Legal Updates

January 27, 2020

Data Privacy: What to Watch in 2020

By Alaap Shah of Epstein Becker & Green

January 28^th marks Data Privacy Day which commemorates the signing of the Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data. This international treaty is the first of its kind to address privacy and data protection.

Strong privacy and cybersecurity safeguards are paramount to the success of companies and the consumers they serve. These issues are so critical they took center stage at the annual Consumer Technology Association’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) held earlier this month where tech companies of all sizes promoted their “privacy first” products and services.

Posted in Legal Updates | North America

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January 27, 2020

Getting Paid: Adjudicating Payment Disputes in a Construction Contract

By Alice Steen of HOMS Solicitors

Adjudication is a statutory dispute resolution process. Caitlín Love looks at the trend to adjudicate payment disputes in construction contracts

In Brief: All parties to a construction contract entered into after 25th July 2016 should be aware of the provisions of the Construction Contracts Act 2013 (CCA) and in particular to the CCA adjudication process, which serves as an efficient and effective alternative dispute resolution mechanism to standard contractual dispute resolution clauses.

Posted in Europe | Legal Updates

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January 24, 2020

Insights U.S.-China Trade Dispute Easing: “Phase One” Deal and Other Tariff Updates

By Torres Law - Customs & Global Trade

U.S. Plans to Reduce Tariffs

On December 18, 2019, the United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) officially signaled the first real respite in the ongoing trade war with China by publishing a Notice of Modification of Action[1] to suspend a planned 15% duty on certain products from China that was originally scheduled to take effect on December 15, 2019. This early Christmas present came after nearly two years of the USTR extending and increasing tariffs on Chinese goods pursuant to Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 (“Section 301”). Read more…

Posted in Legal Updates | North America

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January 24, 2020

Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in India – Inclusion of UAE as a Reciprocating Territory

By Lindsay Griffiths

The Ministry of Law and Justice, Government of India vide its Notification dated January 17, 2020 (“Notification”) declared United Arab Emirates (“UAE”) a “reciprocating territory” for the purposes of enforcing foreign civil decrees in India. The declaration has been made by the Indian government in exercise of powers under Explanation 1 appended to Section 44A, Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (“CPC”). Pursuant to the Notification, decrees passed by the courts in UAE are now executable in India as if they were passed in India.

Posted in Asia Pacific | Legal Updates

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January 24, 2020

2019 BIS Enforcement Actions: Lessons for 2020 and Beyond

By Torres Law - Customs & Global Trade

In 2019, the U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) entered into six settlement agreements with companies (not including individuals) for export violations of the Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”). Through December, enforcement actions were brought against Multiwire Laboratories, Ltd. (“Multiwire”), Jaguar Imports, LLC (“Jaguar Imports”), AW-Tronics LLC (“AW-Tronics”), Arrowtronic, LLC (“Arrowtronic”), Cotran Corporation (“Cotran”), and Ghaddar Machinery Co., SAL (“Ghaddar”). Read more…

Posted in Legal Updates | North America

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January 23, 2020

New review of the Supreme Court on the application of law on business companies

By Lidings Law Firm

On December 25, 2019 the Presidium of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation adopted the Judicial Review on certain issues arising in the application of law on business companies.

By this Review, the Supreme Court changed some well-established regulatory approaches and additionally clarified some features of the law application. Read more…

Posted in Europe | Legal Updates

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January 23, 2020

Ensure Import Compliance with Spot-Check Audits of Carrier Billing Statements

By Torres Law - Customs & Global Trade

Very few words evoke feelings of fear and loathing quite like the word “audit.” But Compliance professionals understand that auditing internal trade compliance processes is a necessary method of maintaining healthy trade controls and avoiding costly penalties.

Performing an audit does not have to be a major undertaking: sometimes a focused spot check can be very revealing. For example, if your company relies on a common carrier such as FedEx Corporation, United Parcel Service, or DHL International to take care of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP” or “Customs”) import clearances, consider reviewing the monthly billing statement on a regular basis. Read more…

Posted in Legal Updates | North America

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January 23, 2020

Improved IP Protections under the Foreign Investment Law

By LLinks Law Offices

On 1 January 2020, the PRC Foreign Investment Law (the “Foreign Investment Law”) and the PRC Implementation Regulation of the Foreign Investment Law (the “Foreign Investment Regulation”) (collectively, “FI Laws”) came into effect. Among other provisions regulating foreign equity investment in China, the FI Laws restate China’s position to strengthen the protections over foreign intellectual properties. Although it is still too early to see the real effects, the FI Laws have at least shown us a likely improved environment to protect foreign investors’ IP rights. Read more…

Posted in Asia Pacific | Legal Updates

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January 23, 2020

Planning for 2020 Trade Under Trump

By Torres Law - Customs & Global Trade

NAFTA 2.0 or the USMCA

Since President Trump took office in January of 2017, he has shown his desire to follow through with trade policies that were a central part of his campaign. After the President officially withdrew the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (“TPP”), he immediately focused on renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (“NAFTA”). Read more…

Posted in Legal Updates | North America

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January 22, 2020

Proposed Regulations Set to Expand Authority of CFIUS

By Torres Law - Customs & Global Trade

This article first appeared in the Newsletter of the International Law Section (www.ilstexas.org) of the State Bar of Texas, and is reproduced with the Section’s permission. This article was written prior to the two final regulations issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury on January 13, 2020.

Introduction: New Regulations

On September 17, 2019, the U.S. Department of the Treasury (“Treasury”) issued two proposed rules that would expand the jurisdiction of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (“CFIUS”).[1] The proposed regulations are implemented pursuant to the Foreign Investment Review Modernization Act of 2018 (“FIRRMA”), which was signed into law in August 2018. If enacted, these new proposed regulations could have major implications on foreign investment and real estate transactions in the United States and investors and companies must be aware of such potential impact. Read more…

Posted in Legal Updates | North America

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