Understand Your Rights. Solve Your Legal Problems
Nestlé announced that it has acquired a majority stake in Terrafertil, a company selling natural, organic, plant-based foods and healthy snacks.
The move widens Nestlé’s presence in a fast-growing category in Latin America, the United States and the United Kingdom.
Terrafertil, and its flagship brand 'NATURE'S HEART®', is recognised for its wide portfolio of natural and mostly organic products. It is the world’s largest buyer of goldenberries (Physalis), an Andean superfood high in vitamins and antioxidants. The company was founded in 2005 in Ecuador by five entrepreneurs and is managed by three founding brothers, David, Raul and Daniel Bermeo. It quickly expanded its presence in Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Chile, and the United Kingdom. In 2017, it entered the United States with the purchase of 'ESSENTIAL LIVING FOODS®'. Terrafertil has received international recognition for its positive social impact through its work with hundreds of small farmers. It employs 400 people and has four factories in Ecuador, Mexico, Colombia and Chile.
The transaction includes all of Terrafertil’s operations and assets in the seven countries where it operates.
White & Case advised Nestlé with Bryan Luchs, Daren Orzechowski, Rebecca Farrington, Daniel Levin, Jacquelyn MacLennan, Marc Israel, John Kim, Victoria Rosamond, Jason Krause, Chris Hinman, Dilara Erik, Chen Zhang, Choi Li, Micaela Glass, Sophie Sahlin, Anneka Randhawa, Helen Levendi, Daniel Rosenberg, Peter Chan, Iker Arriola, Pedro Morales, Rodrigo Avendaño, Fernanda Solís-Cámara Díaz and Ulises Patiño.
In Brazil, Lacaz Martins, Pereira Neto, Gurevich & Schoueri advised Terrafertil with Cristiano Diogo de Faria and Sergio Marcon.
People are often unaware to how complex family law can be in California.
“My concern is that people may not be properly represented, because lawyers think 'family law is simple' but it is not, particularly for us specialists. We know the minefields and where the conflicts will be, and we come up with creative solutions that will work and be sustainable, if and when we do go to court”, speaks specialist Stephen Ruben.
Stephen speaks more on common misconceptions people have about family law.
Touching on your 30 years’ experience; how have you seen family law change and how has it changed for the better?
Family law has changed a lot over the past ten years, because almost 70% of people in California are now self-represented. So, the cases that we are engaged in tend to be much more complex and do require the skills and expertise of a specialist.
What would you say is quite a complex family law case? What has been your most complex case to date?
The cases become very complex when there are agreements or marriages between states. For example, clients that now reside in California but have a prenuptial agreement signed in another state, can present certain complexities in their case. It is a question of which law will apply: will it be the law of the state in which the parties executed the agreement, and where the agreement says, or will California override certain provisions related to the prenuptial as it could cause violation of public policy.
Do you think any changes need to be made in regard to non-marital partnerships and what are common issues do you see arise in this area?
Some states have very limited support provisions, but some are revisiting that issue. For example, in the state of Illinois where I previously practiced as a public prosecutor, there was a very limited period of time in which spouse support was awarded. However, Illinois reversed its decision a couple of years ago and recognised that long term support is a very important aspect, particularly if there is a huge disparity of wage and earnings. I do think that long term support is really an important aspect of divorce, because it equalises the playing field and puts both parties in a balanced economic status, but it also gives a chance for the receiving spouse to have an opportunity to go back into the workplace, to pursue their career, in order to be self-supporting, which is a law I think all states should address.
Do you think there are any complexities in family law which you are hoping to address in the future?
Yes - I am an expert in The Hague convention, which deals with abducted children which are brought into the US - either through kidnapping or wrongful detention-, and I have just recently concluded a very successful case where my client’s child was returned back to Denmark. I am hoping to address more cases like this as they are highly rewarding; the reunification of a child back to his or her parent is gratifying, as wrongful abduction is a high level of child abuse.
As a featured radio guest on "Your Legal Rights" in San Francisco, can you share with us some common ‘rights’ that your clients often are unaware about in family law?
I think some clients are glued to the notion that gender has an impact on custody and that they are entitled to 50%. California was the first state in the nation to adopt a neutral assessment where sex and gender does not matter. Instead, it is based on who is the active parent, the one providing the child with daily supervision control, taking the child to piano rehearsals and doctor appointments; some parents are not as active as they work more hours, yet they have this notion that this will give them the entitlement to joint custody, which is not true. We have a non-sexual discrimination statute which has a provision stating that both parents are entitled to frequent and continuous contact, but that does not mean ‘equal’. This is one of the areas we must careful explain to clients; the comprehensive custody plan takes into account everybody's work schedule and who is providing the day to day care.
