With the arrival of COVID-19 vaccines in Hong Kong, employers may wish to encourage or even require their employees to be vaccinated for protection. An interesting question arises: If an employee gets injured on their way to or from the vaccination venue, will the employer have to pay compensation? Two cases in the US may shed light on this. In Firestone Tire Rubber Co. v Crawford, 177 Ga. App. 242 (Ga. Ct. App ...
The Insurance Authority has now gazetted the Insurance (Special Purpose Business) Rules. They will come into effect on 29th March, 2021, the same day as the Insurance (Amendment) Ordinance which makes provision for special purpose insurers (see our Client Alert dated 27 May 2020 regarding special purpose insurers). The Rules restrict the sale of insurance linked securities. Insurance linked securities are securities issued through insurance securitisation i.e ...
The Insurance Authority has recently gazetted the Insurance (Group Capital) Rules. They will come into effect on 29th March, the same day as the Insurance (Amendment) (No. 2) Ordinance which makes provision for the Insurance Authority to supervise on a consolidated basis designated insurance holding companies and members of their supervised group (see our Client Alert dated 27th May, 2020 regarding designated insurance holding companies) ...
On 19 March 2021, the Hong Kong Government gazetted the Securities and Futures and Companies Legislation (Amendment) Bill 2021 (the Bill). The Bill provides for an uncertificated securities market (USM) regime which will allow investors to hold securities in their own names without paper documents ...
An increasing number of investment managers in Hong Kong are considering the adoption of the open-ended fund company (OFC) structure following announcements by the government of subsidy initiatives to cover 70% of expenses paid to local professional service providers for the establishment of OFCs and the re-domiciliation of funds as OFCs. As a key operator of an OFC, the investment manager should be well informed of its obligations and duties under the OFC regime ...
The European Union’s (EU’s) Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) imposes disclosure obligations on fund managers and other EU regulated firms regarding environment, social or governance (ESG) issues. The SFDR disclosure obligations came into effect on 10 March 2021. I was recently approached by Ignites Asia – a Financial Times service – for an interview on how the SFDR may impact Hong Kong fund managers. Below is an extract. 1 ...
A recent Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) disciplinary action is a reminder of the need for managers to ensure there are systems and procedures in place to meet the short position reporting obligations of the funds that they manage. The SFC reprimanded and fined an asset manager HK$3 ...
Since the consultation document on Proposed Security of Payment Legislation (SOPL) for the Construction Industry in June 2015 and the report of the consultation in April 2016, the SOPL Bill has yet to be put before the Legislative Council for consideration. The Government released a draft Technical Circular on the Implementation of the Spirit of Security of Payment Legislation in Public Works Contracts (Draft Circular) and a reference document in mid-March 2021 ...
Did you know? The Chinese National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) and European Patent Office (EPO) recently announced a pilot-programme, which will be of particular interest to Chinese and multinational companies with R&D in Mainland China and Hong Kong, especially if they wish to file patents in Europe, US or other jurisdictions outside of Mainland China ...
The HKIAC’s statistics for 2020 reveal that in 2020 the HKIAC received a record number of arbitration filings (the highest number received in over a decade) and the total amount in dispute in the arbitrations was another record high. Most hearings were fully or partially virtual, which is unsurprising given the pandemic outbreak last year. The following are some of the more notable statistics: 483 new cases were submitted to the HKIAC in 2020 ...
In our previous article, we reported on the Supplemental Arrangement Concerning Mutual Enforcement of Arbitral Awards between Mainland China and the HKSAR (Supplemental Arrangement) made on 27 November 2020, which made certain revisions to the Arrangement Concerning Mutual Enforcement of Arbitral Awards between Mainland China and the HKSAR, as follows: Recognition of arbitral awards -The Supplemental Arrangement clarified that the procedures set out in the Arrangement shall be in
In DR Jones Yeovil Ltd v The Stepping Stone Group Ltd [2020] EWHC 2308 (TCC), England’s Technology and Construction Court ruled in favour of a contractor in its claim for unpaid retention under a JCT contract and dismissed the employer’s counterclaim for alleged defects. Certificates of Making Good were never issued and one of the questions before the court was whether that meant there could be no recovery of the balance of retention ...
The appeal in ABC Electrification Ltd v Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd [2020] EWCA Civ 1645, concerned the proper construction of a Target Cost Contract based upon the standard Institute of Civil Engineers Conditions of Contract, Target Cost Version, First Edition (ICE Conditions) and subject to standard amendments commonly used in the rail industry, known as Network Rail 12 (N12 Amendments) ...
In the recent case of Cheng Pan & Anor v Yau Lai Wah, HCA 376/2015, the Court held the Defendant liable for loss and damage caused by water leakage from his property into a neighbouring property, which resulted from the Defendant’s contractors carrying out works to pipes located in the Defendant’s property ...
The Financial Services Branch of the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau (the “FSB”) issued a letter on 1 April 2021 to all licensed money lenders setting out the Government’s proposal to revise the statutory interest rate cap and extortionate rate for money lending stipulated in the Money Lenders Ordinance (Cap. 163) (“MLO”) ...
The recent Court of First Instance decision in Li Yiqing v Lamtex Holdings Limited [2021] HKCFI 622 (11 March 2021) is a landmark decision in cross-border insolvency law in Hong Kong, in which the Court held that when it is considering the recognition of foreign insolvency proceedings, regard should not simply be had to the place of incorporation of the relevant company, but that in a departure from previous practice, the location of the company’s centre of main interest (COMI) is
In the recent case of AB V CD, HCCT 27/2020, 18 February 2021the Court granted the application of AB Engineering, to set aside a HKIAC arbitral award made against it in Hong Kong, finding that it was not a party to the relevant agreement containing the arbitration clause (Agreement) ...
Did you know? The Chinese National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) revised Patent Examination Guidelines came into force on 15 January 2021. The changes significantly relax the patentability requirements for inventions in the pharmaceutical, chemical and biotech field. Why does this matter to you? The revised guidelines focus on the examination criteria for novelty and inventive step in relation to the rapidly developing field of chemical and biotech inventions ...
On 24 February 2021, Hong Kong’s Finance Secretary Paul Chan delivered the 2021-22 Budget which highlighted upcoming government initiatives to promote the establishment of and re-domiciliation of offshore funds to Hong Kong using the Hong Kong open-ended fund company structure (OFC) ...
An open-ended fund company (OFC) must at all times have an investment manager (Fund Manager) who is responsible for managing the scheme property. To bring in expertise in respect of a specific market or strategy or for other various reasons, Fund Managers may engage sub-managers, advisors or delegates. The delegation of the investment management function by a Fund Manager is permissible under the OFC regime ...
The SFC’s recent public reprimand and fine of HK$6.3 million against a licensed corporation (the Company) brings various provisions of the Code of Conduct and Internal Control Guidelines to the forefront. It also highlights the need for licensed corporations to fully comply with any licensing conditions. Outlined in this article are the key facts of this case and a summary of what licensed intermediaries can learn from this disciplinary action ...
An open-ended fund company (OFC) must at all times have an investment manager (Fund Manager) who is responsible for managing the scheme property. To bring in expertise in respect of a specific market or strategy or for other various reasons, Fund Managers may engage sub-managers, advisors or delegates. The delegation of the investment management function by a Fund Manager is permissible under the OFC regime ...
On 16 April 2021, The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (Exchange) published a consultation paper outlining proposed enhancements to the Corporate Governance Code and Corporate Governance Report (Code) set out in Appendix 14 to the Rules Governing the Listing of Securities on the Exchange (Rules), as well as related amendments to the Rules ...
