Just in time for Earth Day and US President Joe Biden’s global climate change summit, the European Parliament and Member States agreed on reducing greenhouse gases by at least 55%, as compared to 1990, in the EU’s first legally binding climate law. The agreement was reached in the early hours of Wednesday morning after six in-depth negotiation rounds.  Initially proposed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen when setting out her 5-year political objectives to the European Parliament in late 2019,...

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In part 1, we looked at the importance of setting service delivery expectations, initial risk assessments, and common service level structuring approaches in digital transformation projects. In this instalment, we examine service level measurement and reporting, change management, and service credit remedies.  Measuring service performance Once the services are up and running in a technology project, the actual performance of the service against the service levels is usually measured on a weekly or monthly basis. In long term arrangements or where the...

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The Hague System for the International Registration of Industrial designs is an effective vehicle for centralized acquisition of design patents in multiple jurisdictions and subsequent maintenance thereof. Generally, a single International Design Application (“IDA”) is filed with the International Bureau (“IB”) at the World Intellectual Property Organization (“WIPO”), designating a number of selected contracting jurisdictions, i.e., participating countries or regions, for registration.  Filing of the IDA with WIPO streamlines basic filing requirements and bibliographic data. Upon filing, the IDA is reviewed...

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On April 22, 2021, the United States Supreme Court unanimously decided the closely watched case AMG v. FTC. Petitioners argued that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) had no authority to get monetary relief under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act, which by its text provides for, at most, "a permanent injunction." The decision marks the end of the FTC's broad exercise of 13(b) authority to get money back from those who violate the FTC Act—for now. Section 13(b) has been a cornerstone of...

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On 9 April 2021, the Commission de surveillance du secteur financier (“CSSF”) published valuable guidance on the governance and security requirements applicable to remote/home working (“Telework”) in the form of CSSF Circular 21/769 on governance and security requirements for supervised entities to perform tasks or activities through telework (“the Circular”). 1. Scope The Circular applies to all entities subject to CSSF supervision (credit institutions, management companies, AIFMs, investment firms, specialised and support PFS, payment institutions, electronic money institutions, etc.). The Circular only applies to entities relying on Telework (defined...

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Take advantage of news analytics to enhance ESG investing, from monitoring the performance of companies to building alpha-generating trading strategies. The number of assets invested in sustainable funds has surged in recent years from just over $5bn in 2017 to $25bn in 2019 due to the increasing importance of responsible, ethical, and sustainable investing. Investors can make the most of the new trend in sustainable investing, known as ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance), with the help of RavenPack’s news analytics data. The...

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Green IT is a global movement that aims to minimize the technological footprint in the environment. The growing popularity of adopting ESG criteria is redefining priorities in companies. The issue is monopolizing the corporate agenda and encourages greater participation by organizations in promoting actions that reduce the environmental footprint – including the active participation of technology sectors through the so-called green IT. These new values, guided by good sustainability, social, and governance practices, make it clear that sustainable development is an obstacle to...

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The EACC, in partnership with the International Property Tax Institute (IPTI), wants to keep its members up to date with the latest developments in property taxes in the USA and Europe. IPTI has put together a selection of brief reports from articles contained in IPTI Xtracts which can be found on its website (www.ipti.org). UNITED STATES New York: If Property Values Are Down, Why Are Property Taxes Up? When property values go down, it’s only natural to expect your property taxes to...

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