“Trademark owners have a duty to police their mark… The cost of dropping the ball on this duty can range from a bar on future enforcement of your rights against a particular company to a complete loss of all trademark rights.” (Mintz Levin) Applying for and obtaining a trademark is just the first step –… Read more »
Do business in Europe? Here’s a roundup of recent commentary and analysis on conducting business in Europe, including REACH regulations, patent classification, taxation, mobile apps, dawn raids, and more: Some clarification regarding challenges to REACH candidate listing (K&L Gates LLP): “In a series of recent judgments the EU General Court has given some guidance to companies… Read more »
While Cyprus political leaders hash out the details of the latest proposal to bail out the country’s financial institutions, multinationals with interests in the island nation may wonder if the time has come to seek higher ground. It’s a valid question, write Pavlos Aristodemou and Peter Tarn of law firm Harney Westwood & Riegels, but… Read more »
The net of international sanctions on Iran and entities that do business with the Iranian regime continues to tighten. For your reference, here’s a roundup of latest commentary and analysis on sanctions imposed by the United States and Europe: U.S. Activity New Iran Sanctions Enacted (BakerHostetler): “The [latest] law, which comes just shy of five… Read more »
“The unitary patent will provide automatic unitary patent protection in all 25 participating member states (Spain and Italy are not included) in a move said to be directed at cutting costs for EU companies and, hence, boosting competitiveness. Of course, unitary patents and their enforcement via the unified court is available for non-EU applicants as… Read more »
“Health care, media, technology and communications, and financial services all are industries where we have seen merger and nonmerger antitrust activity; for financial services, there even has been cartel behavior… The intersection of intellectual property and antitrust also is likely to be active, as we have witnessed in the public statements of government officials around… Read more »
A cautionary tale kicks off this latest edition of Doing Business in China: Sixing Liu, a Chinese national with U.S. residency, was arrested and charged with export control violations when returning from a trip to China one year ago. From law firm Miller Canfield: “Liu allegedly took export-controlled technical data on military technology (Controlled Data)… Read more »
On October 9, the UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) published new guidelines for the UK Bribery Act, setting the stage for significantly stricter enforcement of the anti-bribery law. Raymond Sweigart of law firm Pillsbury explains: “The SFO now says that it will prosecute under the Bribery Act based primarily on the statute itself rather than… Read more »
In late September, the European Commission published “Unleashing the Potential of Cloud Computing in Europe,” a detailed report on the current state and future promise of working “in the cloud” across the EU. The report sets the stage for what the Commission hopes will be a rapid development of cloud computing technology and services, while… Read more »
Earlier this month, the European Commission published its legislative proposal outlining the creation of a single supervisory mechanism that will allow the European Central Bank (ECB) to supervise Eurozone banks. The move would give the ECB broad-reaching powers normally held by national regulatory authorities to police banks throughout the region, laying the groundwork for a… Read more »
Here’s a roundup of recent analysis and commentary on JD Supra, covering a broad range of anti-competition matters, including “most-favored nation” clauses, allocation of customers, attempted monopolization and more: DOJ/FTC Ask if MFNs Are Anti-Competitive, and Get an Earful (Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP): “The United States antitrust enforcement agencies — Department of… Read more »
For your convenience, here’s a roundup of recent legal advisories on the broad topic of doing business in the European Union and its member countries: Rewards and Penalties in Bond Covenant Consent Solicitations Under English Law (Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP): “Two recent cases decided in the English High Court provide contrasting views… Read more »
From law firm McDermott Will & Emery, an in-depth look at the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR), what it represents, and the continuing manipulation scandal: “[LIBOR] is considered one of the most important interest rates in the financial world. It underpins approximately £225 trillion of financial products ranging from interest rate swaps and corporate loans… Read more »
What’s on your mind? ICANN’s generic top-level domain names, HIPAA compliance and violations, the SCOTUS RadLAX ruling, the EU Cookie Directive, that’s what (and more!). For your reference, the most-read Corporate Law Report posts in June, 2012: 1. HIPAA Compliance: 6 Audit Questions (and Answers) for Covered Entities “Late last year, members of the Senate… Read more »
Europe’s Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD), scheduled to be implemented by each member state no later than July 2013, will radically change the way funds are regulated in Europe. From law firm Harneys Westwood & Riegels: “ [The Directive] will overhaul the pan-European regulatory regime applicable to the managers of hedge funds, real estate… Read more »