Stephen B. Ruben
Certified Specialist, Family Law
Ruben Law Firm
625 Market Street, Penthouse
San Francisco, CA 94105
sruben@rubenlawfirm.com
Stephen B. Ruben is the Managing Director of The Ruben Law Firm, P.C. He provides family law representation, mediation, and private judging in San Francisco, San Mateo, Marin, Alameda, Contra Costa and Marin Counties. Steve’s practice is devoted to complex family law litigation including high net worth divorce cases, financial issues, spousal and child support, high conflict custody disputes, and dissolution, including non-marital and domestic partnerships, adoptions, child abandonment and paternity and will and trust administration.
It’s an intricate road post-insolvency; from delicate asset tracing and debt recovery to tying up lose ends, lawyers have a hard time keeping up with the details. For Tomislav Šunjka, Founder and Principal of Serbia-based ŠunjkaLaw, these are the challenges that are pursued. Below Tomislav catches up with Lawyer Monthly to discuss the step by step processes.
What alternative options do you present when clients are looking for ways of securing claims during settlements?
Settlements are basically agreements and as such they represent an instrument in securing a legal position in the event of dispute. Lawyers tend to make standard settlements, with basic approaches, where they deal with protection of their clients’ rights through settlement declarations, with termination as a highest level of protection. In business relations, the last thing that a client wants is the termination of settlements, since all of business agreements, including settlements, are in fact made with the intention of fulfilment. In this sense, maximum effort should be made to define legal mechanisms and instruments in the settlement, which will lead to execution and fulfilment. In addition to real securities, such as bank guarantees, mortgage right, pledge right, charges, conclusion of the settlement in proper form has proved to be the most effective in practice. We advise our clients to conclude settlements with their debtors in the form of statement in which they acknowledge the debt, where settlement is concluded before public notary or judge in pre-litigation or enforcement procedure. In such settlements, two things are the most important: the exact and particular plan of payment of the debt, and agreeing that if the debtor fails to pay just one instalment, the entire debt becomes due. In this way, the settlement becomes an executive document, with the legal force of a court decision and it completely surpasses litigation.
In your opinion, what is the most difficult aspect of insolvency procedures, and how do you overcome this?
The most difficult aspect of insolvency procedures is the slowness of the legal procedure and its mechanisms. Assets quickly change places, forms, owners, and it is very difficult to protect the rights of the creditor in the meantime, since the chances for asset recovery is reduced or ultimately non-existent. We overcome this by using civil asset recovery mechanisms and direct financing of legal activities of asset tracing and recovery by the insolvency creditors. Most commonly, this means obtaining freezing orders for said assets, to secure collecting the claim. In the next step, we inform the insolvency judge and the insolvency administrator that such claim is secured, after which by direct standing they execute collection through said asset.
When creating a strategy for a client’s claim, what are the first three things you consider, and why?
For example, the legal mechanism of asset recovery of legitimate deposits of a bank client in the international liquidation procedure is very interesting. We resolve such situations by firstly investigating the correspondent and non-resident accounts of a bank in liquidation in third countries and jurisdictions. We then negotiate with the central bank of that country to open special escrow accounts as a form of securing a set-off settlement. Finally, we conclude a set off settlement between our client who is a client of a bank with a legitimate deposit and assets at the bank's accounts in liquidation, with the assets of the bank itself on correspondent and non-resident accounts. These procedures always include investor or litigation funder who buy and finance the collection of such claims in liquidation. Buying of claims is also performed through the aforementioned escrow account, by depositing fund to the account. The funds remain on the escrow account up until the moment of notification registration before the deposit agency which handles the liquidation. At the moment of registration, the client receives the freed funds from the escrow account, while the investor or litigation funder continues to be the bank creditor, set-off the claim with funds on correspondent or non-resident accounts of the bank or collecting it through litigation.
