By James Bacchus |  Centre for International Governance Innovation | Chair, Global Practice at Greenberg Traurig Executive Summary There is a looming collision between the rules frameworks of the two separate international institutions that have been created and entrusted with addressing trade and climate change. Links between trade and climate change can no longer be ignored by either the World Trade Organization (WTO) or the Conference of the Parties (COP) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Neither of...

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By Trepp, LLC Due to the recent strength of the cash markets, CMBS trading desks posted heavy activity in the past week with bid list volume topping $800 million between Monday and Thursday. Overall, the cash sector continued to see modest spread tightening, decent two-way trading, as well as strong representation from SASB and conduit paper. Tight AAA pricing on new issues and concerns over future supply wind-down enabled cash spreads to grind tighter by an additional five to...

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By Essilor Essilor has recently been ranked 4th of the 50 biggest paper consuming companies in France for its environmentally-responsible paper policy. The PAP50 survey, conducted by the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF France) and Riposte Verte (a French non-profit organization promoting eco-responsibility in business) evaluates consumption of paper and cardboard, the use of environmentally-friendly paper and cardboard, sorting and selective collection of paper and cardboard as well as company commitments to improve. Since the previous PAP50 survey in 2013, Essilor has...

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By Vulcan Consulting BREXIT EU lands UK with fresh demands over Brexit bill and Northern Ireland As EU and British negotiators met yesterday to begin the sixth round of Brexit discussions, Brussels has hit Britain with renewed demands. It has given London until the end of the month to make a substantial financial offer, warning that the bloc may not be able to adopt guidelines at a crucial December meeting of EU leaders required to move on to...

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By Wilson, Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati Digital health is the convergence between healthcare, genomics, and digital technologies. It is a fast-growing sector with important implications for individuals and institutions, alike. Whether it is hospitals and health systems using electronic medical record management and outcomes metrics to improve care, parents using wearables to monitor children with diabetes, or researchers harnessing precision medicine to design therapies to attack specific tumors, the digital health industry represents a market that is poised for exponential growth. The...

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By DESIGN GROUP ITALIA Design Group Italia has created the art direction for #ShopBleecker, a coalition of storefronts to combat the rising vacancy issue on Bleecker Street. Inspired by the people that work on the street, they highlight shopkeepers as a symbol of vitality. The event runs all November. More info at www.shopbleecker.nyc #ShopBleecker is a coalition of storefronts to combat the rising vacancy issue on Bleecker Street DGI is proud to have contributed to the GVCCC with a creative direction, which...

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By Ryan Gandre |Managing Director | rgandrestoutadvisory.com |+1.312.752.3318 | STOUT We explore how the recently unveiled Tax Cuts and Jobs Act may affect valuations for taxable entities. House Republicans recently unveiled their long-awaited plan to restructure the tax code. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (full text is accessible here) endeavors to rewrite tax policy for the first time since the Reagan administration. While the policy is far from final, we, as valuation experts, have a particular interest in how the...

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By Lincoln International Lincoln International (“Lincoln”), the leading global, middle market investment bank, today announced the launch of the Lincoln Middle Market Index (“Lincoln MMI” or “Index”). The Lincoln MMI is the only index that tracks changes in the enterprise value of U.S. privately held middle market companies and is formulated to increase the transparency in closely-held companies largely owned by private equity firms. Lincoln will be updating the Index each quarter. The Lincoln MMI seeks to measure the variation in...

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By Osborne Clarke If you’re looking to test a new market or grow more gradually without committing to a permanent headcount in a country, there are a number of options to consider. A query we often receive is whether someone can be hired as an independent contractor rather than an employee. This may well be an option, but there are tax and employment status risks that need to be reviewed. Each jurisdiction has different tests to determine whether someone is genuinely...

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By Patrick O’Brien and Jorge Lopez | Litter   On October 23, 2017, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) rescinded policy guidelines in effect since April 2004 regarding requests for the extension of certain nonimmigrant visas (i.e., visa petitions filed using Form I-129).  Previously, an adjudicator’s determination that a non-U.S. citizen met the eligibility requirements for granting a nonimmigrant visa was given deference in subsequent requests for a visa extension where the parties (petitioner and beneficiary) and the underlying facts and...

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