Financial Services UK

Expert Analysis

• What To Expect In Forex Fraud Trial Of Ex-HSBC Exec

  

  The prosecution of HSBC’s former global head of foreign exchange spot trading — whose trial begins on Monday in the Eastern District of New York — will test whether the government can turn sharp dealing and deception in the unregulated institutional spot forex market into criminal fraud, says Scott Schirick of Pryor Cashman LLP​.

• When Contract Liability Exclusion Clauses Go Too Far

  

  One way that contractors and subcontractors limit liability is through the use of exclusion clauses in a contract. Two recent U.K. cases involving the interpretation of such clauses make for interesting reading, particularly for institutions that may be seeking to claim back costs relating to poorly installed materials or unsafe systems, says Iain Campbell of Hill Dickinson LLP.

• What Libor Replacement Will Mean For Derivatives

  

  The increasing attention to Libor's phaseout is sending a strong signal to derivatives markets and derivatives market participants to prepare for this major financial change. The phaseout will also raise intriguing regulatory issues, say attorneys with Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP.

• Preparing For Data Protection Harmonization After Brexit

  

  Last month, the U.K. government announced its plan to implement a data protection bill that will avoid disadvantageous divergence with the EU's data protection regime. Companies in the U.K. should take this opportunity to clean up their data protection practices, and may need to look at other protective measures depending on the U.K.'s data protection adequacy, say Sarah Delon-Bouquet and Roman Madej of Bryan Cave LLP.

• The Psychology Of Hourly Fee Arrangements

  

  The range of possible and better fee agreements is wide. But such alternatives will become popular only if litigants confront the psychological tendencies shaping their existing fee arrangements, says J.B. Heaton, a partner at Bartlit Beck Herman Palenchar & Scott LLP.

• 10 Tips For Banks Responding To Regulatory Requests

  

  Responding to regulatory requests is a normal part of a bank’s operations, but a poorly written or confusing response may cause an agency to make assumptions about a bank that are not true. Tilcia Toledo of FTI Consulting Inc. offers 10 ways financial institutions can avoid sending negative messages in their responses.

• Whistleblower Protection: When Private Turns Public

  

  In Chesterton v. Nurmohamed, a U.K. appeals court recently found that disclosing a breach of a worker's contract may satisfy the public interest requirement for whistleblower protection if a sufficiently large number of other workers are affected. This decision may cause some concern for well-known employers, say Emma Vennesson and Katherine Newman of Faegre Baker Daniels LLP.

• Self-Collection In E-Discovery — Risks Vs. Rewards

  

  As judges become better educated about the complexities of collecting electronically stored information, in particular the inefficacy of keyword searching, they are increasingly skeptical of self-collection. And yet, for many good reasons (and a few bad ones), custodian self-collection is still prevalent in cases of all sizes and in all jurisdictions, says Alex Khoury of Balch & Bingham LLP.

• 6 Common Lateral Partner Myths Debunked

  

  It’s safe to say that while demand ebbs and flows for legal services, there will never be a shortage of opinions about lateral partner hiring, which is positive for the industry, as anything with such vital importance to careers should attract significant attention. However, there is a unique mythology that travels with the discussions, says Dan Hatch of Major Lindsey & Africa.

• 4 Ways Law Firms Can Help Battle Addiction

  

  With more than a third of lawyers showing signs of problem drinking, and untold others abusing prescription drugs and other substances, it is time for law firms to be more proactive in addressing this issue, says Link Christin, executive director of the Legal Professionals Program at Caron Treatment Centers.