Tomislav ŠunjkaŠunjkaLaw
Sremska 4, 1st floor, 21000 Novi Sad, Vojvodina, Serbia
Tel: +381214721788
tomislav.sunjka@sunjkalawoffice.com
I am named regional representative of the IBA Ant-corruption Committee for Europe, a member of the Asset tracing Subcommittee and also an active member of the ICC FraudNet, a network of legal professionals dealing with asset tracing and recovery. Our lawyers are equipped with skills, capacity, knowledge, dedication and discretion to resolve the most difficult and most complex legal issues, with elements of cross border transactions, several jurisdictions, multitask demands and very delicate clients and opposite parties.
Leaf has advised the majority shareholders of 8 Matic on the transfer of shares to Artefact, a leading data and AI-based digital marketing agency listed on the Euronext Growth Paris Stock Exchange.
8 Matic is a leading independent Chinese performance-driven digital marketing agency, whose main operations are in Mainland China and Hong Kong. This alliance with Artefact seeks to reinforce its presence in Asia, and particularly in China.
Leaf assisted the sellers with negotiations and drafting of contractual documentation for the transaction.
Founded in 2010 by Pascal Duriez and Joe Chan Kue, 8 Matic, operating under the brand Netbooster, has a presence in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Seoul serving clients based in Europe, the America and Asia. It also has strong partnerships established with the BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent) in terms of inventory, data, tracking and media activation.
Jean-Philippe Engel and Bruno Grangier (Partners), led the Leaf team. They were assisted by Charlotte Mantoux.
“Data and AI are changing the retail landscape. This deal shows the importance and maturity of China’s retail industry, where a lot of opportunities are still up for grabs by those who combine good knowledge of Chinese consumers’ expectations and technological excellence”, said Jean-Philippe Engel, lead negotiator for Leaf.
“The combination of our expertise and the extension of our influence on markets undergoing acceleration opens up considerable potential for development and growth. We are now in working order to go faster and further across all APAC markets”, commented Pascal Duriez, CEO of Artefact APAC, former CEO of 8 Matic.
PAWA Dominicana (Pan Am World Airways Dominicana) is the international flag carrier of the Dominican Republic, with scheduled flights to multiple destinations in the Caribbean and the United States.
Guzmán Ariza is representing PAWA in the first major bankruptcy/restructuring proceeding in the Dominican Republic under the new Mercantile Restructuring Law 141-15, a process which will involve hundreds of national and international creditors. The Restructuring Court in Santo Domingo accepted the firm's bankruptcy filing request and has authorized preliminary proceedings to begin.
The legal team assisting Pawa is comprised of Partners Fabio Guzmán Ariza, Fabio Guzmán Saladín, Alberto Reyes and Rhadaisis Espinal. Other areas of specialisation are involved, such as disputes resolution, labour law, corporate, finance, taxation and consulting advice.
The Firm already obtained the first favourable sentence in Dominican Courts and the Conciliator figure was appointed. This case will make history in the country since many international institutions are involved: AERODOM-Dominican Airports; IRS; Civil Aviation Institute; several US international airports; IATA; SABRE; Menzies Aviation; SWISSPORT.
In January 2018, without prior notice, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Dominican Republic suspended PAWA's operations for a period of 90 days, alleging nonpayment of airline and airport fees, leaving thousands of passengers stranded all over the Caribbean. Within a few days the airline was left with no choice but to file for bankruptcy.
Bravo Brio Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBRG) (“BBRG” or the “Company”), owner and operator of the BRAVO! Cucina Italiana and BRIO Tuscan Grille restaurant concepts, GP Investments, Ltd. (“GP”), a leading private equity and alternative investment firm, and its controlled company Spice Private Equity Ltd. (“Spice”), a Swiss investment company focused on private equity investments, announced a merger agreement under which an affiliate of Spice will acquire the Company for a total enterprise value of approximately $100 million. The transaction proceeds will be funded by Spice, along with certain third-party financing sources.
Under the terms of the merger agreement, BBRG’s shareholders will receive $4.05 per share in cash. The purchase price represents a premium of approximately 37% over the volume weighted average price of the Company’s shares for the 90-day period immediately preceding the date of the agreement. BBRG will report annual sales in excess of $400 million for the year ended December 31, 2017 and owns and operates 110 locations in 32 states across the country.
The merger agreement has been unanimously approved by BBRG’s Board of Directors. The transaction is subject to shareholder approval and other customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed by the end of the second quarter of 2018.
Upon closing of the transaction, BBRG will continue to be operated as an independent company and remain based in Columbus, Ohio.
Dechert LLP served as legal adviser and Piper Jaffray & Co. served as financial adviser to BBRG. Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP served as legal adviser to GP. GLG conducted due diligence on behalf of GP.
