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Will Shanghai Overtake Hong Kong as World Financial Center?

December 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

A report by British law firm Eversheds claiming that Shanghai could overtake London as a world financial center in 10 years has led to a predictable round of hand-wringing from the British press, including the Financial Times, the BBC and the Telegraph.

But not all of Asia is gloating. Missing altogether from Eversheds’ report is the city that’s most worried about losing ground to Shanghai: Hong Kong.

Obviously, such surveys are to be taken with a grain of salt; after all, over a tenth of Eversheds’ respondents predicted Dubai would emerge as the world’s preeminent financial center in decade’s time.

And Hong Kong, a special administrative region of China with a separate local government and legal system, has been booming recently. So far this year, its exchange is leading the world in initial public offerings, mostly on behalf of mainland Chinese companies. It remains the preferred regional base for global banks and, consequently, international law firms.

Still, Hong Kong has long had a complex about Shanghai, which was the region’s preeminent financial center before falling under communist rule in 1949. Now that that same communist government has embraced capitalism, fears abound that Shanghai will be promoted at Hong Kong’s expense.

That anxiety was reflected in a Reuters article last week, in which one Hong Kong banker fretted that his city would become a second city — a Boston or a Chicago to Shanghai’s New York.

via Will Shanghai Overtake Hong Kong as World Financial Center?.

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Vt. Court Eyes Value of Love of Mans Best Friend

December 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Vermont’s highest court is being asked to decide what a dogs love is worth.

The state Supreme Court on Thursday was to hear a case that began in July 2003, when Denis and Sarah Scheele, who were visiting relatives, let their mixed-breed dog wander into Lewis Dustins yard and he fatally shot it.

Now the Scheeles are asking the court to carve out a new legal doctrine that a dogs owners can sue for emotional distress and loss of companionship, just like parents can when they lose children.

“We’re still working toward having the courts recognizing the true value of companion animals. Theyre members of the family, not mere property,” Sarah Scheele, 58, said from her home in Annapolis, Md., on Wednesday before flying north for the court hearing.

Dustin’s lawyer, David Blythe, said Dustin never intended to kill the Scheeles dog, Shadow, and “has always regretted that it happened.” He said Dustin fired an air pellet rifle at the dog in hopes of scaring it off the lawn of his home in Northfield, a community of about 6,000 residents just south of Montpelier in the heart of the states Green Mountains.

The shot Dustin fired penetrated the dogs chest and severed an aorta, and the dog died on the way to a veterinarians office.

Dustin, 76, has said he was aiming at the dogs rear end. He did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment Wednesday.

He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of animal cruelty and was given a year probation. He also was ordered to perform 100 hours of community service and pay $4,000 in restitution to the Scheeles.

via Law.com – Vt. Court Eyes Value of Love of Mans Best Friend.

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Sanctions Imposed for Wiping BlackBerrys

December 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Numerous courts have imposed sanctions for failing to preserve e-mails and other electronic documents. But few decisions have addressed the consequences of destroying electronic information stored on portable electronic devices — such as BlackBerrys and smart phones. This may be starting to change.

Recently, in Southeastern Mechanical Services Inc. v. Brody, No. 8:08-CV-1151, 2009 WL 2883057 (M.D. Fla. Aug. 31, 2009), the Middle District of Florida imposed spoliation sanctions for destruction of e-mails, calendar entries and text messages that were stored on portable electronic devices. This court's imposition of sanctions is an important reminder about the consequences of deleting information on such devices.

In particular, the court found it significant that information stored on the BlackBerrys at issue had not been fully synchronized to a corporate server — and therefore destruction of information contained on the BlackBerrys was improper. Accordingly, both counsel and litigants should be apprised of the scope of the duty to preserve electronic information and should keep in mind that the duty to preserve such information likely extends to portable devices, such as BlackBerrys and smart phones.

via Law.com – Sanctions Imposed for Wiping BlackBerrys.

