Have you always dreamed of hosting a grand dinner party or just inviting people to enjoy your hospitality? Now is your chance to release your inner party planner for the weekend of August 25-27! Finnish Your Dinner is a dinner party that is open for everybody. The idea was born in 2013 when the first-ever Dinner Under the Helsinki Sky was organized in Helsinki as part of the city’s birthday, Helsinki Day. Pohjoisesplanadi street in the city center was closed...

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Loyens & Loeff advised Brannen Family on the disposal of Niacet Corp. to SK Capital Partners Loyens & Loeff advised Niacet Corporation, a US-based leading producer of specialty ingredients for food, feed, and pharmaceutical applications and a global leader in propionates and acetates with two fully automated manufacturing sites located in Niagara Falls, NY and Tiel, The Netherlands, on its sale to SK Capital Partners, a US-based private equity firm. Loyens & Loeff advised Voogd & Voogd on the disposal of...

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  Major index providers S&P Dow Jones, FTSE Russell, and MSCI recently adopted, or are in the process of considering, changes to their index eligibility rules that could significantly impact companies that have, or that are contemplating, multi-class capital structures. This action, that may impose costs on retail investors that can be avoided by larger investors, should end calls by institutional investors for the stock exchanges and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to prohibit the listing of companies...

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Since the Berlin Higher Regional Court had referred the question to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in October 2015 of whether it was compatible with EU law regulations that only the workers employed in Germany are eligible to participate in the election of the workers' representatives on the supervisory board, the legal sector has been eagerly looking to Luxembourg and awaiting an answer from the ECJ.  The answer is now available and is likely to allow the legal sector to...

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New York City’s Fair Chance Act (FCA), which took effect October 27, 2015, imposes affirmative obligations on covered employers and employment agencies regarding when they may conduct criminal background checks on job applicants, and what process must be followed before making an adverse decision on the basis of an applicant’s criminal history.  It is one of the nation’s most comprehensive "ban the box" laws restricting employers’ use of criminal history in the employment process.1  The New York City Commission...

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  On March 3, 2017, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) unexpectedly announced that it would temporarily suspend its premium processing service for all H-1B petitions received on or after April 3, 2017. The premium processing program allows a petitioner to receive a decision on its case within 15 calendar days in exchange for payment of an additional government filing fee to USCIS. In the initial announcement, USCIS indicated that the suspension could remain in effect for up to six...

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  Authors: Grant D. Petersen (Tampa), Simon J. McMenemy (London), Hendrik Muschal (Berlin) On June 29, 2017, the Article 29 Working Party (the EU body representing the data protection authorities (DPA) of each EU member country) issued an updated opinion regarding the processing of personal data in the workplace. Recognizing that employers are rapidly adopting new information technology, the opinion updates the Working Party’s 2001 opinion regarding processing data in the employment context and 2002 opinion regarding the surveillance of electronic communications in the workplace. Additionally, the...

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Wins and Updates Estée Lauder, the American cosmetics company, is expanding its presence in the canton of Schwyz. Its goal is to centralize its regional supply chain in Wollerau creating up to 160 new jobs. (more) Iowa based Principal Global Investors is opening an office in Zurich as part of its European expansion. The fund already has branches in London, Amsterdam and Munich. (more) Maxwell Technologies, the high-voltage capacitor manufacturer based in San Diego CA, is planning a 30% expansion of its Rossens...

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