Interview with Xavier Le Faucheur, Head of Financial Services Strategic Projects at Gerson Lehrman Group (GLG)
Please tell me about your involvement in the deal?
GLG Strategic Projects, the strategic advisory group of GLG, was retained by GP Investments to conduct commercial due diligence (CDD) on the target. The diligence involved profiling core consumers of Italian casual dining restaurants (segmenting by age and frequency of visit), understanding dining behaviours and preferences, and evaluating perceptions of competitor brands.
The GLG Strategic Projects model is highly differentiated. To support this diligence, we deployed a specialised team comprising former top-tier consultants with extensive consumer product and restaurant sector experience, drawn from GLG’s market-leading network of experts and practitioners. The team conducted comprehensive primary research on consumer preferences.
Why is this a good deal for all involved?
GP Investments has a solid track record of adding value to its portfolio companies and brings world-class restaurant sector expertise to drive BBRG’s growth. GLG Strategic Projects was proud to support this diligence through its unique business model.
What challenges arose? How did you navigate them?
The broad and diverse geographic footprint of BBRG restaurants made it challenging to construct a representative consumer sample. The GLG Strategic Projects team ensured that survey respondents lived within a specific radius of each restaurant location, ensuring an appropriate data cross-section.
A second challenge was to address the natural skew of online surveys towards younger, female respondents. The research instrument proactively corrected for sample bias, ultimately concluding that the original skew did not materially impact findings.
From doping to subtle product placing in social media posts, sports law is a field in the legal sector which is just as vast as it is interesting. How should we fight against doping in sports; what should athletes be aware of when signing an agreement with popular sports brands, and how does the law embrace transfer day? The law plays a pinnacle role in every movement in sports and so we speak with expert Jan Kleiner who reveals precautions media companies, athletes, and lawyers must consider in order to score well for their team and its fans.
Doping is often a hot topic when nearing any big sporting event; what do you often advise your clients on, regarding precautions and dealing with doping accusations?
The fight against doping is of course still one of the key issues of professional sports. We all love a true competition of honest athletes – ultimately, this is why we are passionate about sports.
The most important advice to give to athletes as a lawyer, however, is not only to be an honest sportsman and sportswoman, but also to be careful and diligent. In my experience, it is crucial that athletes are fully aware of the regulatory framework, in particular of the fact that as a principle, each athlete is responsible for whatever enters his/her body. Although this legal principle is, as such, widely known, clients need to be aware of all the resulting obligations and requirements also from a practical perspective. Indeed, a conviction for a doping offence can also result from a lack of diligence and/or a lack of knowledge of certain factual obligations.
In particular, utmost caution is required from an athlete and his/her entire team when it comes to nutrition, nutritional supplements, medicine, etc. Nowadays, many international athletes have a very strong team around them, which takes care of all such matters. Nevertheless, as experience shows, mistakes may still happen. It may then be up to an athlete to demonstrate all the aspects of their "doping control regime", i.e. to show which precautionary measures they took, how everything was documented, what nutrition they consumed, how qualified their support personnel was, etc. – all of this may create a significant administrative burden, but it all serves as a general precautionary measure to mitigate risks in possible proceedings.
How does contract negotiation differ in sports law, in comparison to traditional corporate law contracts?
One of the key elements of contract negotiation, in particular in football, is time pressure: due to the so-called "registration periods" (transfer windows), there are very strict time-limits within which negotiations have to be successfully concluded, in particular in what concerns transfer agreements between football clubs and employment contracts of football players. In addition, for reasons of strategy or negotiation tactics, intermediaries, players or clubs may want to wait until a very late moment within such periods to actually enter into negotiations. All of this often increases time pressure significantly, but it also makes contract negotiation challenging and interesting in sports law, and football in particular.
At the same time, particular attention must be given to careful drafting, as experience shows that many disputes in a sporting context result from pure drafting matters. Moreover, one must always remain aware that the legal and regulatory framework for contract drafting consists not solely of national state laws. Sports regulations may set additional limits to the contractual freedom of parties, which all must be taken into account.
What are common issues you find yourself advising media companies on regarding sports law?
Currently, one of the most important issues that media companies need to address is the entry into force of the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) on 25 May 2018. In particular, since the geographical scope of application of the GDPR may, de facto, reach well beyond the European Union, it is highly relevant also for sports stakeholders domiciled, for example, in Switzerland.