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U.S. says Credit Suisse schemed to evade sanctions | Reuters

December 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

U.S. and Manhattan prosecutors detailed on Wednesday a “decades-long scheme” by Credit Suisse to hide thousands of transactions on behalf of clients in Iran, Sudan, Libya and other nations, and said the Swiss bank had agreed to pay $538 million in fines.

More than $1.6 billion was moved through the U.S. financial system through the transactions, prosecutors said.

Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau told a news conference that other banks were being investigated for similar transactions.

“There will be other prosecutions,” he said. “Not only of financial institutions, which carry the money, but also of the suppliers.”

In Zurich, a source who declined to be identified, said nine banks were involved and that four had settled, including Lloyds TSB Group of Britain and Credit Suisse.

While the majority of the transactions involved Iran, other transactions violated U.S. sanctions against Sudan, Libya, Myanmar, Cuba, and the former Liberian regime of Charles Taylor, the U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement.

The department called the settlement the “most significant” in the history of its Office of Foreign Assets Control and said the penalty could have been “substantially higher” had the bank not cooperated with the government over the past two years and agreed to take remedial action.

via U.S. says Credit Suisse schemed to evade sanctions | Reuters.

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Ontario Judge Certifies Global Investor Class in Landmark Decision

December 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

A pair of groundbreaking rulings issued Monday by an Ontario judge in a securities class action has suddenly made the province a much more attractive jurisdiction for plaintiffs pursuing global securities litigation.

The case, filed against IMAX Corp. and several individual defendants in Toronto in the fall of 2006, is considered a litmus test for a new securities law creating U.S.-style civil liability for misrepresentations that affect stock market values.

Monday’s two-part decision permits the litigation to proceed and separately certifies a global class of investors — no small matter considering that some 80-85 percent of investors reside outside of Canada. The decision also explicitly calls the threshold for such pleadings a low one, which “will no doubt be cheered by investors, and jeered by Bay and Wall Streets,” wrote Jim Middlemiss at The Legal Post.

via Ontario Judge Certifies Global Investor Class in Landmark Decision.

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Australia’s position as an International arbitration centre to be enhanced – Deacons

December 16, 2009 By Leave a Comment

The Australian position in relation to international arbitration has always been complicated by virtue of its federal system of laws which allows parties to choose to resolve their dispute “under arbitral laws other than in accordance with the internationally accepted Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration adopted by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL).” This creates confusion and not insignificant legal difficulties concerning the interaction of different laws. Additionally, the finality sought by parties to an international arbitration is not always certain by virtue of the appeal/review powers contained in the State and Territory Commercial Arbitration Acts.  As well, there has been in recent years a general concern about the trends surrounding the nature of international arbitration with the widespread view that arbitration has become too litigious with proceedings increasingly resembling those of a court. Such complications and trends had led many to believe that Australia was unlikely to establish itself as a major player in the field of international arbitrations. In light of a new Bill currently before Parliament, all of this could now change.

In an effort to counter such trends, overcome the difficulties with Australia's federal system and in a bid to promote Australia as a centre for international arbitration and dispute resolution, the International Arbitration Amendment Bill 2009 was introduced into Parliament on 25 November 2009, following the Commonwealth Government's year long review of international commercial arbitration in Australia.

via Legal update: Australia’s position as an International arbitration centre to be enhanced – Deacons.

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EU Drops Antitrust Case Against Microsoft

December 16, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Microsoft Corp. got an early Christmas present when the European Commission announced Wednesday that it was dropping its antitrust case against the company.

The commission had charged that Microsoft distorted competition by tying Internet Explorer to Windows. European regulators argued that this tying hindered innovation in the market and created artificial incentives for software developers and content providers to design their products or Web sites primarily for Internet Explorer.

To settle the case, Microsoft promises to offer computer makers and Windows users in Europe the ability to install different Web browsers, and to allow them to turn Internet Explorer on or off. Microsoft also committed to making far-reaching interoperability disclosures.

“Millions of European consumers will benefit from this decision by having a free choice about which web browser they use,” said EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes in a press release. “Such choice will not only serve to improve people's experience of the Internet now but also act as an incentive for web browser companies to innovate and offer people better browsers in the future.”

