July/August 2010

Introduction to Middle East distribution and agency agreements | Rouse

The laws governing foreign ownership of companies in Middle Eastern countries are complex. While there are greater options today to allow international companies to do business in the Middle East (including the opportunity to establish wholly owned subsidiaries in free zones), one popular option is to appoint a local agent to sell goods or services, …

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The ‘failing firm’ defence in difficult times | Holman Fenwick Willan

Given the current economic climate, competition authorities are expecting a possible increase in the use of the ‘failing firm’ defence. The doctrine provides potential opportunities for businesses to acquire competitors, which in normal circumstances would be regarded as anti-competitive. The basic rationale behind the doctrine is that since the failing firm would have left the …

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ECJ rules on the validity of the Roaming Regulation | SJ Berwin LLP

On 8 June 2010, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) rejected the attempt by various leading European mobile network operators (MNOs) to challenge the validity of a cap imposed by the EU on the roaming fees they can charge customers travelling overseas. From the point of view of these providers, price-capping regulation has effectively curbed …

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Rent control laws: time for a change | Amarchand Mangaldas

Disputes between landlord and tenant are the most common and vicious in India. Many states in India have enacted rent control laws that govern the relations between landlords and tenants. Rent control laws exist in approximately 40 countries around the world. In most of these countries, the rent control laws were enacted in the backdrop …

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Immigration, politics and quotas | Magrath Sheldrick LLP

Due to the current economic climate, immigration has continued to generate a great deal of media interest in the need to bring foreign workers to the UK to participate in the UK labour market. At the same time, immigration continues to remain at the front of huge political debates, in particular the impact of migration …

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Procurement bans and the threat to self-reporting | DLA Piper

The existence of a mandatory exclusion from public procurement on a permanent and Europe-wide basis presents a real threat to the Serious Fraud Office (SFO)’s new culture of self-reporting. Richard Alderman, the current director of the SFO, has made it his mission in recent months to encourage companies to step forward and self-report any discovery …

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Coalition politics: blue + yellow = green? | Burges Salmon

The result of the 2010 General election has brought about one of the most radical shifts in British politics for over half a century. For the first time since the Second World War, two political parties, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats, have united to form a formal coalition government.