In particular, the importance of data continuously grows also in a sports and media context, just as in any other business sector. For instance, in a sporting context, data is used for various purposes, which can range from a performance analysis to the establishment of detailed databases about athletes or players. Data is also used to predict the sporting development of young talents or to monitor the health of athletes, e.g. to track blood pressure, to establish and control training routines or to monitor the recovery from injuries. Not least, also in the context of the fight against doping or match-fixing, vast amounts of data are processed and used on a worldwide level.
All of these data may very likely qualify as "personal data" or even "special categories" of data within the meaning of the GDPR. Therefore, with the entry into force of the GDPR, important new legal obligations arise in a sports and media context. All stakeholders are well advised to ensure compliance with these requirements, not least because of the threat of heavy sanctions in case of breach of GDPR requirements.
With social media being so much more prevalent in society, have you noticed any progressive issues arising with athletes, especially when being brand ambassadors or involved with sponsors? How should these issues be dealt with?
A current trend of society is certainly that much more attention is given to the presence of athletes on social media. This increases the importance of athletes as role models for youngsters. At the same time, it can also be an opportunity from a marketing perspective thanks to the increased visibility of an athlete. However, athletes are also well advised to be careful about their presence and activities in social media, since every detail is nowadays being scrutinised by the media.
When it comes to contracts as brand ambassadors or general sponsoring agreements, involving certain activities on social media, we certainly observe a trend to increased professionalism. Agreements of this type are drafted at a high level of detail, and many obligations are being imposed on athletes. While detailed and careful drafting will often provide more certainty and stability in the contractual relationship, athletes are well advised to seek legal counsel before signing such agreements, to be aware of the ensuing obligations.
JAN KLEINER
Partner
jan.kleiner@kleiner-cavaliero.com
Dr. Jan Kleiner is one of the founding Partners at Kleiner & Cavaliero, a law firm domiciled in Zurich, Switzerland.
Jan Kleiner obtained his law degree from the University of Zurich in 2005 (magna cum laude). In 2012, he graduated as a Global Executive master’s in international Sports Law from the Instituto Superior de Derecho y Economia in Madrid, Spain (summa cum laude). In 2013, he obtained his doctorate in law (Dr. iur.) from the University of Zurich (summa cum laude), receiving the Prix ASDS for the best sports law thesis in Switzerland for the years 2013/2014.
Previously, Jan Kleiner had worked for the Union des Associations Européennes de Football (UEFA) and the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). In that function, he was responsible for the handling of employment-related disputes, disputes related to solidarity contribution, training compensation and international transfers. In addition, he was in charge of handling disputes in front of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
Jan Kleiner is also a lecturer in international sports law at the University of Zurich and in several other national and international master programmes in sports law. He regularly publishes articles and books on national and international sports law and on media, entertainment and data protection matters.
Finally, Jan Kleiner acts as Arbitrator at the German Institute of Arbitration (Sports Law and Anti-Doping Matters) and as Arbitration and Mediation Panel Member at Sports Resolutions UK, and he is the President and Chairman of the Board of the ISDE Sports Law Alumni (ISDE SLA).
Kleiner & Cavaliero provides comprehensive legal services and advice to all stakeholders in the sports, media and entertainment industry, such as clubs, federations, athletes, coaches, sponsors, event organisers, broadcasters, image right companies, agencies and intermediaries. The firm has a particular focus on sports litigation and party representation in front of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), the Swiss Federal Supreme Court and decision-making bodies of international sports federations. Kleiner & Cavaliero is also very active in the media and entertainment industry, with a special focus on data protection matters in sport.
Real estate acquisitions and dispositions has changed dramatically over the past several years, posing new challenges. We hear from Michaela Grambling, who reveals what could be done to increase commercial growth in real estate and reasons to why deals often fall through.
With Texas being the top state in the US for contributions to state gross domestic product and jobs created/supported by commercial real estate development, how do you recommend the legal sector should change in order to support this growth?
I graduated from law school in May 2008, and began my career just as the financial crisis hit our country and affected many clients. As the country progressed into the recession, I noticed that the need for legal services remained strong, but many companies struggled to pay their legal bills. Legal professionals need to be able to adapt and put themselves in the best position to survive the cyclical nature of the real estate business. This means being open to alternative billing models such as fixed, flat, capped or blended fees for services, in order to ease potential cash constrains that you’re your client may be temporarily experiencing. This not only helps your clients find a payment structure that works for them, but also ensures that you are able to collect on your billable time.
