On March 15, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (“Fifth Circuit”) in a 2-1 decision vacated the Obama-era U.S. Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) Fiduciary Rule (“Fiduciary Rule”), which responded to a historical shift from traditional pension plans to individually managed accounts, such as individual retirement accounts (“IRAs”) and 401(k)s. The Fiduciary …
Introduction The general question of corporate governance can be summarized, in the context of public companies, as three interrelated questions: who has decision-making authority; how are they constrained in the exercise of that authority; and how are they held accountable for that exercise? In this model, the U.S. approach to corporate governance has historically been …
INTRODUCTION The success of a business resides in its employees. Even the biggest corporate structures depend on its employees to conduct its business. That is why, during the course of employment employer’s valuable information that is integral to its activities such as its business models, client profiles and marketing strategies are exposed to the use …
My guess is that a law firm partner or general counsel might have the opportunity for around 100 high-value conversations every year in their professional life. That is 100 out of the roughly 10,000 conversations the average adult will have each year. What do I mean by high value? A career-enhancing conversation that transforms a …
Data centres are increasingly key to the transaction of business all over the world, with more and more companies relying on remote hosting for their IT systems.
As Donald Trump once said, ‘real estate is always good’. Nearly $700bn changed hands in the commercial real estate market last year, proving that in times of uncertainty the safe money is on bricks and mortar. Brexit aside, London was seen as the safest bet of all, attracting over $23bn of new investment – $10bn …
Dealing with residential tenancies has taken on a new meaning in Scotland. On 1 December 2017, the private residential tenancy (PRT) became the new residential tenancy for Scotland and, from 31 January 2018, letting agents of residential dwellings have to comply with a new code of practice and apply to be registered in the mandatory …
What are some of the main market trends which are influencing the work flow of your real estate practice in the UK? Don Rowlands, Head of Real Estate, UK & EMEA The real estate market in the UK and in other key investment hotspots around the world is proving resilient in the face of economic …
The Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR) (which implemented the 2014 Public Procurement Directive) created a new procedure known as competitive procedure with negotiation (CPN). For those bidding on complex infrastructure projects or other government contracts, the implications of CPN may not be immediately apparent. For a contracting authority, CPN provides an additional procurement option giving …
You wouldn’t mistake a lawyer for a designer. One is usually armed with a pen and a rulebook, the other with a Mac and a black turtleneck. Right? Wrong.
There is a fundamental tension between the desire for contractual certainty and for agreements to be future proof. Property lawyers know only too well the difficulties associated with the fact neither we or our clients have crystal balls or the ability to time travel. We are regularly asked to look at a contract in a …
For UK business, 2018 will be dominated by one question: when do we push the button on Brexit? Months of scenario planning have given a sense of the possible outcomes, but there is little confidence that a decision will be taken in full possession of the facts.
