Member News

Bennett Jones | Reflections on Canada’s M&A Landscape in 2022 and a Look Ahead to 2023

The Canadian M&A landscape is one of reserved optimism as 2022 comes to a close and we look ahead to a new year. Despite the uncertainty in the marketplace, Canada remains home to attractive assets and dynamic dealmakers. We expect M&A transactions in 2023 to see impressive activity in sectors such as technology and software, renewable and alternate sources of energy (particularly wind, solar, hydrogen and energy storage), battery metals in the mining sector, healthcare and agribusiness. Canada's mid-market remains...

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Member News

Sika exceeds sales of CHF 10 billion for the first time – strong growth of 15.8% in local currencies

Sika posts sales of CHF 10.49 billion in 2022 Sales growth of 15.8% in local currencies (+13.4% in CHF) Further growth platforms secured with acquisitions of Sable Marco (Canada) and UGL (USA) Closing of MBCC acquisition targeted for first half of 2023 New plants opened in Tanzania, Ivory Coast, Bolivia, USA, and China Record EBIT and an EBIT margin of 15% anticipated for the 2022 fiscal year Confirmation of 2023 strategic targets for sustainable, profitable growth Sika performed well...

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Member News

Wilson Sonsini | 2023 U.S. Cybersecurity Predictions

Given that cyberattacks continue to be sophisticated and severe, and cybersecurity continues to be a top concern for regulators, consumers, business partners, and investors, companies should be proactive and devote adequate resources to their security practices and incident response. In addition to the litigation and reputational risks that companies face if they are perceived as having inadequate security practices, regulators are imposing significant fines for data breaches, increasingly calling for greater board oversight of cybersecurity and holding top officials...

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Chapter News

Data protection: EU Commission starts process to adopt adequacy decision for safe data flows with the US

On 13 December 2022, the European Commission launched the process towards the adoption of an adequacy decision for the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, which will foster safe trans-Atlantic data flows and address the concerns raised by the Court of Justice of the European Union in its Schrems II decision of July 2020. Today's draft decision follows the signature of a US Executive Order by President Biden on 7 October 2022, along with the regulations issued by the US Attorney General...

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Member News

CEA Legal P.C. | The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has published another rule, implementing Section 6403 of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA)

When you read news stories about financial crimes and business corruption, you might get the impression that businesses can get away with anything. It seems like banks will lend them huge sums of money after asking a few questions about what they will do with the money. A new federal law aims to increase business transparency by forcing the corporations to identify their decision-makers. To find out whether your company is required to submit a report to the Department of...

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Chapter News

Data Protection Commission announces conclusion of two inquiries into Meta Ireland

The Data Protection Commission (DPC) has today announced the conclusion of two inquiries into the data processing operations of Meta Platforms Ireland Limited (“Meta Ireland”) in connection with the delivery of its Facebook and Instagram services. (Meta Ireland was previously known as Facebook Ireland Limited). Final decisions have now been made by the DPC in which it has fined Meta Ireland €210 million (for breaches of the GDPR relating to its Facebook service), and €180 million (for breaches in relation...

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Member News

CLA | New Federal Law Changes Retirement Rules for Companies, Employees

Key insights The massive $1.7 trillion federal spending bill President Biden signed into law at the end of December includes even more significant changes to the U.S. retirement system. Changes include requiring most employers to automatically enroll employees in their retirement plan at a rate of at least 3%. Embrace data-driven management philosophies to help reduce waste and assess program effectiveness. It also increases the age required minimum distributions start from 72 to 73 in 2023 and then to...

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Chapter News

IMF | How Economies and Financial Systems Can Better Gauge Climate Risks

With the right tools, policymakers can help to manage the climate risks impacting economies and financial systems When it comes to the devastating impact of climate change, most people think of the harm inflicted on lives and livelihoods. Yet the effects of more frequent and extreme weather are just as consequential for the health of financial systems. The physical impacts of climate-related shocks, such as hurricane damage to power grids, affect financial institutions and how they make decisions. So do the risks of transition to...

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Member News

Cozen O’Connor | USCIS Issues Proposed Rule to Adjust Certain Immigration and Naturalization Fees 

On January 3, 2023, USCIS published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to adjust certain benefit request fees that haven’t changed since 2016. Fee changes could dramatically increase both L-1 and H-1B filings, among other categories, with the proposed fees representing a 40% overall weighted average increase with no improvement to overall USCIS processing times. The proposal from the USCIS was published in the federal register on January 4, 2023, and will accept public comments for a 60-day period. ...

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Member News

Greenberg Traurig | 5 Trends to Watch: 2023 Emerging Technology

Healthcare and Tech Converge Further – We will continue to see the convergence of technology with health care resulting in the proliferation of digital health. Telemedicine, wearables, and remote surgery will continue to attract investment, and pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies will take advantage of technology to address regulatory hurdles and data privacy issues. Investors Flock to “Wild West” of the Metaverse – Not since the internet’s early days have we seen a frontier mentality in the digital world. The...

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