Microsoft General Counsel Brad Smith in a statement said the company was “pleased with today's decision by the European Commission, which approves a final resolution of several longstanding competition law issues in Europe.”

via EU Drops Antitrust Case Against Microsoft.

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If you can’t kill it, bill it: German city charges Google Street View by the kilometre

December 16, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Germans are very picky when it comes to online privacy. Not only is Google Analytics in danger of being banned for storing user data on ‘foreign servers’, Facebook apps are probably illegal because they pass too much private information to third parties. Also Google Street View is a constant bone of contention. Several mayors of cities and villages like Molfsee or Pfaffenhofen have already tried to ban Google’s camera cars from their streets, until someone told them there was no law against driving around taking pictures.

A study from Ingolstadt even recommends installing specific Street View prohibition signs on private properties. Although local politicians apparently don’t like it, they can’t make the photo service illegal. Every single house owner has to ask Google themselves to get their removed from Street View. A complete ban would violate article 12 of Germany’s constitution which protects the freedom of occupation.

Therefore the city of Ratingen yesterday took an interesting decision: If you can’t kill it, then bill it. The finance committee ruled with 12 to 7 votes that Google has to pay €20 per kilometer to take pictures of the city. The head of Ratingen’s law department, Dirk Tratzig, had found out that a photographical capturing of the entire town is a “special usage” as defined in article 18 of the streets law of the province of Northrine Westfalia. Thus Google can be charged.

via If you can’t kill it, bill it: German city charges Google Street View by the kilometre.

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EDiscovery market set for 2010 boom: Gartner – Computer Business Review : News

December 16, 2009 By Leave a Comment

The eDiscovery software market is set for rapid growth, with revenues expected to surpass $1.2bn in 2010, according to analyst house Gartner. The market this year is tipped to total $1bn, a 25% increase over 2008 figures.

Gartner defines eDiscovery as, “the identification, preservation, collection, preparation, review and production of electronically stored information associated with legal and government proceedings.”

It can be delivered on-promise or through a SaaS offering.

The growth in the market is being fuelled by increasing levels of litigation across the business world. Craig Carpenter, VP of marketing at eDiscovery and eDisclosure form Recommind, told CBR that the economic situation was driving more companies to take legal proceedings.

“When times are good, people don’t sue each other very much; they’re making money and they have money. When times are bad, people tend to sue a lot more,” he said. “EDiscovery and eDisclosure are becoming core platforms for businesses. I think we’ll start to see more and more of this soft of software over the next few years.”

Tom Eid, research vice president at Gartner claims that the market will continue to grow throughout 2011, with consolidation continuing beyond then. While existing vendors will expand their product line, the emergence of eDiscovery as a high-growth market will see more companies enter the space, Gartner said.

While the US has been the biggest market for eDiscovery – accounting for about 90% of the market revenue in 2008 – other territories such as the UK, Australia, Canada and South Africa are expected to see large revenue growth over the next few years.

via EDiscovery market set for 2010 boom: Gartner – Computer Business Review : News.

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Facilitation Payments: A business integrity officer’s perspective – Ethical Corporation

December 16, 2009 By Leave a Comment

More than thirty years after the inception of the United States Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 FCPA, twelve years after the signing of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development’s OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of 1997, and half a decade since the adoption of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption of 2004, one of the still grey areas in the anti-corruption debate is the topic of whether “facilitation payments” should be made.

Simply put, a facilitation payment is what is more colloquially referred to as a “grease” payment.

Some jurisdictions allow them, others forbid them and yet others don’t allow them but provide exceptions because of their intrinsically extortionate nature.

Indeed, the United Kingdom, still in the midst of debating the final form of its new anti-corruption law expected to be adopted in mid 2010, is yet to have settled the issue. On International Anti-Corruption Day, December 9, 2009, the OECD announced an expansion of the efforts of its 30 member countries and additional eight signatory nations with regard to its anti-corruption efforts.

via Facilitation Payments: A business integrity officer’s perspective – Ethical Corporation.

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