Substantial cultural, operational and financial changes are taking place among the insurance and reinsurance risk-carriers of the EU. These changes result from preparations for the implementation of the Solvency II Directive (the Directive), currently due to take effect in 2012.
As explained in earlier briefings, the Bribery Act 2010 (the 2010 Act) introduces the new corporate offence of failing to prevent bribery but provides for a defence if the organisation can show that it has ‘adequate procedures’ in place to prevent bribery.
Over the years, the European approach towards immigration has been somewhat fragmented. Considering the different attitudes and policies at play among member states, it is nothing short of a miracle that the free movement of European nationals within the EU was ever achieved. However, this liberal policy still sits in contrast to the thornier management …
The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), which is aiming to make India the global knowledge hub, has proposed to establish 14 premier educational institutions (innovation universities). What will distinguish these world-class educational institutions from the existing ones, be it the state, central, private or deemed universities, will be the emphasis on research and innovation, …
Continue reading “Innovation universities: fresh direction for India’s education sector”
In SAS Institute Inc v World Programming Ltd [2010], the High Court had to consider whether the production of software that emulates the functionality of an earlier software program, but without there being any copying of the source code, amounts to copyright infringement. Following its judgment in July 2010, the High Court has referred several …
Continue reading “High Court refers questions to ECJ in ‘software clone’ case”
A fashion retailer and wholesaler, part of an Italian group, had 11 retail shops and 14 concessions in department stores in the UK, through which it sold garments supplied from Italy by its parent company. The company got into financial difficulties and considered a restructuring involving the planned closure of some of its stores and …
Continue reading “Guarantee stripping in company voluntary arrangements: landlords fight back”
By now, everyone is familiar with the stories in the press about prosecutors and regulators. On the one hand there are swingeing budgets cuts, stripping them of resources and affecting their capacity to investigate. On the other, record fines are being handed down and they are taking every opportunity to remind us that they are …
Continue reading “Managing internal investigations: seven key considerations”
A hot topic in the UK Immigration world is the introduction of an annual quota in respect of migrant workers who enter the UK under either Tiers 1 or 2 of the points-based system (PBS). The government’s stated aim is to ‘reduce net migration to tens rather than hundreds of thousands’. This was a key …
Enforcing a foreign judgment or a foreign award has always been a contentious issue across the globe. More so because concepts of reciprocity of recognition of judgments and awards have become fundamental in determining the enforceability of a judgment or an award. Indian law also has provisions for dealing with this in the statutes governing …
Continue reading “Enforcing a foreign non-convention country award in India”
On 21 May 2010, the EU’s General Court ruled that statements made by the French Minister of the Economy in July 2002 to the French press, pledging financial support from the French state to struggling public company France Telecom (FT), and the government’s subsequent offer of a €9m shareholder loan to the company, did not …
Continue reading “Minister’s support is not illegal state aid”