Expert Analysis

• PR Perspectives: Strategies For Lawyers Publicizing Litigation

  

  Any business or high-profile individual could end up in court, and with a global audience watching on through social media, lawyers would be wise to use strategic methods to shine a favorable light on their work and cases, says Steve Rudaini at MD Communications.

• Alstom Arb. Case Shows 3 Approaches To Corruption Claims

  

  French, English and Swiss courts have provided differing assessments of post-award corruption allegations in the long-running case Alexander Brothers v. Alstom, which is clearly undesirable, and may affect arbitration tactics, says Harriet Chopra at Fladgate.

• Applying The Singapore Convention In UK: The Key Questions

  

  While the U.K. government's recent decision to join the Singapore Convention is welcome, the hard work arguably starts now in devising the domestic rules to implement it, which should not be treated as a straightforward exercise, says Jan O'Neill at Herbert Smith.

• Judicial Review Lessons From Financial Ombudsman Case

  

  Even though the judicial review claim was dismissed in the recent High Court decision Shawbrook Bank v. Financial Ombudsman Service, it has important legal and practical takeaways for lenders who can obtain real value by challenging FOS decisions, say lawyers at Linklaters.

• Understanding ESG Considerations In Social Lending

  

  In light of recent updates to sustainable finance guidance by loan market associations, lenders should ensure they request compliance information for projects intended to provide social benefits in order to encourage borrowers to hold environmental, social and corporate governance factors as a priority, says Jasmine Robinson at Taylor Wessing.

• How To Approach Different Data Types In E-Disclosure Matters

  

  The High Court's recent decision in Terre Neuve v. Yewdale highlights the importance of practitioners adequately approaching e-disclosure obligations, including understanding their data landscapes and the nuances of different data types, say Fiona Campbell at Fieldfisher and Alejandro Gomez-Igbo at Forensic Risk Alliance.

• EPO Decision Adds To Sparse Case Law On Core AI Patents

  

  The recent European Patent Office Board of Appeal decision in the Sparsely connected neural network/Mitsubishi case is remarkable for its technicality, and provides rare guidance for companies on the requirements for core artificial intelligence invention patents, says Alexander Korenberg at Kilburn & Strode.

• Key Takeaways From Recent UK Insolvency Disputes

  

  As recent insolvency statistics show that U.K. registered company insolvencies are up 16% compared to last year, having a strong understanding of recent key U.K. decisions and how insolvency disputes operate is more important for companies now than it has ever been, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

• Why The Draft UK Fraud Offense May Not Be A Game Changer

  

  Although the U.K.’s proposed "failure to prevent fraud" offense will generate a need for large businesses to reassess their existing processes, given the long lead-in times for prosecutions and the Serious Fraud Office's current success rate, it seems unlikely that the corporate fraud landscape will be immediately transformed, say Charles Kuhn and Charlotte Gill at Clyde & Co.

• A Review Of The EU FDI Screening Regulation And Its Scope

  

  The EU advocate general’s recent broad interpretation of the EU Foreign Direct Investment Screening Regulation takes account of some of the geopolitical challenges faced by the bloc, and may foreshadow a revision of the regulation and widen the scope of investments screened, say Vassilis Akritidis and Jean-Baptiste Blancardi at Crowell & Moring.

• How Lawyers Can Best Avoid Money Laundering Issues

  

  There are basic questions that solicitors must ask of clients to avoid money laundering risks, but in light of recent fines imposed by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority for failure to comply with anti-money laundering regulations, firms must also ensure they document their diligence process, says Harriet Holmes at Thirdfort.

• Taxing The Digital Economy: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

  

  U.S. tech companies should watch for important developments in international taxation, including the resolution of Apple's decade-old state aid case, growing frustration with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's global tax plan and adoption of the digital services tax instead, says Joyce Beebe at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy.

• How Ed Sheeran's Serenade May Have Swayed The Jury

  

  While Ed Sheeran's performance of his hit song "Thinking Out Loud" at trial could not protect him from the subconscious copying doctrine, it may have tapped into jurors' intuitions about independent creation, winning him the copyright infringement suit over the song, says Christopher Buccafusco at Duke University School of Law.

• Tackling UK Case Backlog Requires Proper Court Funding

  

  Until the U.K. government takes powerful measures to address IT issues, poorly maintained courtrooms and wage demands, the crown court backlog will continue to rise to the detriment of all stakeholders in the criminal court system and the public at large, says Rubin Italia at Stokoe Partnership.

• UK Ruling May Affect 3rd-Party Fraud Liability Post-Insolvency

  

  While the recent Court of Appeal decision in Tradition Financial Services v. Bilta could make Section 213 of the Insolvency Act a powerful tool for liquidators, it also heightens the risk of companies tangentially involved in fraud being subject to claims following insolvency, say attorneys at Dechert.