March 21, 2012 nº 1,156 - Vol. 10
"Parva leves capiunt animas."
Little things please little minds.
Ovid
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U.S. class action lawyers look abroad
The United States has made some noteworthy contributions to globalization. The assembly line; the fast food industry; i-Everything. Now it is possible to add to that list the massive class action. More than 25 countries have introduced some sort of group litigation rules, up from only around three in 2000. Early adopters range from democracies like Italy, England and Israel to authoritarian strongholds like Indonesia. Since 2008, even Bulgaria has recognized the upside of allowing citizens to sue en masse. As exports go, the massive class action has a clear sting to its tail: the development has put the U.S. business community on high alert, prompting the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to warn colleagues in Europe about the dangers such lawsuits pose.
Supreme Court rules on ineffective assistance of counsel claim
The US Supreme Court ruled 7-2 Tuesday in Martinez v. Ryan on a defendant's ineffective assistance of counsel claim. Luis Mariano Martinez was convicted on two sexual assault counts related to the alleged rape of his stepdaughter and is serving consecutive sentences of 35 to life. During the pendency of his direct appeal, his counsel brought a collateral attack against his conviction by filing a petition for post-conviction relief. The petition did not raise a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel during the trial despite mistakes by Martinez's counsel including a failure to object to expert witness testimony that was inadmissible under state law. Under Arizona law, the post-conviction relief petition was the first place Martinez could raise such a claim. Martinez brought a second action for post-conviction relief, but the Arizona state courts found the claim to be procedurally barred because of a failure to raise it in the first petition. Martinez is seeking federal review of whether he can bring a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel against his appeal counsel for failure to raise the same claim against his trial counsel. Martinez argues that since the right to effective assistance of counsel extends to the first tier of review, he should be able to challenge his post-conviction relief petition because that was the first opportunity for him to raise an ineffective assistance of counsel claim.
Taxes on millionaires make great politics, poor economics
In this age of austerity, many governments are looking for ways to fill gaps in their budgets by taxing the rich more. These proposals make for great politics, but terrible economics. To give an idea of the distorting effect of ill-conceived taxes on the rich, consider the 50 percent tax rate for people earning more than 150,000 pounds that Gordon Brown, the U.K.'s last Labour prime minister, introduced just weeks before losing elections to Cameron in 2010. The U.K. Treasury estimated the increase would generate an extra 2.4 billion pounds a year, adjusted for all the people who would respond by leaving the country or designing ways to avoid the tax. If no one changed their behavior, the tax change would raise more than double that amount, 7.8 billion pounds. Cameron's government says it wants to reverse the 50 percent tax rate, just two years after it was introduced. There is no single answer to fixing the tax systems of all developed economies, as their tax structures and cultures differ widely. But governments should clearly avoid the temptation to focus on the superrich alone and instead reach down to touch the upper middle classes. Doing so would be politically more difficult, because it would hurt more voters. But it's the only way to produce the kind of revenue that would really bring down budget deficits. Just as important, governments should start real tax reform aimed at simplifying overly complex tax codes and eliminating exemptions and loopholes that distort behavior and favor above all the wealthy. That's an area where tax- resistant Americans and free-spending Europeans may find they have more in common than they think.
The case against staggered boards
Here is a corporate governance puzzle to ponder. Companies that are already public are rushing headlong to ditch their staggered boards. More evidence of this comes from the Harvard Law School Shareholder Rights Project. At the same time, however, companies undertaking initial public offerings, like Angies' List and LinkedIn, are increasingly choosing to go public with staggered boards. What explains this odd divergence? In a staggered board, roughly a third of directors are up for election in any given year. It therefore takes two years to replace a majority of the board. Academics argue that the staggered board thus serves as a powerful antitakeover device and "entrenches" the board, unduly protecting it from shareholder influence. Directors will instead look out for themselves and management instead of shareholders. Academic research also lends some support to the questionable value of a staggered board. Companies with such boards have been found to have lower value, a greater likelihood of making acquisitions that are value-destroying, and a greater propensity to compensate executives without regard to whether they actually do a good job.
