The internet brought the once rarefied world of international commerce into our living rooms. While one can now order wine directly from a vineyard located in Tuscany, this convenience has led to a precipitous rise in international litigation. One of the primary risks in transacting business internationally is the uncertainty in dispute resolution. Both … [Read more...]
Emerging Market IPOs: 6 Risk Factors to Consider
The economic landscape in emerging markets such as Brazil, China and India are beginning to show signs of life. These “greenshoots” are taking the form of IPOs, which are a leading historical indication that world markets are springing back to life. Emerging Market IPOs on the Rise As reported in the Financial Times in the article Santander Launches Brazilian … [Read more...]
Swiss Banks Shutting Out U.S. Clients Due to Unprecedented Banking Oversight
on my visit to Switzerland with my wife and daughter this past April, there was a palpable sense of uneasiness in the unusually damp alpine air. As we made our way down Zurich’s Bahnhofstrasse---the main artery running through the city’s financial district, I could not help but notice the sheer number of jaw-clenched bankers passing us by. Given the current … [Read more...]
Franchise Disputes in China: Several Ways to Minimize Conflict
on a trip to Beijing several years ago, I expected to be immersed in Eastern culture far away from the influence of the West. I was shocked to find a Starbucks within the walls of China’s most sacred site--- the Forbidden City. The picture to the right is the photograph I took near Starbuck’s former outpost in the Forbidden City (the location was subsequently … [Read more...]
Federal Circuit Court Limits International Reach of U.S. Patent Laws
An en banc ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals in the Federal Circuit held recently that a statute used by patent holders to assert patents to products originating in the U.S. and assembled in other countries does not apply to method patents. The court ruled that patents for methods or processes are not subject to patent infringement liability if the products are assembled and … [Read more...]
Structuring IPO Deals in a Rebounding Global Economy
The Financial Times reported in this article that Europe continues to trail behind world markets in IPOs, particularly those in Asia and the United States. While this may be the current trend, all markets—including—Europe--can expect a significant uptick in IPO activity as the economy begins to rebound. Illustratively, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts is planning at … [Read more...]
Arbitration Provisions in China-related Commercial Contracts: How to Implement Best Practices
On August 4, 2009, China's Supreme People's Court issued a new regulation to encourage parties involved in conflicts to consider arbitration as an alternative means of dispute resolution. The regulation is in response to a rapid increase in lawsuits during the past two years. Under the new regulation, agreements achieved in arbitration or mediation by administrative bodies, … [Read more...]
European Union E-Discovery Rules: What Every Corporate Litigator Must Know
To allay fears concerning the handling of users’ personal information, European regulators have established operating guidelines for social-networking web sites to ensure they comply with the region's privacy laws. As reported in The Wall Street Journal, EU Lays Out Web Privacy Rules, the guidelines were established to shore up EU data privacy laws already in … [Read more...]
UBS Strikes Deal in U.S. Tax Case: The End of Switzerland's Bank Secrecy Rules a Boon to Singapore Banking?
On August 3, 2009, UBS reached a deal with U.S. authorities to turn over the names of 5,000 U.S clients holding secret Swiss bank accounts. Although this amounts to a mere 10 percent of the names Washington was after, the controversy surrounding Switzerland and UBS will continue to swell. The pressure on Switzerland and UBS to stop shielding the wealthy from paying their dues … [Read more...]