Expert Analysis

• CMA's Actions Signal New Spotlight On UK Consumer Law

  

  The Competition and Markets Authority’s recent hidden fee fine against the AA — its first infringement decision using its new direct enforcement powers — as well as its investigations into fake online reviews and scrutiny of subscription contracts, demonstrate the regulator's new focus on tackling the most egregious breaches of U.K. consumer law, say lawyers at Wilson Sonsini.

• How New E-Evidence Rules Will Affect EU-US Data Transfers

  

  The forthcoming European Union e-evidence regulation signals the need to preserve digital evidence that is stored outside the issuing jurisdiction, bringing the EU significantly closer to the model employed by the U.S. and reflecting a shift in the legal landscape for cross-border data transfers, say lawyers at MoFo.

• SFO Plan Focuses On Resilience But Funding Doubts Persist

  

  The Serious Fraud Office’s emphasis on tighter case management and making greater use of technology in its latest business plan suggests a concern with strengthening complex financial crime enforcement, however the agency may not have the resources to deliver meaningful change, say lawyers at Signature Litigation.

• Dutch Order Enforcing Award Tests Spain's Immunity Shield

  

  The recently recorded enforcement award from The Hague District Court, allowing an investor to seize Spanish real estate in the Netherlands in satisfaction of an arbitration award, exposes the precise point at which International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes enforcement becomes coercive sovereign execution, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.

• Darchem Ruling Clarifies Status Of JV Members' Solo Claims

  

  The High Court’s recent decision in Darchem Engineering v. Bouygues on whether individual members of an unincorporated joint venture can pursue claims against an employer provides a helpful road map for considering a JV's standing, and a reminder of the importance of contract construction, say lawyers at Squire Patton.

• Lessons From Spain's Decision Not To Enforce UK Judgment

  

  In a recent ruling, a Barcelona court refused to recognize a €365 million U.K. judgment against Cerberus Capital, showing that a foreign decision may be sound, final and enforceable in its own jurisdiction, yet still be refused entry where it threatens to displace a dispute already before the Spanish courts, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray’s Inn Square.

• Lessons From ESMA's Record €1.4M Trade Repository Fine

  

  The European Securities and Markets Authority's recent fine against REGIS-TR for data and procedure breaches under Market Infrastructure and Securities Financing Regulations demonstrates that a license confers no immunity from sanctions, and that dually registered trade repositories face a greater financial exposure in the event of noncompliance, say lawyers at White & Case.

• Decoding Arbitral Disputes: Tracing Paths To Award Recovery

  

  Recent subpoenas to Adidas and Hilton deployed in Blasket Renewables v. Spain, pending in D.C. federal court, show arbitration award recovery to be a disciplined exercise in constructing visibility, applying pressure and sequencing procedural advantage, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn Square.

• ECJ Ruling Shows When Cos. Can Reject Data Requests

  

  The European Court of Justice’s recent decision in Brillen Rottler v. TC clarifies that although data controllers must be cautious in declining data subject access requests under the EU General Data Protection Regulation, a company may refuse to respond where the request is manifestly unfounded or excessive, even at first contact, says Rob Dalling at Jenner & Block.

• Dubai Ruling Delineates Standard For Foreign Arbitration Aid

  

  By delineating the limits of its jurisdiction with clarity, in the recent Orabelle v. Orzenia decision, the Court of First Instance of the Dubai International Financial Centre Courts enhances predictability and reinforces the court's standing as a forum combining international openness with strict adherence to statutory constraints, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.

• What Oatly's Loss Means For Plant-Based Food Industry

  

  The U.K. Supreme Court’s recent judgment in Dairy U.K. v. Oatly demonstrates that under European Union agricultural marketing regulations courts consider fair competition to take precedence over consumer protection, and that dairy labeling challenges can succeed even where there is no realistic prospect of demonstrating consumer confusion, say lawyers at TLT.

• New French In-House Privilege Reshapes Arbitration Strategy

  

  The French Constitutional Council’s recent granting of legal privilege to in-house counsel marks a structural evolution in French arbitration practice and alters the evidentiary balance of document production in cross-border disputes, although the new protection is neither absolute nor risk-free, say lawyers at King & Spalding.

• What 2nd Circ. Discovery Stay Means For Sovereign Litigation

  

  The Second Circuit’s recent stay of a postjudgment discovery order against Argentine officials in an oil investment dispute is worth examining in its full doctrinal and practical context, as limiting enforcement efforts that pry into foreign governments' internal workings could quietly reshape the trajectory of sovereign litigation in the U.S., says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.

• EU Ruling Signals More Intrusion Into Commercial Arbitration

  

  Three things stand out from the recent opinion of the advocate general of the European Court of Justice in Reibel v. Stankoimport, which is the next step in a long line of measures chipping away at the viability of international arbitration in the European Union, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

• UK Top Court Clarifies Time Limit Issue In Shareholder Claims

  

  The long-awaited U.K. Supreme Court decision in THG PLC v. Zedra Trust confirms that even historical acts can be remedied without a firm limitation date by allowing courts to order appropriate relief for unfairly prejudicial conduct, which will be welcomed by both petitioners and respondents, say lawyers at Stewarts.