Understand Your Rights. Solve Your Legal Problems
Aldi’s “Cuthbert the Caterpillar” cake, the focus of legal action by fellow UK supermarket Marks & Spencer, is returning to shelves in a charity drive.
M&S sued Aldi last week, alleging that the cake infringed on its well-known “Colin the Caterpillar” trademark. The two cakes are visually similar, though M&S’s Colin costs £7 while Aldi’s Cuthbert costs only £7, prompting accusations from M&S that Aldi was attempting to “ride on the cot-tails” of its reputation for quality food.
The litigation caused a stir on social media, with the Aldi-backed “FreeCuthbert” hashtag trending on Twitter. Aldi had stopped selling the cake in February, two months prior to the legal action from M&S.
Now, however, it is introducing a limited-edition version of the cake with profits to go towards Macmillan Cancer Support and Teenage Cancer Trust, partner organisations of M&S and Aldi respectively.
“Let’s raise money for charity, not lawyers,” the company said in a tweet.
M&S’s Colin the Caterpillar product is central to its partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support, and the supermarket has three trademarks relating to it. The product’s design has remained largely unchanged since its launch 30 years ago, which the company believes lends it a distinctive character and reputation.
[ymal]
In its intellectual property claim filed with the High Court last week, M&S stated that it wants Aldi to remove the Cuthbert the Caterpillar product from sale and agree not to sell any similar products in the future.
The UK government will intervene in Nvidia Corporation’s $40 billion acquisition of British chip designer Arm Holdings, raising questions about the deal’s future.
Digital secretary Oliver Dowden has issued a public interest intervention notice (PIIN) confirming his intervention in the proposed sale of Arm to Nvidia by Japanese investment fund SoftBank, which bought it in 2016 for $31.4 billion. He has also written to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), instructing them to begin a “phase one” investigation into the transaction.
“Following careful consideration of the proposed takeover of Arm, I have today issued an intervention notice on national security grounds,” Dowden said. “We want to support our thriving UK tech industry and welcome foreign investment but it is appropriate that we properly consider the national security implications of a transaction like this.”
"As a next step and to help me gather the relevant information, the UK's independent competition authority will now prepare a report on the implications of the transaction, which will help inform any further decisions.”
Under the Enterprise Act 2002, Dowden has quasi-judicial powers to intervene in certain mergers on public interest grounds. He has the power to approve the deal, attach conditions to it or ask the CMA to begin a more detailed “phase two” investigation.
Nvidia, the biggest US chip company by market cap, said it does not believe the deal poses any national security issues.
[ymal]
"We will continue to work closely with the British authorities, as we have done since the announcement of this deal," said an Nvidia spokesperson.
Arm is a major player in global semiconductors, employing 6,500 staff worldwide and 3,000 in the UK. It is a leader in designing chips for computers, tablets and smartphones.
Following these steps after an accident is going to help prevent the situation from getting worse. It is also going to help with the car insurance claim process.
You need to stop the moment you are involved in an accident, no matter how minor you think the accident is. You are breaking the Road Traffic Act laws by not stopping. You should turn off your car engine and turn on your hazard lights so that other road users can easily know you have stopped. Take a look around the scene of the accident and see whether there are any injuries. Call the police so they can get to the scene as soon as possible (if anyone is injured, call an ambulance).
It is important to call the police if the accident has blocked the road, or you suspect foul play - like a crash for cash scam. You should consider getting a dashcam because it will help you avoid such scams. Make sure you choose a quality dash cam because it can be hard to prove what happened with low-quality footage.
You need to stop the moment you are involved in an accident, no matter how minor you think the accident is.
Exchange details with other drivers involved in the accident. Give them your name and address, and they will do the same. It is important to leave your details if you crash into something near the road even if there are no other people involved. If you hit a parked car, make sure you leave your details on the windscreen.
Never accept blame or say sorry until you fully know what happened. When you accept the blame for the accident, it is going to be used against you later on even if you were not the one at fault. You have to report a car accident within 24 hours. This is a must or else you risk penalty points, a fine, or disqualification. For advice on injury claims contact specialist auto accident lawyers.
