A recent case from the Delaware Chancery Court (“Ryan v. Lyondell Chemical Company”, [unpublished opinion] Del.Ch. C.A. No. 3176-VCN, July 29, 2008) holds that even when a company secures a premium price in a sale, directors can be liable if they were not actively involved in the process.

National security issues raised by investments in US-based companies by sovereign wealth funds controlled by China and other foreign governments

In his last State of the Union, President Bush highlighted the need for Congress to pass the Colombia, Panama and South Korea free trade agreements (FTAs).

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently issued Revenue Procedure 2008-60 applicable to taxpayers maintaining surety bonds (Form 8693 – Low Income Housing Credit Disposition Bond) or Treasury Direct Accounts (TDA) due to dispositions of interests in low-income housing projects prior to July 30, 2008.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced revised thresholds for the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976. The revisions increase the lowest "size-of-transaction" threshold at which HSR filings may be required from the current $59.8 million to $63.1 million.

On 25 June 2010, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) adopted a revised version of its Arbitration Rules, which are widely used in ad hoc international arbitrations (i.e., international arbitrations not conducted under the purview of an institution or administering body).

On August 28, 2008 the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued revised guidelines that govern the investigation and prosecution of corporate crimes.

For many years following the enactment of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (FCPA), the criminalization of bribing government officials was a peculiarity of US law.

On the same day it issued its landmark decision authorizing EPA to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from new motor vehicles (Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency), the US Supreme Court issued another important case further demonstrating the Court's expansive view of the federal Clean Air Act.

A recent case from the Delaware Chancery Court (Ryan v. Lyondell Chemical Company, [unpublished opinion] Del.Ch. C.A. No. 3176-VCN, July 29, 2008) holds that even when a company secures a premium price in a sale, directors can be liable if they were not actively involved in the process.

Departing employees can all too often spawn trade secret litigation in the chemical industry. This longtime issue is now frequently combined with the newer issues associated with electronic discovery. A recent example is provided by a lawsuit between two rival chemical companies.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), has issued a supplemental proposed rule to its regulations relating to the legal obligations of an employer that receives a "no-match" letter from the Social Security Administration (SSA) or the DHS.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) of the US Department of Commerce recently published its much anticipated China Policy Rule (China Rule).

Incentive plans are programs established to give benefits to employees to reward them for improved commitment and performance and as a means of motivating their future performance.

Effective May 1, 2008 China's Ministry of Commerce ("MOFCOM"), Customs and General Administration for Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine ("AQSIQ") collectively introduced a series of new measures regulating the import of electro-mechanical products ("EMPs").

Almost anyone who reviews an underwriting agreement or engagement letter with a major investment banking firm for the first time stands back in awe.

In August 2007 the Committee of the National People's Congress adopted the Anti-Monopoly Law, designed to enhance fair competition and regulation of the market. The new law took effect August 1, 2008.

Chemical firms have been operating in China as long as any industry and have watched the business environment transform from an unregulated Wild West to a regulatory environment that is not all that dissimilar from that of the United States or Europe.

A decade ago in "State Street Bank & Trust Co. v. Signature Financial Group", the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued an opinion that has been widely perceived to encourage a substantial increase in patents directed to business methods and to software programs.

According to reports in the Telegraph earlier this month, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is seeking the introduction of random workplace "spot checks" by its inspectors to ensure employers obey discrimination laws.