Arbitration
After the inclusion in Law 6.404/76 of the possibility to insert in the corporation’s by laws the arbitration as the mechanism to solve disputes, an intense debate among jurists began on the binding effect of such arbitration clause. Renata Mangualde Felizardo, an associate lawyer at Pinheiro, Mourão, Raso e Araújo Filho Advogados, discusses the issue in an interesting article published today in Migalhas International. Click here to read it.
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1 - Italy plans major labor overhaul in bid to help youth - click here.
2 - Google in new privacy probes - click here.
3 - Apple announces plans to initiate dividend and share repurchase program - click here.
4 - Police court order Dotwrong - click here.
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China claims 'increase' in cyber attacks from overseas
A report from a government-run online security group in China claims that there has been a "massive increase" in cyber attacks from "foreign hackers". It said cyber attacks affected 8.9m computers in 2011, up from 5m in 2010. China is often accused of cyber attacks on foreign government agencies and firms. Beijing routinely denies this.
China and IDB to launch $1bn fund for Latin America
China and the IDB - Inter-American Development Bank have announced plans for a $1bn fund for Latin American markets. The fund will make equity investments in the region and also finance public as well as private sector projects. State-owned Export-Import Bank of China and IDB will invest $150m each with rest of the funds to be raised from the market. China has been looking to increase its investment in the region's economies.
China extends probe of Google's $12.5 billion Motorola Mobility purchase
Google Inc. said its proposed $12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. would improve consumer choice after Chinese regulators extended their probe of the deal, the last hurdle before the sale is completed.
China quietly relaxes controls on foreign capital
The Chinese government has quietly begun making it much easier for foreign investors to put money into China's stock market and other financial investments. The move, not publicly announced but disclosed by some private money managers, indicates that Chinese officials are anxious to counter a rising flight of capital from the country, a worsening slump in real estate prices, a weak stock market and at least a temporary trade deficit caused by a steep bill for oil imports.
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Autos
La empresa automotriz Jonhson Controls cerró su planta instalada en Puebla, México. (Presione aquí)
Aluminio
La reductora estatal venezolana de aluminio, Alcasa, espera recuperar su capacidad operativa este año gracias a un crédito de China. Espera retomar sus exportaciones vitales para diversos países de la región. (Presione aquí)
TLC
Con el titulo de urgente, ejecutivo colombiano elevó al Congreso el proyecto ley del Tratado de Libre Comercio con EE.UU. Tras de su aprobación aun debe pasar en revisión por la CSJ. (Presione aquí)
Do juvenile killers deserve life behind bars?
The U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments Tuesday in two homicide cases testing whether it is unconstitutionally cruel and unusual punishment to sentence a 14-year-old to life in prison without the possibility of parole. There are currently 79 of these juvenile killers who will die in prison. What's more, in many states, the penalty is mandatory, meaning neither judge nor jury is allowed to consider the youngster's age or background in meting out the sentence. In cases dealing with punishment for juveniles, context is everything. In 2005, the Supreme Court struck down the death penalty for juveniles, declaring that kids are different from adults. The court said that because of their youth, their brains are literally less developed, they are more impulsive, more subject to peer pressure and less able to see the consequences of their acts. Two years ago, the court used the same rationale when it struck down the penalty of life without parole for non homicide crimes committed by juveniles. But in Tuesday's cases, the court faces the question of life without parole in homicide cases.
Illegal logging makes billions for gangs
Illegal logging generates $10-15bn around the world, according to new analysis from the World Bank. Its report, Justice for Forests, says that most illegal logging operations are run by organized crime, and much of the profit goes to corrupt officials. Countries affected include Indonesia, Madagascar and several in West Africa. The bank says that pursuing loggers through the criminal justice system has made a major impact in some nations, and urges others to do the same.
Sixth circuit upholds cigarette warning labels
The US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled Monday in Discount Tobacco City & Lottery v. USA that graphic cigarette label warnings are constitutional. The court decided unanimously that the portions of the FSPTCA - Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act designed to limit the tobacco industry's ability to advertise to children, including a ban on distributing clothing and goods with logos or brand names, as well as sponsorship of cultural, athletic and social events requiring cigarette packaging and advertisements, is a valid restriction of commercial speech. Two of the justices also upheld a portion of a FDA - Food and Drug Administration regulation, enacted through the FSPTCA, that requires cigarette packaging and advertisements to display more prominent graphic health warning labels struck down in an earlier ruling.