Moreover, what do you think could be done to increase commercial real estate growth within your state?
I think a good start is encouraging investment in sectors that have the most potential to drive innovation, such as the technology and health care sectors. These sectors not only create more jobs within their fields, but also drive job growth in industries that play support roles. This includes jobs in legal, construction, retail, and related fields. As demand for space increases, rents go up, and this tends to draw new investment and competition into the market.
When undergoing due diligence reviews, what are important things for you to ‘check off’ for your clients?
When representing a purchaser, it is not only important for contractual documents to specify what documents are needed during due diligence, but it’s also important that they contain a reasonable, yet firm, deadline for the receipt of those documents. These are commonly the preliminary documents I ask to check off, reserving the right to seek additional information:
What are common reasons to why real estate deals fall through? What could be done to prevent this?
Financing obviously plays a major role in determining whether a real estate transaction is going to close. The best way to deal with this issue to try to make sure your client secures proof of funds and earnest money as early as possible. I also see deals die due to a lack of firm deadlines for due diligence and a failure to communicate between the parties. I have found success in outlining a standard schedule for communication from the outset of a transaction. This usually means weekly conference calls in which all interested parties must participate.
What is a characteristic you think lawyers in property and real estate should maintain?
I am a third-generation attorney. This advice is among the first that I was ever given by my father, who is also a real estate attorney, upon graduation from law school. A good lawyer will always follow the rule of the “3 As”: Affability, Availability and Ability. Affability: it’s important to be likeable. If a client doesn’t like you as a person, he or she isn’t going to come back to you. It’s important to get to know your clients on a personal level and be able to have a regular conversation that doesn’t involve business. Availability: One of the biggest client complaints involves the unavailability of some lawyers. If you don’t return phone calls or emails promptly and aren’t available for meetings with little notice, a client isn’t going to want to use you again. Ability: It goes without saying that a good real estate lawyer must have the ability to get a transaction done with a minimal amount of hiccups. Often, this means taking time to draft and review documents slowly. Tying this back into the evolving billing model that is emerging in the legal sector, this may mean sacrificing a bit on the traditional billable hour model in order to make sure the client is happy with the cost of your services, as well as the quality.
My name is Michaela Ainsa Grambling. I am currently of Counsel at Ainsa Hutson Hester & Crews, LLP in El Paso, Texas and serve as General Counsel for HCG Asset and Property Management, LLC. I handle a wide variety of real estate transactional issues for clients of Ainsa Hutson Hester & Crews, and advise on human resources issues, lease negotiation, transactional issues, and provide direction on regulatory matters for HCG Asset and Property Management, LLC. Being able to serve as General Counsel for HCG Asset and Property Management, LLC has afforded me the opportunity to continue practicing law while participating in the operational side of the real estate business.
Michaela Grambling
General Counsel
HCG Asset and Property Management
5809 Acacia Circle
El Paso, TX 79912
(915)227-5322
The internet is huge library full of information, consisting of book full of ideas and inventions. More often than not, we are unaware of all the things available, and for companies seeking innovation this can pose problems, especially in regard to patenting and trademarking.
Therefore, we speak with Eleni Kokkini, a Senior Associate at PPT Legal, on concerning aspects her clients are often unaware about, and how she expects the world of IP to change, given the development of Blockchain and AI.
What are important compliance issues that clients are often unaware about regarding IP and websites? One of the usual mistakes that clients make is that they confuse the rights acquired through domain name registrations with trademark rights. They often believe that the Greek domain name authorities check the .gr domain name to be registered for conflicts with prior rights. This often leads to inadvertent infringements of third party trademarks. In addition, many internet users and website owners believe that just because they get material and content on the internet, that this material is in the public domain.
How can disregarding such issues cause problems? Website owners may be held liable for the infringement of trademark rights or other rights, such as International Nonproprietary Names for Pharmaceutical Substances, geographical indications or trade names. Further, their perception of content found on the internet as belonging to the public domain, may lead to copyright infringement, as well as infringement of publicity and private rights. It must be noted that websites are common targets for lawsuits, due to the visibility of content on the internet. On the other hand, the same visibility makes website owners more vulnerable to becoming victims of infringements, or even losing their IP rights. It is therefore important to know which elements of a website may be protected, under which laws and how.
