By Blue Star Strategies 2017 was an exciting year for Blue Star Strategies. To continue to provide effective and top quality services for our public and private sector clients, we welcomed four new colleagues and expanded our Europe and Latin America practices. We grew our institutional affiliations and made significant investments in our marketing and communications portfolio.Our 2017 client portfolio took us to over two dozen countries around the world, from the halls of U.S. Congress to Latin American capitals...

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By Maximilian Coqui |Alexandre Marian |Qian Xu | Alix Partners Car sharing and ride hailing are clearly here to stay. Although we haven’t yet felt the full impact of shared mobility, it is already starting to make an impact on consumers’ car-buying decisions. To learn more about how shared mobility could transform the auto industry, we surveyed more than 5,000 consumers around the world. At a glance Awareness of car sharing and ride hailing is now nearly universal among urban consumers in...

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By Rory Moore | Associate | rorymoorecozen.com | (800) 523-2900 |Cozen O'Connor The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the Act), signed into law on December 22, 2017, makes major changes to federal income and estate tax law. There are numerous changes in the Act that affect businesses, individuals, tax-exempt organizations, the taxation of compensation arrangements, and fundamental aspects of U.S. international taxation. As one in a series of Alerts on the Act, this piece will provide insight into significant changes to the...

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By Tobias Niehl | Max Welbes | Loyens & Loeff In its press release 18/02 of 5 January 2018 (the Press Release), the Luxembourg supervisory authority for the financial sector (Commission de surveillance du secteur financier – CSSF) informs about a change of policy regarding Luxembourg UCITS investing in other UCI (the Non-UCITS).1 According to the past CSSF policy, Luxembourg UCITS were allowed to invest in a non-UCITS ETF if the Luxembourg UCITS ensured that the non-UCITS ETF effectively complied with the...

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By Houthoff Regulatory Team | +31 (0)10 217 26 29 |regulatory@houthoff.com This overview provides a selection of relevant legal developments regarding financial services regulation including the new rules on PRIIPs, the commencement of the MiFID II regime and amendment of the remuneration rules. Retail Start of PRIIPs regulation As of 1 January 2018, the so-called PRIIPS regulation applies. This regulation introduces the obligation for manufacturers, sellers and advisers of packaged retail and insurance-based investment products (or PRIIPs) to provide retail investors with...

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By Laurence Buchanan | Woody Driggs  | Tony Qui | Ernst & Young Resolution 1: Instill a sense of urgency Yes, the word disruption is likely overused, which could explain why some executives might be covering their ears each time the word comes up. That’s a mistake, because the potential to disrupt or be disrupted is a clear and present danger for businesses in every industry, and every part of the world. Changes that could disrupt your business are happening now,...

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By Melissa A. Bailey  (Washington DC) | Aaron Wilensky  (Washington DC) | Ogletree Deakins The Trump administration continues to look for ways to lessen the regulatory burden on employers. As a result, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) electronic recordkeeping regulation continues to be whittled down. OSHA’s latest Regulatory Agenda sets out new changes to the already beleaguered rule. Specifically, OSHA intends to propose to amend the Electronic Recordkeeping rule to eliminate the requirement that establishments with 250 or...

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By Stout More Record Growth in 2017 Stout's Investment Banking group just concluded another exciting year. We added 13 new professionals, executed over 40 engagements, and achieved more than 60% revenue growth for the second consecutive year. Our momentum has continued into 2018, with as many as five transactions expected to be announced this month. New Senior Talent in Key Sectors We broadened our industry expertise with the hiring of Managing Directors John Calcagnini and Steve Rathbone . Based in Los Angeles,...

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By Revinax From a worldwide first in mixed reality to outer space After being the worldwide first to introduce mixed reality in the OR, the Revinax team is very excited to announce that we’ve been selected by the European Space Agency to develop immersive tutorials to train and help astronauts. Our patented tutorial technology was a top candidate in the ESA-BIC Incubator Program of ESA’s competitive cluster Aerospace Valley.  Even though the ESA counts 16 other incubators in Europe, ESA-BIC Sud France is its...

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By Michelle A. White | Associate | Miami, FL |mawhitelittler.com |(305) 400-7549 | Littler According to a news report,1 the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is considering ending the ability to extend H-1B visas beyond the six-year limit of authorized stay.  Historically, the extensions have been possible pursuant to the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-First Century Act (AC21), which previous administrations have interpreted as allowing such extensions.  The current administration is reconsidering this interpretation in light of the administration’s “Buy America, Hire American” initiative. ...

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