Legal News

The European Court of Justice has confirmed that financial investors can incur parental liability for the anticompetitive practices of portfolio companies, even after an IPO that left the investor holding only a minority stake in the company, provided that they still have sufficient representation at the board of directors. This judgment is of major interest…...By: Dechert LLP

The legal cannabis market is still in its infancy and there is much more room to grow. At the end of 2020, we saw an uptick in merger and acquisition activity as the industry shook off some pandemic-related instability, and we expect that trend to increase significantly in 2021......By: Fox Rothschild LLP

In today’s edition of Daily Compliance News: 1. The Big Boys dance to a potential Exxon/Chevron Merger? (WSJ) 2. Facebook finally gets a CCO. (WSJ) 3. Did Trump Administration so eviscerate the SEC it can’t respond to GameStop. (WaPo) 4. Ghosn Lt. on trial in Japan. (FT)...By: Thomas Fox

One of the biggest changes in the 2020 FCPA Resource Guide is the addition of a new Hallmark, entitled “Investigation, Analysis, and Remediation of Misconduct”, which reads in full: The truest measure of an effective compliance program is how it responds to misconduct. Accordingly, for a compliance program to be truly effective, it should have a well-functioning and appropriately funded mechanism for the timely and thorough investigations of any allegations or suspicions of misconduct by the....

After nearly a decade of growth, global M&A activity in the first quarter of 2020 was down 39.1% by deal value year over year — comparable to levels seen in the first quarter of 2008, in the midst of the financial crisis. The chilling effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in the first half of the year translated to a significant backlog of M&A transactions. Approaching the end of 2020, however, dealmaking returned in full force, despite the ongoing human challenges imposed by the pandemic. Coupled.....

One of the biggest M&A developments over recent years has been a significant enhancing of foreign direct investment (FDI) and national security protections by G-8 members and others....By: Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

The European debt and equity markets shrugged off the impact of a nearly total shutdown due to COVID-19 at the end of the first quarter of 2020 to rebound with strong performances in the second half of the year. As activity resumed in the late spring, a number of key trends emerged, involving covenant flexibility in high-yield bonds as well as resilient equity markets in the face of both COVID-19 and the impact of pending Brexit regulation....By: Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill once said, “Plans are of little importance, but planning is essential.” Perhaps that quote is a tad strong to apply generally to corporate reorganizations under Section 368 of the Internal Revenue Code. Plans, after all, are very important—if not essential—in the context of corporate reorganizations. However, based on a recent Private Letter Ruling, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) noted that the “plan of reorganization” requirement for...

General Motors announced on Thursday its ambitious plans to “phase out petroleum-powered cars and trucks and sell only vehicles that have zero tailpipe emissions by 2035, a seismic shift by one of the world’s largest automakers that makes billions of dollars today from gas-guzzling pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles.”...By: Robins Kaplan LLP

The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) recently updated its frequently asked questions (FAQs) guidance, “COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards Frequently Asked Questions”. The FAQs clarified some areas of the regulation and provided additional guidance for California employers, particularly construction companies....By: Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,