Since the rise of e-commerce, what new issues and problems did clients face? How did you advise them through such issues? One of the most significant issues that clients need to face when doing business in Greece, especially in the e-commerce sector, are the frequent changes in the Greek legislation. For example, a formerly existing requirement for e-commerce businesses to get registered in the Greek Business Registry and provide full identity details of both the business entity and its representatives, that had been introduced in 2014, was abolished recently with effect as of 18 March 2018. What we do in order to protect our clients, is send them short notices with significant changes, which we believe that may affect their business.
How do you expect to see the world of IP in the upcoming years? New technologies, such as blockchain and artificial intelligence, create shorter cycles of innovation that companies have to keep up with. Companies will have to optimise their procedures, in order to launch new products in a more speedy and efficient manner and file new trademarks, designs and patents more quickly. This need may put excessive pressure on national and regional patent and trademark offices as well, that will have, in turn, to find ways to keep pace with this increasing need.
Is there anything you would like to add?
It is very important for businesses to consult a specialised IP and internet attorney, before going online or launching a new product or service either online or offline. As with any undertaking, prevention is better than cure. This applies to an even more significant extent to intellectual property rights, where the time factor is very important. Furthermore, clients should always keep in mind that doing business in an increasingly global economy may be challenging due to language barriers and different legal systems. Nevertheless, seeking expert advice and working closely with reliable legal partners is a key element to success.
Eleni Kokkini, LLM (Heidelberg)
Senior Associate
Eleni Kokkini joined the law firm PPT Legal in October 2017, after a period of nine years working for a specialised IP boutique law firm in Athens. In her new position as Head of the IP law department of the firm, she brought her long experience acquired in this field.
The advantage of working with PPT Legal is the ability to take a multidisciplinary approach to today’s emerging issues in intellectual property and commercial law, as it is a full service commercial and civil law practice.
Road Traffic Collisions (accidents) are common; in 2016 alone, there were a total of 181,384 casualties of all severities of which 1792 were reported road deaths. Making the roads safer is a never-ending concern and obtaining justice for the victims of these accidents (collision) can be difficult. Michael Corrigan is a Collision Investigator and he speaks on how tech developments have impacted his role as an expert instructed on such collision disputes.
How has the role of a Collision Investigator changed?
The role of a Collision Investigator has changed, I used gather the evidence at the collision scene in the form of skid marks, ephemeral data and the position of debris to work out the movements of the vehicles up to the point of impact. This would assist me in explaining what happened at impact to a Criminal or Corners Court.
The design of modern vehicles (e.g. ABS braking and stability controls) makes it unusual to find classic braking skid marks and/or striation marks on the tarmac road surface.
The development of evidential data recorders (EDR and EDU) and the fitting of insurance companies' black boxes now assist in locating vehicle movements, and assessing braking/impact forces, at the point of impact. This information can be used with 3D computer modelling to prepare the evidence to use the full collision circumstances.
Can you give an example to how accident reconstruction has enabled the Court to come to a conclusion?
There are cases where there are no independent witnesses and/or recorded evidence which could have been used to form an opinion as to the movements of the vehicles.
For example, in a Car -v- Pedestrian road traffic collision. The only person able to give any explanation is the driver. For a number of reasons, he or she may not be able to give an exact account of the events how they occurred.
The damage profile of an impact with a pedestrian to the front, bonnet and front screen of a vehicle can be used with some accuracy to explain the direction of travel of the pedestrian immediately prior and during the impact.
When a person who is walking/ running is struck by the front of a vehicle, they maintain some of their momentum and therefore continue in their original direction of travel. Normally, this results in diagonal impact points on the front bumper, the leading edge of the bonnet, within the centre of the bonnet, and on the front screen. Markings often start above the front nearside headlight and then move diagonally with the impact point on the front screen on the centre line towards the driver's side. These would indicate the pedestrian was walking/running from left to right at the point of impact.
In addition, if a pedestrian is struck by the front of the vehicle and lands on the road surface (commonly referred to as the ‘Pedestrian Throw’), the distance they move can be used to calculate the speed of the vehicle at the point of impact.
In most cases the pedestrian is not actually thrown forward but rather picked up onto the front of the vehicle, striking the leading edge of the bonnet, then onto bonnet and impacting against the front screen. As the vehicle brakes the pedestrian maintains the majority of the speed for the vehicle and therefore if not trapped/held continues in that direction before landing on the road and sliding to their post-impact stationary position.
