In this week’s Roar: a potential strike at East and Gulf Coast ports, how Houthi attacks are impacting British businesses, an Ocean Alliance announcement, the FMC’s Final Rule on demurrage billing practices, and an update on blockchain in the industry. It’s like déjà vu. Remember all the problems with West Coast ports when contracts expired last year? Now it’s time for contracts to expire at East and Gulf Coast ports, which has the potential for a strike looming once again. The...

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The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has been actively engaging with stakeholders on the topic of artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted inventions and inventorship. In response to an August 2019 request for comments, the USPTO received extensive feedback, which was summarized in an October 2020 report. Further discussions took place during the June 2022 Artificial Intelligence/Emerging Technologies Partnership meeting and April/May 2023 public listening sessions. In February 2023 the USPTO issued a Request for Comments Regarding Artificial Intelligence and Inventorship and received 69 written...

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The Trepp CMBS Delinquency rate inched up in February 2024. Overall, the delinquency rate rose five basis points to 4.71%. In the heavily watched office segment, delinquencies jumped 33 basis points to 6.63%. The month-over-month increase in February is roughly in line with the average monthly increase for the sector over the prior 12 months, increasing by 37 basis points per month on average. The retail segment notched the largest decline of all property sectors for the month, dropping 24 basis points...

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New Law Impacts U.S. Export Controls, Sanctions and Supply Chain Management Key Notes: Processes and procedures for sending defense articles, defense services and technical data within the trilateral AUKUS security partnership have been streamlined. Many sanctions-related provisions overlap with government contract provisions prohibiting the federal government from contracting with certain proscribed or denied persons, especially those owned or controlled by foreign competitors like China and Russia. The NDAA 2024 implements the American Security Drone Act of 2023 and the Combating...

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems are increasingly being adopted by HR practitioners. Its benefits can include increased productivity, efficiency and cost reductions. However, while case law is yet to be developed, there is potential for a broad range of claims from employees or job applicants where AI has made or influenced an unfair, biased or discriminatory decision affecting their employment. In this article, we look at those HR practices which may lend themselves to AI deployment, namely recruitment, performance management and...

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Commercial real estate (CRE) transitions can be challenging and intimidating. But smooth transitions are possible with strategic planning, transparency, and true partnership. Sarah Wiseman and Brandy Avery in this episode of The Team Around the Table, explored the critical role of change management and the importance of client engagement. They also shared the challenges of data management and the art of balancing risk and expectation. Seven Lessons Learned Demystifying the Transition Process in CRE Outsourcing CRE transitions can be intimidating.  But transitions are simply the...

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On February 26, 2024, The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) released version 2.0 of its updated and widely used Cybersecurity Framework (CSF). This latest edition of the CSF is designed for all audiences, industry sectors and organization types, regardless of their degree of cybersecurity sophistication. With version 2.0 of the CSF, NIST has updated the framework to expand its core guidance and has developed resources that will help users get the most out of the new iteration of the CSF....

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The inflation and interest rate storm raged well into the second half of 2023, although both are expected to ease in 2024. Attention will now turn to the maturity wall that is upon borrowers, with a significant ramp-up in debt refinancing activity expected between 2024 and 2026. Striking new deals will be challenging for some businesses in a high-interest environment, requiring the full spectrum of funding options to be considered. Outlook for dealmaking in M&A for 2024 and beyond is...

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IIE is pleased to announce that the IIE Center for Access and Equity is partnering with the Council for Opportunity in Education to enhance and support existing and new programming and activities aimed at increasing study abroad participation among low-income, first-generation students, and students with disabilities in college or university.The latest Open Doors report indicates that only 10.5% of students with disabilities in the U.S. studied abroad in the 2021/22 academic year. Through CASSIE data, we know that first-generation college students are underrepresented in...

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Foreign direct investment in Portugal was 180,411 million euros in 2023, 6.24% more than in 2022, with Lisbon receiving more than half, according to data from the Bank of Portugal (BdP). The statistics on foreign direct investment in Portugal (FDI) by region, analyse the amounts of this investment by beneficiary Portuguese region. One of the methodologies used by BdP is called establishments and considers “not only the region where the direct investment counterparty is located (…), but also the regions of...

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