Vatican reports on Irish child abuse scandals
The Vatican has expressed its "dismay and betrayal" at the "sinful and criminal acts" by Catholic clergy guilty of child abuse across Ireland. A new report acknowledges "innocent young people" were abused by clerics to whose care they had been entrusted. It says "those who should have exercised vigilance often failed to do so effectively". The Pope expressed horror in the wake of the Ryan and Murphy reports, which revealed a 70-year history of child abuse by a significant number of priests, brothers and nuns and cover-ups by their religious superiors.
Supreme Court hears arguments on benefits for children conceived after parent's death
The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments Monday in Astrue v. Capato on whether a child who was conceived after the death of a biological parent, but who cannot inherit personal property from that biological parent under applicable state intestacy law, is eligible for child survivor benefits under Title II of the Social Security Act. The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled that the Social Security Act must provide for claimants' children who were born after their death.
Deutsche Bank cuts top managers' pay
Anshu Jain, the incoming co-chief executive of Deutsche Bank, took a 23 percent cut in his compensation last year after the European sovereign debt crisis and turmoil in financial markets prompted a loss in the investment banking division.
Regulators approve new derivatives rules
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission approved new rules for the $600 trillion derivatives market on Tuesday, aiming to raise competition and impose more rigorous risk management on an industry that played a central role in the financial crisis.
Switzerland judge resigns from Cambodia genocide tribunal
A Swiss judge at the ECCC - Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia resigned on Monday over a dispute with a Cambodian ECCC judge. International Co-Investigating Judge Laurent Kasper-Ansermet said that he faced ongoing resistance from National Co-Investigating Judge You Bunleng concerning investigations relating to ECCC Khmer Rouge cases 003 and 004 and that the dispute had created a "dysfunctional situation" at the court. Kasper-Ansermet, who will step down on May 4, is the second judge to resign from the UN-supported war crimes tribunal.
US exempts Japan and EU nations from Iran oil sanctions
The US government will not impose sanctions on Japan and 10 European Union nations that have reduced their oil imports from Iran. Ordered by Congress in December, the sanctions aim to punish countries that continue to buy oil from Iran. China, India and South Korea, major buyers of Iranian oil, were not exempt.
Serbia military chief files libel suit against rights activist
Serbian General Ljubisa Dikovic on Monday brought a libel suit against the head of a Serbian human rights group that accused him of failing to prevent war crimes in 1998 and 1999 during the war in Kosovo. Natasa Kandic, director of the HLC - Humanitarian Law Center, accused Dikovic of war crimes in January, pointing to evidence uncovered during the trial of former Serbian president Milan Milutinovic by the ICTY - International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. HLC noted that Dikovic was in command of the 37th Motorized Brigade, in whose zone of control the ICTY found a "number of heavy and massive war crimes committed." The HLC alleged that, although Dikovic had a responsibility to prevent the war crimes, he did not act. Dikovic denies the allegations.
Apple reveals plans to spend cash
Apple says it will use its cash to start paying a quarterly dividend of $2.65 per share to investors and to buy back some of its shares. It will buy back up to $10bn (£6.3bn) of its own shares starting in the company's next financial year, which begins on 30 September 2012. At the end of last year, Apple revealed it had $97.6bn in cash. It expects to use $45bn over the next three years.
Investor appetite grows for european I.P.O.'s
After months of economic uncertainty caused by the European debt crisis, investors are starting to venture back into the Continent's improving financial markets, as DKSH and Ziggo are expected to raise more than a combined $2 billion through I.P.O.'s.
Supreme Court rules against Nestle unit on patent
Prometheus Laboratories can not patent a method to determine the best drug dosage for certain diseases, a decision that may affect the future of personalized medicine.
