Expert Analysis

• High Court Ruling Clarifies Notice Under Swaps Agreement

  

  The English High Court's recent decision in Macquarie v. Phelan Energy, the first judgment to consider the validity of a failure-to-pay notice under the 2002 International Swaps and Derivatives Association master agreement, gives important guidance to financial institutions and derivatives trading participants about the level of accuracy required in those notices, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

• The FTX Fallout So Far And What May Come Next

  

  While the downfall of FTX is likely to cause substantial losses and lead to extensive litigation, it will hopefully precipitate a renewed focus on regulating the crypto market in a responsible way that gives more protection to consumers, says Dan Wyatt at RPC.

• A Look At The Swath Of Claims Amazon Faces Worldwide

  

  The increasing number of claims against Amazon may well be a sign of the EU regulatory regime on the horizon for digital gatekeepers and the developing area of collective proceedings in the U.K., says David Greene at Edwin Coe.

• Link Ruling Shows FCA's Wide Change-In-Control Powers

  

  The Financial Conduct Authority's recent decision regarding the proposed acquisition of Link Fund Solutions is a reminder that the regulator has significant powers to attach conditions to its approvals and the advent of the Financial Services and Markets Bill could lead to the widening of those powers, say Charlotte Hill and Daniel Hirschfield at Taylor Wessing.

• Understanding The EU's New Foreign Subsidies Regulation

  

  The European Parliament’s newly adopted Foreign Subsidies Regulation extends already wide-ranging European Union state aid powers and adds new layers of deal conditionality, so companies will need to carefully consider how the regulation may affect their EU-bound activities, say Peter Camesasca and Sophie Bertin at Covington.

• Hard Insurance Market Will Influence Legal Industry, Economy

  

  As the cost of claims starts to outstrip the value of premiums, insurers are denying more claims and considering scaling back coverage, leading to an influx of legal work and potential holes in the market, says Bruce Hepburn at Mactavish.

• Digital Nomads: Key Considerations For Global Businesses

  

  As employers and employees embrace remote, location-independent work arrangements enabled by technology, they must be mindful of the employment law and tax consequences such arrangements may trigger, say Hannah Wilkins and Audrey Elliott at Eversheds Sutherland.

• Navigating Newly Expanded English Jurisdictional Gateways

  

  With a recent significant change, the English courts' territorial jurisdiction is now primarily controlled by the question of whether England is the proper place to bring the claim, so parties to cross-border disputes seeking to resist the jurisdiction of the English courts should focus their arguments on this battleground, say Antony Corsi and Gill Davy at Norton Rose.

• New License Eases Sanctioned Clients' Legal Fee Payments

  

  The general license recently issued by the U.K. Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation permitting the payment of legal fees owed by a sanctioned company or individual will potentially reduce the agency's backlog and is welcome news for both lawyers and OFSI staff, say Zulfi Meerza and Syed Rahman at Rahman Ravelli.

• Preparation Is Key To Businesses Minimizing Cyber Breaches

  

  A recently published report by the U.K. Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on organizational experiences of cybersecurity breaches highlights the importance of having breach response policies in place and being able to demonstrate that reasonable preventive and risk management steps were taken, says Lawson Caisley at White & Case.

• Scope Of Brexit Freedoms Bill Unclear For Financial Services

  

  The revocation provisions of the recently published Brexit Freedoms Bill do not apply to legislation affected by the Financial Services and Markets Bill, and the complex overlay between the two pieces of legislation may lead to uncertainty for the financial services industry, say Barney Reynolds and Thomas Donegan at Shearman.

• UK Policyholders Can Expect Better COVID Claims Handling

  

  The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority recently outlined some best practices for COVID-19 business interruption claims handling, which, along with recent High Court of Justice decisions, will likely lead to faster claims handling and clearer insurer communication, say Gurpreet Sanghera and Charlie Edwards at Simkins.

• EU Basel III Bank Reforms May Weaken Securities Market

  

  Recent proposals from the Council of the European Union's review of Basel III bank capital regulatory reforms did not adopt substantive changes urged by the market for the securitization framework, and may have a dampening effect on the competitiveness of European securitizations, say attorneys at Hogan Lovells.

• What To Expect From EU's Data Governance Act

  

  The European Commission's Data Governance Act, which will go into effect next September, marks a clear step forward for data regulation in the EU, but some confusion remains regarding which companies will be considered data intermediation services, say attorneys at Pierstone.

• FCA Holds The Cards Where Redress Schemes Are Concerned

  

  The recent U.K. High Court Amigo Loans decision shows the Financial Conduct Authority's willingness to engage with a proposed redress scheme or oppose it where necessary, and highlights the agency's unique power to allow business to continue in these cases, say Frances Coulson and Christopher Burt at Wedlake Bell.