Collect details after the car accident. Make sure you get the details of the other parties involved in the accident. Get the names, contact details, and addresses of drivers, passengers, and witnesses. Get the car insurance details of the other drivers. It is also good to establish whether they are the registered keeper of the car involved. If they aren’t, try to find out who is the get their name and address.
It is very important to call 911 if someone leaves the scene of the accident without giving you their details. Other important information to get includes:
It is very important to call 911 if someone leaves the scene of the accident without giving you their details.
Take photos of the scene because they can be used as evidence. Some people carry around disposable cameras to use in such situations. But most smartphones today have good cameras. This is going to help in remembering important details that you would have otherwise forgotten.
It is never fun to be left at the side of the road, even if you haven’t had a crash. You can minimise the time you spend being stranded by looking for the best breakdown cover provider.
You have to let your insurer know about the accident because it is going to help you start the process of making a claim and financing a replacement car. Contact your insurer so they can direct you on what to do. Make sure you let them know the damage to your car. It is important to let your insurer know about the accident as soon as possible. The time you do this is going to have a big impact on your claim process. If you fail to let the insurer know about the accident within the required time frame as per your policy, your cover is going to be invalidated. This means you will be forced to settle the bill by yourself.
The time you have to file a claim varies. Your insurance policy contains all these details; make sure you confirm because the time can be two days to two weeks after the accident. Always make sure the insurance company knows that you have been involved with the accident, even if you don’t plan on making a claim. Different car insurance companies have different terms. Take your time and look at the different options, then choose one that meets your needs. There is no need to regret it when it is too late.
The insurance company is going to need information on other drivers involved in the accident. This is why it is important to collect the details of the car and the driver before leaving the scene of the accident. They are going to ask for details like the registration number of the other cars involved and their insurance company details.
[ymal]
The insurance company is also going to need the details of the accident. Make sure you get a lot of information before you leave the scene. Sketches can be great when it comes to explaining what happened. The best is to take photos and videos of the scene because they can be used as evidence. If there are any witnesses, take their details and give them to your insurance company. Witnesses are going to help with your claims process because they support it. Your insurance company is going to let you know what is next. If you are going to make a claim, the insurer will help you get started with the process. If the accident involved more than one car, the insurance company is going to contact the other party’s insurance company.
The above steps will help you if you ever find yourself in an accident.
Like virtually all countries in the world, New Zealand has its own visa system in place to screen incoming travellers and prevent undesirable individuals from entering the country. Yet the rules and regulations surrounding the New Zealand visa can sometimes appear confusing, especially to inexperienced travellers. In this article, we’ll go over them in detail.
In the past, New Zealand had visa waivers in place for a wide variety of travellers that wanted to visit the country on a Visitor Visa. These included, for example, citizens from 60 countries and cruise ship passengers and crew. All of those individuals were allowed to enter New Zealand without a visa. However, this no longer applies since 1 October 2019. If you are visa waiver, you now need to apply for the New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority, or NZeTA.
The NZeTA is, by all accounts, a visa, since it functions in exactly the same way. It allows you to enter New Zealand for a limited amount of time and must be applied for before departure. The NZeTA has to be acquired for all trips to New Zealand, including brief transits. The only people that are exempt from it are Australian nationals.
The visa is fit for a variety of activities in New Zealand, from tourism to business trips and even job applications. The visa is valid for two years, and you are allowed to stay in the country for up to 3 consecutive months.
However, unlike most regular visas that require a visit to the embassy, the NZeTA is instead applied for online. The application starts by filling out the online application form. This form asks all the standard personal questions such as date of birth and expected date of arrival. You must also state the purpose of your trip, tourism, business, medical or a transit. Extra care should be taken when filling out the passport details. The NZeTA visa is electronically linked to your passport number. If the number filled in on the application form is not correct, airlines and customs will not be able to tell whether you were granted a visa. You will not be allowed to board the plane to New Zealand. After everything has been filled in, the visa cost has to be paid. The visa is then granted on average within 5 working days.
