A guide to doing business in Canada. Includes review of trade and investment regulation, foreign investment rules, environmental laws, and bankruptcy.
Singapore is a major center for trade relationships with other Asian countries as well as the rest of the world. Its familiarity with the English language, the English legal structure, and its high regard for the rule of law and ease of doing business make Singapore an attractive location for Western companies seeking to establish a presence in Asia. This program will explore the advantages and disadvantages of centralizing Asian operations and trading relationships in Singapore. It will examine the organizational structures that are available in Singapore and other practical issues relating to establishing a business presence in Singapore, including hiring staff and protecting intellectual property. The panel will also consider the impact of using a Singapore entity in cross-border commercial arrangements, including considerations regarding choice of law and dispute resolution options.
One of the most important topics in corporate compliance and governance compliance is subsidiary management. In our expanding global economy, the challenges of managing subsidiaries are complex, fraught with risk, and can quickly become an administrative nightmare. In this panel, compliance and governance professionals will discuss their experiences in managing entities across the world, working with agents and outside counsel, and managing tax issues. The program is aimed at identifying lessons learned, improving work practices, and reducing the risks and expenses your organization faces in maintaining entities around the world.
This program is designed to give in-house counsel advising businesses in the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council - Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates) states a better understanding of the laws and business dynamics of the region. Issues to be covered include opportunities for investment to and from the region; regional variations and Dubai as a hub; contractual issues and joint ventures; disputes and arbitration; Islamic finance; anti-bribery and corruption; diligence and know your customer (KYC); Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and sanctions; and cultural understanding for those from outside the region.
International mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are likely to pose special challenges for in-house counsel by adding a multi-jurisdictional dimension to the regulatory review and approval process. Discover the differing merger control regimes that must be complied with in doing M&A transactions in the European Union, Canada, China and elsewhere, including the notification thresholds, notification requirements and review processes. Then, explore the issues that arise in managing multiple regulatory compliance processes when the transaction triggers reviews in two or more jurisdictions.
This intermediate-level program will examine the major issues that companies must address when doing business in Brazil, including the following: (1) corporate issues; (2) overview of stock purchases (both majority and minority interests) and asset purchases in both public and private companies: (3) issues upon sale or liquidation of interests; (4) distribution and agency arrangements; (5) major planning issues; (6) employment/labor issues at start-up, day-to-day and at termination; and (7) executive compensation.
Case laws in Korea, Japan, Germany, England and Israel have shown that the employers’ enormous investment in research and development doesn’t necessarily negate the employees’ right for additional compensation. The legal obligation for financial compensation to employed inventors could be of substantial importance also in investment transactions and mergers and acquisitions.
After a 40-year history of negotiations, it is expected that the Unified Patent Court (UPC) will soon become a reality in Europe. The UPC will have jurisdiction for litigation relating to the new Unitary Patent and the European Patent granted by the European Patent Office. Attend this session to hear the latest on this groundbreaking development, and its implications for obtaining and defending patents in Europe.
Non-compete agreements are almost an essential part of today’s business environment composed of a mobile workforce with easily accessible and transportable data. Multinational employers face the added challenge of ensuring that restrictive covenants (i.e., non-compete, non-solicitation and confidentiality agreements) will be enforceable in the United States, Asia and Europe. The legal standards governing the enforceability of non-compete agreements vary around the world, but nevertheless, common principles can help guide employers in drafting and enforcing global restrictive covenants. Authoritative in-house and outside employment attorneys from around the world will provide cutting edge suggestions for multinational employers to draft restrictive covenants that should greatly increase their effectiveness and enforceability in Asia and Europe. The panel will also compare and contrast the non-compete laws in Asian and European countries against US restrictive covenant laws.
The liberalization of China’s distribution sector in recent years has opened a new range of choices for companies that are looking to sell their goods in China. No longer are companies required to use an uncoordinated network of domestic wholesalers. Firms now have the option to distribute products in China using international and Hong Kong-based logistics businesses, one of the many new domestic distributors in China, or to go at it alone. This interactive presentation will explore the significant issues in distribution and agency arrangements in China and Pacific Rim countries, and give you the information, tips and tactics you will need in order to advise your sales and marketing teams on effective strategies to address the complex legal and cultural issues raised by these types of arrangements.