Unusual debt may haunt a troubled Dewey & LeBoeuf
An unusual $125 million bond issuance by Dewey & LeBoeuf two years ago is likely a big reason the law firm is in serious financial trouble, five law-firm management experts said Monday. The bond, purchased by institutional investors in 2010, was one of only a handful of private placement bonds ever issued by a law firm, and it marked a departure from the typical sources of law-firm funding -- banks and partner capital. In this case, the investors were insurance companies, including some clients of the firm.
French police raid home over school killing
Al Jazeera, Doha, Qatar
Bahrain's king: Political reforms on right track
Asharq Al-Awsat, Pan-Arab daily, London, England
Syria sees heaviest fighting of uprising
Egyptian Gazette, English-language, Cairo, Egypt
French Interior Minister: Suspect in Toulouse shooting claims links to al-Qaida
Haaretz, Liberal daily, Tel Aviv, Israel
Tanks shell Damascus suburbs after rebel attacks
JPost, Conservative, Jerusalem, Israel
Raid on Toulouse shooting suspect
BBC News, Centrist newscaster, London, England
Police surround Toulouse shooting suspect
CNN International, London, England
Police continue search for gunman
Daily Express, Conservative tabloid, London, England
Mexico earthquake: 7.4 magnitude quake hits Oaxaca and Mexico City but no reported fatalities
Daily Mail, Conservative daily, London, England
Marie Osmond's VERY embarrassing onstage accident after she laughed a little too hard
Daily Mail, Conservative daily, London, England
Strong earthquake hits Mexico
EuroNews, International news, Ecully Cedex, France
FRANCE: France 'poisoned by divisions' says presidential hopeful after shootings
France 24, Issy-les-Moulineaux, France
Teens infiltrate James Bond set, film fight scene
Hurriyet Daily News, (Liberal, English-language), Istanbul, Turkey
Romney aims to widen lead with victory in Illinois
Independent The, London, England
Russians still Russia-averse
Moscow News The, Independent, Moscow, Russia
Child benefit cuts: 20,000 middle class children to be pushed below poverty line
Telegraph The, Conservative daily, London, England
TV presenter to face court
Telegraph The, Celebrity news, London, England
Ranger killed by Narathiwat bomb
Bangkok Post, Independent, Bangkok, Thailand
Chen to quit if public health not top priority
China Post, English-language daily, Taipei, Taiwan
Romney Wins Illinois Republican Primary
Chosun Ilbo, Conservative daily, Seoul, South Korea
Will hit back at any attack by Israel, US: Iran
Hindustan Times, New Delhi, India
Woman sets up goons to kill HIV+ve lover
India Times, Conservative daily, New Delhi, India
East Timor to get yen loans for roads
Japan Times, Independent centrist, Tokyo, Japan
French police hunting anti-Semitic gunman raid house
New Zealand Herald, Conservative daily, Auckland, New Zealand
7.6-magnitude quake hits Mexico
People's Daily Online, English-language, Beijing, China
Mohammad-Mahmoud Ould Mohamedou: Iraqi Libya
Straits Times, Pro-government, Singapore
Your password or your job
Sydney Morning Herald, Centrist daily, Sydney, Australia
U.S. sends Iranian oil buyers of sanctions excluded Japan and 10 EU nations
Taiwan News, English-language daily, Taipei, Taiwan
Sri Lanka C. bank: Will act to curb rupee volatility
The Economic Times, Business, Mumbai, India
Sex offender Graham James gets 2 years in prison
Canadian Broadcasting Centre, Toronto, Ontario
Video: Losing Illinois, Santorum renews focus on freedom
Globe and Mail The, Centrist daily, Toronto, Canada
Miners' Iron Ore Expansion Plan to Proceed amidst China Slowdown
International Business Times, Business news organization, New York, U.S
Eviction Date Set for 'Occupy Porto Alegre'
IPS Latin America, International cooperative of journalists, Rome, Italy
Wall Street slips on China, but retailers offset losses
Reuters, Business News, New York, U.S
French police swoop on suspects in school killings
Reuters, World News, New York, U.S
City of Toronto's inside workers vote overwhelmingly for strike mandate
Toronto Star, Toronto, Ontario
'Killings followed' DR Congo poll
BBC News, Centrist newscaster, London, England
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