[ymal]
To apply for an NZeTA, a number of requirements have to be met. The passport used to apply for it needs to be valid for at least 3 more months after the planned date of departure from New Zealand. A return or onward ticket must already have been booked before departure. You must also be able to prove that you have sufficient financial means to pay for your entire stay. Working in New Zealand is not allowed under any circumstances, even if it concerns unpaid volunteer work. While you are allowed to go on a business trip with the NZeTA, this does not include actual labour. Finally, you cannot have received a prison sentence of 5 or more years. Additionally, if in the past 10 years you received a prison sentence of 12 months or longer, you also do not qualify for the NZeTA.
Failure to observe New Zealand’s visa laws can lead to immediate deportation and even a total ban on submitting any future applications.
Lawyer Monthly hears from Phoebe Waters, Associate at Schillings, on the techniques involved in professional asset-tracing and the role it plays in cracking down on white-collar crime.
“Things gained through unjust fraud are never secure” - Sophocles
Okay, this is from a Tragedian who espoused academia like I do Ibizan house music, but it resonates absolutely with my role as an investigator – and specifically, an asset tracing specialist.
Why do I agree with an ancient Greek playwright, famed for fatalism? Because in my experience, assets gained as a result of fraud are insecure - particularly when you’ve got an investigative team on speed dial (think Ghostbusters, but better dressed).
In January 2020, former Deputy Scotland Yard Commissioner Sir Craig Mackey stated that fraud accounts for one in three of all crimes committed in Britain. And the Association of Certified Fraud Examiner’s (‘CFE’) 2020 Report to the Nations survey claims that from the 2,504 fraud cases studied, there was a resulting loss of above $3.6 billion.
Where fraud is committed, pre-litigation strategy should be informed by a professional investigative asset trace. This will save the client their most precious asset – time.
An asset trace is the process by which investigators ‘follow the money’; locating items of value owned by an individual or company, commonly real estate, cash, and shareholdings. Assets are everything owned by a business or an individual, the value of which can be defined by their financial worth, value to the client, and/or the value of the disruption they can cause.
The Persian poet Rumi claimed: “Where there is ruin, there is hope for treasure”. An asset trace is like a treasure hunt.
But if X marks the spot, then we need to figure out A - W first, right? Let’s use the example of a high-net worth British businessman (‘the subject’). Instructed on an asset trace, we are asked to hunt down a) the subject, b) the stolen company money, and c) the subject’s assets.
Where fraud is committed, pre-litigation strategy should be informed by a professional investigative asset trace.
Starting an asset trace, it is helpful to set a wide aperture before narrowing to the detail. We want to understand the subject’s asset profile, the ownership structures, and the jurisdictions in which they sit. We also want to establish the fraudster’s lifestyle: statues of business interests, propensity to sip coconut cocktails during island retreats etc.
In order to do this, we hoover all details of the subject (with the “exam question” in mind) including career history, company ownership, family members, contact details and aliases. Our open-source-intelligence research covers corporate and property searches; media/social media; trading/financial/government disclosure sites, litigation trackers and more. Asset tracers (the good ones) have a particular set of skills, but access to specialist international databases enables us to dig even deeper.
Why the phrase: ‘follow the money’? Because when the subject has committed a fraud, we need to visualise a trajectory in two directions: fraud towards an asset, and backwards from an asset to the fraud. If we suspect an apartment is subject-owned, we need to work back from this property; establishing when it was purchased, where it fits in a timeline of events, and how the subject financed it. Breadcrumbs are there to follow.
Asset structures abroad can be more challenging to unravel. Countries differ in what their official registries provide and the legal and procedural requirements of forming a company or purchasing property.
Nevertheless, investigators are adept at hunting in ‘unfamiliar’ lands. We know the difference between land records in France - Spain - Russia and are abundantly aware of the corporate transparency disparity between US States. But even we cannot provide optimal intelligence alone - we obtain on-the-ground, discreet and valuable insight from experts who are well-placed in jurisdiction and sector.
