Employer and Public Liability claims are top of the agenda for many finance directors. With their impact on insurance premiums, deductibles and absenteeism levels, it is easy to see why. In particular, small and medium-sized businesses can pay a significant percentage of their turnover on employer and public liability insurance, in already straitened times.
Following a product recall, there are a number of risks to a business that the directors, senior staff and the legal team should be aware of from the outset and may need to address long after the initial recall. The dissemination of documents created during a product recall poses a real threat to a company …
It is a well-established principle of company law that a company has a separate legal personality from its members (Salomon v A Salomon & Co Ltd [1897]). In certain limited circumstances, such as where the corporate structure has been used for the purposes of a fraud or as a device to avoid an existing contractual …
The Gulf region still represents a growing, often untapped, market for international consumer-facing brands. This is particularly true of the most open and accessible of all Gulf markets – the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The UAE occupies a unique position halfway between Asia and the markets of Africa and Europe. In a very short period …
Continue reading “A taste of home: the issue of imitative businesses in the United Arab Emirates”
The wrongful trading provisions of the Insolvency Act 19861 were introduced following the recession of the early 1980s, having been previewed in the Cork Report. Although new to English law in 1986, the concept of wrongful trading has not resulted in a plethora of cases against directors reaching court. Nevertheless, it remains significantly important, especially …
Continue reading “Wrongful trading, the benchmark for directors’ duties: recent developments”
Indian courts in the last decade have been proactive in embracing advancement in technology. One such pioneering step is the use of video conferencing for recording of evidence.
As part of the government efforts to reduce net migration to sustainable levels, the UK Border Agency (UKBA) has announced significant changes to the Immigration Rules, which came into force from 9 July 2012. It is estimated that the new rules will prevent up to 18,500 people annually from coming to join family members in …
When David Green QC took over from Richard Alderman as director of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) in April this year, he inherited an organisation in crisis. Still reeling from budget cuts and speculation over its future in 2011, the SFO was fast heading for an embarrassing defeat in one of its most highly publicised …
Continue reading “The SFO: a new director, a new beginning?”
On 16 May 2012, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) announced that it had decided to ban Anthony Verrier, a senior executive at BGC Brokers LP (BGC), from performing a controlled function in the financial services industry. The FSA banned Mr Verrier because it believes that he is not a fit and proper person due to …
As the prolonged downturn in the Eurozone drags on, there continues to be a steady stream of site closures and rationalisation of manufacturing plants around the EU including in the UK. Many businesses are looking closely at their plants across the world for cost savings and some of those facilities will inevitably close. This article …
Continue reading “Site closure and decommissioning of industrial plants”