

Arnstein & Lehr Attorneys Win Rare Dismissal of Class-Action Lawsuit Against Beverage Company

By MLB of Arnstein & Lehr
Arnstein & Lehr attorney Joel B. Rothman

Joel B. Rothman

Arnstein & Lehr attorney Harley Storrings

Harley Storrings

Arnstein & Lehr attorneys won a rare dismissal of a class-action lawsuit filed in California against Celsius Holdings, a Boca Raton-based maker of functional beverages for health conscious consumers.

California courts are usually kind to class-action lawsuits, but a state court judge granted Arnstein & Lehr partner Joel Rothman’s motion to toss out three claims brought under California Legal Remedies Act and the state’s business and professions code for false and misleading advertising.

Posted in News | North America
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ILN Today Post
October 4, 2011

Levelling the playing field

By Fladgate LLP
European Court signals change to territorial rules for broadcasters and download content providers
04/10/2011

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) today gave its judgment in cases brought by the FA Premier League (FAPL) and its licensing partners against the sellers and users of satellite TV decoder cards shipped from Greece to the UK and used in British pubs to screen live Premier League games.

The ECJ, in a sweeping judgment, ruled that the FAPL could not prevent UK users from buying decoder cards in other European countries, and held that contract terms which the FAPL had with all its European broadcasters, and which tightly enforced territoriality, were unlawful and unenforceable.

Posted in Europe | Legal Updates
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ILN Today Post
October 4, 2011

Electronic identity verification AML/CTF Act and Privacy Act amended

By gadens

New laws commenced on 28 June 2011 permitting verification of an identity using information held by a credit reporting agency. AML/CTF reporting entities should amend their privacy consents if they want to use this method.  read more…

Posted in Asia Pacific | Legal Updates
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October 3, 2011

Estate Planning Alert: Roth recharacterization may save tax — October 15, 2011 deadline nears

By McDonald Hopkins News

If you did a Roth IRA conversion in 2010, and the value of the Roth IRA has decreased since the date of that conversion, you may be able to recharacterize the Roth IRA to a traditional IRA before October 17, 2011.

Roth IRAs remain a very useful planning tool. However, recent drops in the stock market may cause you to reconsider a 2010 conversion to a Roth IRA. For example, if you converted a $100,000 traditional IRA to a Roth IRA in 2010, and that account is now worth $90,000, you are paying tax on $10,000 that you no longer own.

If you “recharacterize” the Roth IRA to a traditional IRA before the applicable deadline, you will not be required to pay the income tax on the 2010 Roth IRA conversion (or, if applicable, you will be entitled to a refund of the tax you already paid), and your IRA will be treated as a traditional IRA. In other words, by recharacterizing your Roth IRA, the Roth IRA conversion is undone. 

Posted in Legal Updates | North America
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October 3, 2011

Robert E. McKenzie writes Forbes blog post on new IRS worker reclassification program

By MLB of Arnstein & Lehr
Arnstein & Lehr Attorney Robert E. McKenzie

Robert E. McKenzie

Chicago Partner Robert E. McKenzie wrote a post for Forbes magazine’s online blog that appeared on Tuesday, September 29. Mr. McKenzie’s post discusses the IRS’ new Voluntary Classification Settlement Program (VCSP) for companies with misclassified workers. He discusses in the post the dangers of IRS examinations if an employer has been found to misclassify its workers, employer eligibility guidelines, VCSP agreements, applying for VCSP, and other considerations. To read the complete article, please click here.

Posted in News | North America
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ILN Today Post
October 3, 2011

UNFAIR DISMISSAL

By Halsbury Chambers

Without question, it is more common to hear of Wrongful Dismissal, than Unfair Dismissal. Perhaps this is more due to ignoranceof the law, than anything else.

Notably, Sections 34 and 35 of the Employment Act makes provisionthus:

34. Every employee shall have the right not to be unfairly dismissed, as providedin sections 35 to 40, by his employer.

35. Subject to sections 36 to 40, for the purposes of this Part, the question whether the dismissal of the employee was fair or unfair shall be determinedin accordance with the substantial merits of the case.

For the full article, please click here.

Posted in Legal Updates | North America
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ILN Today Post
October 3, 2011

Fourth Edition of the Consolidated FDI Policy Released by DIPP

By LexCounsel Law Offices

The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India (“DIPP”) on September 30, 2011 released the fourth edition of the consolidated FDI Policy of India vide Circular 2 of 2011.

As per the DIPP, some of the major revisions to the FDI Policy:

1.         Exemption to Educational Institutions and Old Age Homes – FDI in construction development activities with respect to educational institutions and old-age homes has been exempted from the conditions imposed on FDI in Construction Development Sector, viz. the minimum area and built-up area requirement; minimum capitalization requirement; and lock-in period.

The exemption has been granted with an intent to augment the physical infrastructure (with respect to educational institutions as well as old-age homes) and bring it up to global standards.

Posted in Asia Pacific | Legal Updates
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October 2, 2011

McDonald Hopkins Law Firm Elects Four Members: Anne Owings Ford, Michael J. Kaczka, Jessica T. Lifshitz, and Owen P. Quinn

By McDonald Hopkins News

Cleveland, Ohio (October 3, 2011) – McDonald Hopkins LLC, a business advisory and advocacy law firm with offices in Chicago, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, Miami, and West Palm Beach,  announces the election of four attorneys to the firm’s membership.

Anne Owings Ford (Cleveland) – Member, Litigation

Michael J. Kaczka (Cleveland) – Member, Business Restructuring and Bankruptcy

Jessica T. Lifshitz (West Palm Beach) – Member, Business Law

Owen P. Quinn (Chicago) – Member, Litigation

“We are always gratified to see our attorneys advance in their careers,” said Carl J. Grassi, president of McDonald Hopkins. “All four of these professionals are talented lawyers who have demonstrated their meaningful value to our clients. They have contributed to the growth of our firm and I am confident they will continue to help us thrive. In addition to these promotions, we continue to recruit attorneys for our national practice groups.”

Posted in News | North America
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