Countries differ in what their official registries provide and the legal and procedural requirements of forming a company or purchasing property.
The treasure hunt can become complex if, in a more dramatic attempt to conceal the stolen money and assets funded by the fraud, the subject 1) leads us ‘offshore’ and 2) uses obscure ownership vehicles.
It is a truth universally acknowledged that business owners and high-net worth individuals utilise ‘tax havens’ to save cash. But just as important to them is the low threshold of detail that controllers of a company have to provide to the registries and that the registries legally have to provide to the public.
It is crucial though that we keep up to speed with the constantly evolving offshore world. For example, the British Virgin Islands, Curacao, Cyprus are all jurisdictions for which shareholder information is shrouded in mystery but the BVI government has recently resolved to make beneficial ownership publicly accessible. This is huge news.
There are other tricks a subject may employ. The use of nominee directors and shareholders. Provision of names of close associates or family members to register ownership of the assets because he thinks they are less easy to track (hence why the initial broad scope on the subject is paramount). The use of unnecessary intermediary companies to throw pursuers off the scent. Over innumerable investigations, we have picked up on a range of patterns that fraudsters follow; making us pretty good at ‘piercing the corporate veil’ to catch the bad guys.
Fraud is clever, but it’s seldom flawless. Louis J Freeh stated that “the fraudster’s greatest liability is the certainty that the fraud is too clever to be detected”. We specialise in assessing how the subject is attempting to shield assets to resist enforcement; fraudsters ‘secret squirrel’ fantasies are often short lived.
[ymal]
It is essential for lawyers to understand our capabilities because we can help assess, pre-litigation, the cost/benefit of proceeding against this character. If litigation is already underway, investigators can still provide priceless intelligence to ensure the client achieves a commercially favourable outcome. Investigation results, comprising proof of assets and valuations, plus information that could pressurise the subject, may be enough to force settlement.
To conclude then, an asset trace is simply a treasure hunt, a game in which players search for hidden items of value by following a trail of sequential clues.
Investigators, as acutely curious creatures, always remain ready to hunt.
The announcement of the breakaway European Super League, involving six of the biggest Premier League football clubs and six Italian and Spanish clubs, has drawn threats of legal retaliation.
The deal, backed financially by JPMorgan, was made public on Sunday and pre-empted the planned Monday announcement of reforms to the structure of the Champions League. It prompted swift backlash from the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the Premier League and several prominent politicians.
Quoted in iNews, sports lawyer Richard Cramer of Leeds-based Front Row Legal suggested that plans for the nascent league may yet be derailed by litigation from UEFA and the Premier League against the clubs attempting to break away.
“It’s such a momentous act for these clubs to break away from UEFA and to do their own thing, you can’t think they will just do it on a wing and a prayer,” Cramer said, adding: “Certainly you’ve got to think that litigation is definitely inevitable. I think you can say the lawyers will be sharpening their pencils tonight.”
It is also speculated that UEFA or the Premier League could pursue injunction proceedings to block the clubs from participating in the European Super League.
[ymal]
Reactions towards the formation of the league have been largely negative, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson stating that he will ensure that the new organisation “doesn’t go ahead in the way that it’s currently being proposed.”
In a separate statement, French President Emmanuel Macron said that the French government would “support football authorities in taking action” against the European Super League’s formation.
Richard Rosenbaum and Brian Duffy, respective executive chairman and CEO of Greenberg Traurig, have embarked on a road trip to visit each of the firm’s 30 US offices.
Rosenbaum and Duffy are sleeping in a 2020 Winnebago View 24V as they tour the country, hosting events for colleagues in each Greenberg Traurig office they come to.
In an interview with Law.com, the pair explained that the objective of the road trip is to reconnect with the firm’s staff after a year of remote working – and to thank them for their record-setting work during that time.
“We truly are a family and the past year has been difficult with regard to not being able to collaborate in person,” Rosenbaum said. He noted that conversation among staff had turned to “the need to get back together” as soon as safety permitted.
