September 2010

International structures as used by multinational companies may typically include limited partnerships or general partnerships. If the Netherlands is involved in international structures, the partnerships may be set up in such a way that they qualify as transparent for Dutch tax purposes. Further, partnerships could be used to manage the recognition of taxable income (for …

Continue reading “Partnership agreement: review of partner bankruptcy cases”

There have been several recent cases and developments in the law of defamation that have affected the realm of permissible comment and opinion in publications, whether in the media or in a business context. In defamation law this is the defence of fair comment.

Over the past 12 months there has been much debate in the dilapidations world surrounding procedural aspects of making or defending dilapidations claims. While, to some followers of this debate, it might be unfortunate that discussions have centred around procedural rather than substantive issues, a knowledge of appropriate procedures for dilapidations is important nonetheless. Not …

Continue reading “Dilapidations procedure: the latest position”

Ireland was initially slow to realise the potential of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) to deliver meaningful and cost-effective outcomes for commercial enterprises involved in disputes. Things changed dramatically with the inception of the Commercial List of the High Court (known colloquially as the Commercial Court) in 2004, which built into its procedural rules a facility …

Continue reading “Recent developments in ADR: welcome changes for commercial dispute resolution”

The 1973 European Patent Convention (EPC) harmonised patent law throughout the contracting states and was a very significant achievement. The contracting states include all the member states of the EU and some other European countries.

When insolvency law and arbitration meet, the question arises as to how the commencement of the insolvency proceeding affects the ability to arbitrate, the arbitration agreement, the arbitration proceeding and the setting aside proceeding, as well as the recognition and enforcement of the arbitral award.

In recent months we have assisted on several high-value software licensing transactions, all of which involved long debates about the ‘perpetual’ nature of the licences granted. This prompted us to revisit the important lessons to be learned from the judgment recently handed down in BMS Computer Solutions Ltd v AB Agri Ltd [2010], which all …

Continue reading “Licensee beware: software licences might not be as ‘perpetual’ as you first thought”

The Indian IT industry is one of the success stories of the Indian economy, and a large number of American and European corporations have been relying on Indian IT expertise to fulfill their IT needs, both in terms of software development as well as IT-enabled services. According to a report issued by the National Association …

Continue reading “Copyright in outsourced software developed in India”

The US Immigration and Nationality Act (the Immigration Act) – the key federal law governing immigration and citizenship – is one of the more complex and frequently amended US statutes. Together with Title 8 of the Code of Federal Regulations, it contains the rules and regulations for entry to and exclusion from the US by …

Continue reading “New guidance impacts on health-related inadmissibility”

Our previous article ‘Confiscation: the ultimate penalty?’ showed that the law on confiscation, as set out in the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) 2002 can have severe financial consequences for both corporates and individuals. The case law and practice that have evolved since the introduction of POCA 2002 is complex and constantly evolving to deal …

Continue reading “Confiscation: practicalities and pitfalls”