Companies increasingly face scrutiny of their environmental, social and governance (ESG) activities, including from investors, regulators, prosecutors, consumers, NGOs and other stakeholders. While robust ESG programmes can provide new business opportunities and other competitive advantages for companies, ESG issues also can pose legal and reputational risks, particularly when there is a gap between what companies …
Introduction Corporate governance reforms for Japanese listed companies have been accelerating in recent years. However, a tide of shareholder activism is hitting corporate Japan even harder in the era of the Covid-19 pandemic, demanding more effective governance, sustainable growth, attention to environmental and social issues, as well as decent shareholder returns. The reforms are ongoing …
Continue reading “Corporate governance in Japan: recent developments”
For several years, employers have been urged to do more to look after the mental health of their workforce. Even before the pandemic, in January 2019, mental health at work was a primary discussion topic at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting accompanied by huge estimations of the financial impact, globally, in terms of lost …
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The last couple of years were difficult and challenging for all countries and the situation was no different for Brazil.
More than two years have gone by since the world confronted a new reality and a new way of living due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Social distancing policies necessitated adjustments to routines, family and work life, and economic stability as the impossibility of continuing with daily activities as usual came to the fore. All these …
Continue reading “Corporate governance meetings in the face of social distancing”
New ESG disclosure and due diligence rules On 1 January 2022, the indirect counterproposal to the so-called Responsible Business Initiative has been introduced in the Swiss Code of Obligations (CO). The new rules in articles 964a ff. CO require that companies of public interest domiciled in Switzerland, such as listed companies and large companies supervised …
Continue reading “New ESG rules in Switzerland: how to mitigate the risk of criminal liability”
There are four key sources of corporate governance law and regulation in the United States: state corporate law (predominantly Delaware, in which over half of all US publicly traded corporations are incorporated); federal securities law, including the US Securities Act of 1933 and the US Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and the regulations of the …
Continue reading “Corporate governance in the United States: overview and outlook”
The importance of companies adopting proper corporate governance practices has grown significantly over the last decade in Malta. In general, effective corporate governance practices are said to provide proper incentives for the board and management to pursue objectives that are in the interests of a company and its shareholders. Corporate governance principles are therefore intended …
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The new year is a good time to reflect, and as Seladore Legal enters 2022 at frenetic pace – having concluded a trial in early December 2021, and another due to start in early February – it occurs to me: has there ever been a better time to be practising complex commercial litigation, and in …
Continue reading “Meeting the challenges of complex civil fraud in 2022”
This article highlights the essential role that the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) will play in criminal investigations aimed at preventing and sanctioning individuals and/or legal entities who perpetrate crimes against the financial interests of the European Union (EU), as well as the competence of the European prosecutors delegated to perform criminal investigation activities in …
In the United States, the Department of Justice (DoJ), including the regional US Attorney Offices, have federal criminal enforcement authority. Certain state regulators including District Attorneys and Attorneys General have criminal authority for state-level offences. There are several federal regulatory agencies who are very active in regulating the financial services arena, but who are limited …
As in most jurisdictions the pandemic has caused widespread disruption in Canada. The historic level of disruption has expedited reliance on technology and e-commerce across all sectors, setting the stage for a perfect storm when it comes to fraud and white-collar crime risks. Canada has long been considered a nation soft on white-collar crime, with …
Continue reading “Canada’s evolving response to fraud and white-collar crime”