In most cases, at the point where the pedestrian was crossing i.e., the zebra or pedestrian crossing, and their post-impact position on the road which is indicated by the area where they lay, can be measured and this is used within the mathematical calculations of Pedestrian Throw.
I have used this doctrine in the explanation of pedestrian movement to explain to a Court the direction of travel for the pedestrian immediately prior and during the impact phase which may have been at odds compared to to the recollection of the driver.
Great care has to be taken explaining this to a Court, as it is normally in the presence of the relatives of the deceased and this does give a harrowing explanation to the last moments of a person who is involved in a Car -v- Pedestrian road traffic collision.
How has 3D computer animation affected your work as an expert witness and how has this thus impacted the Courts? Is it now a commonly used process?
There have been major developments in the use of 3D computer animation in the investigation and reporting of road traffic collisions. I have prepared a number of 3D computer animations which have been used to illustrate the movement of the vehicles at the time of a collision, testing the available evidence and a visual display presentation to barristers/ solicitors. I am not personally aware that this type 3D computer animation has been used in a Criminal court cases.
A computer animation will not replace the expert witness collision investigator. There will still be a requirement to evaluate the witness statements and the physical evidence from the collision scene to understand the movement of objects and the physics involved in a road traffic collision.
One of the dangers of a 3D computer animation of a road traffic collision is that it may have been prepared incorrectly. As it is a visual representation of the events, this may have a greater effect on a Court. A Collision Investigator may then give oral evidence explaining how it occurred that is correct in all of the detail and it is therefore important that an animation is based on the correct facts and is presented to the Court in an appropriate way. I can combine both skills.
From this, are there any technological advancements you are hoping will be better embraced by the Courts?
One of the major areas of advancement would be the better use of evidential data recorders (EDR and EDU) which would record a number of parameters for example time, date, location, speed, acceleration and deceleration forces which are useful tools for the collision investigator. This information, in conjunction with the evidence from the collision scene, assists in forming an opinion regarding the driver’s behaviour and movements up to the point of impact.
What is the most challenging aspect of analysing CCTV and how did the CCTV analysis course help enhance your work as an expert witness?
CCTV camera systems are becoming commonplace within all major urban areas, these are not restricted to local authority monitoring systems for disorders in the street. They include, for example, individual units set on buildings for security reasons. The static CCTV unit which is positioned to view the front of dwelling houses or shop premises can give a view of parked cars within a driveway, pavement, kerb edge and the road itself showing passing vehicles.
I have used views from a dwelling house CCTV of the road immediately outside to assess the speed of a passing vehicle over a time of as little two to five seconds. This short length of time is such that it would not be possible to measure a distance on a road to obtain a speed from the displayed time only as this would be inaccurate. It is possible, knowing the frame rate per second, for the CCTV images to be used in a number of different procedures to calculate the speed of the vehicle
The development of CCTV units within vehicles (commonly referred to as DashCams) also give a good view of the road ahead, depending upon the system fitted to the vehicle. However, there are limitations, for example, a fixed camera pointing ahead does not show the view available to the driver as they can move their head round to obtain a better view out of the vehicle.
What is the most challenging aspect of undergoing an investigation and how do you overcome such challenge?
When carrying out an investigation requiring a reconstruction within the collision location as a collision investigator, it is sometimes not possible to obtain the assistance of the Police and/or local authority to close roads.
All collision location inspections should be carried out at a time to give a similar light level and traffic flow as those that would have been prevailing at the time of the material road traffic collision. I am somewhat critical of some collision investigators who carry out location inspections during daylight hours when the collision clearly occurred in the dark. This may be because it is safer to do so. Some investigators then attempt to imagine how the darkness and reduced visibility would have affected the parties involved. I think it is essential to start the investigation firstly in daylight hours to obtain measurements and then to return later when dark to carry out the necessary appraisal of the available views.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
The role of a collision investigator is an ongoing development in the use of new procedures and systems and as such there is a need for a continued professional development.
The new systems and procedures greatly assist the collision investigator, but it is only with experience gained fromattending a large number of collisions and from using the available evidence that I am then able to explain to a Court precisely what happened, and the physics involved, in a road traffic collision.
Michael Corrigan LCGI MITAI
Fairgate House
205 Kings Road
Tyseley
Birmingham
B11 2AA
Tel: 0121 708 0064
Fax: 0121 708 0065
e-mail: enquiries@ssandg.co.uk
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