The executives have already completed the first leg of their journey, touring offices across Florida, Georgia and Texas. They expect to be on tour until “sometime during the fall” or until one of them abandons the other on the side of the road.
A spokesperson for Greenberg Traurig downplayed the likelihood of this occurring. "Brian and Richard truly enjoy each other’s company," she said, adding that the two would spend the long hours on the road taking time to “reflect on the firm, the culture, and the GT family, while keeping abreast of firm business as they normally do".
[ymal]
Greenberg Traurig ranks among America’s biggest law firms, accruing more than $1.7 billion in revenue last year. The firm is based in Florida and has 40 offices, of which 10 are located overseas.
The White House issued an executive order on Thursday morning imposing a range of new sanctions against Russian individuals and companies in response to the SolarWinds hack.
Penalties were levied against six Russian tech companies under contract with government intelligence or assisting Moscow’s cyber warfare programme.
The order also placed significant new restrictions on Russia’s sovereign debt, limiting its ability to raise money and support its currency. From 14 June, US financial services will be prohibited from taking part in the primary market for rouble-denominated Russian sovereign bonds.
“The President signed this sweeping new authority to confront Russia’s continued and growing malign behaviour,” said Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. “Treasury is leveraging this new authority to impose costs on the Russian government for its unacceptable conduct, including by limiting Russia’s ability to finance its activities and by targeting Russia’s malicious and disruptive cyber capabilities.”
Last December, a successful hacking operation against US network security company SolarWinds was uncovered. The hack, which compromised more than 250 federal agencies and businesses in addition to 18,000 unrelated organisations, was stated by the US intelligence community to have been carried out by Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service.
[ymal]
The new US sanctions also targeted 32 individuals believed to have participated in state-backed efforts to influence the 2020 US presidential election. One individual named by the Treasury Department was Alexei Gromov, a deputy chief of staff in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s office, who allegedly led a government effort “to exacerbate tensions in the United States by discrediting the 2020 US election process”.
As the sanctions dealt with a broad range of activities, O’Melveny & Myers LLP data security and privacy counsel John Dermody commented that the order appeared to be "less about deterring a specific behavior and more about resetting and redefining the Biden administration's relationship with Russia”.
People say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. This might ring true in some aspects of your life, but not when it comes to any original works you’ve poured time and money into. The last thing you want is for someone else to claim ownership of a book or document that belongs to you. As daunting as the prospect might be for having to fight plagiarism and claim the rights to your book, it’s a battle worth fighting. Keep reading to find out what’s involved.
Even if you never dreamed that anyone could try and steal the ownership rights to your book, it can happen. That’s why it can be so crucial to include a copyright page in anything you write. Start by registering your work with the US Copyright Office, then include your copyright information on a page in the book you will be publishing.
Start by registering your work with the US Copyright Office.
Amazon is considered the world’s largest book store, and is now the largest online retailer of consumer goods. If you’re going to fight plagiarism and claim back your book, start by approaching them. Several authors who have had their work stolen before have contacted Amazon to claim ownership. By having the plagiarised book removed from Amazon, they were able to see it disappear from the catalogues of many smaller booksellers as well.
You may never be able to stop every case of plagiarism from occurring, since it happens across many industries. However, there are small actions you can take to reduce the likelihood. For example, if you sell your book online as an eBook, don’t offer a download option. If someone purchases your book, email the book through a secure provider to the customer. This adds an extra layer of security against someone trying to download eBooks from the internet to copy and profit from.
If you prefer to include a download link for your book, change it often. It doesn’t stop plagiarism from being a problem, but it can certainly decrease the number of would-be plagiarists thinking you are an easy victim. Most plagiarists are after quick, easy money-making methods. Small measures like an ever-changing download link can put your book into the too-hard basket.
[ymal]
If you’re struggling to claim ownership of a book that’s rightfully and legally yours, consider making contact with an intellectual property lawyer. Sometimes, all it takes to make someone stop stealing your work is a strongly-worded letter on legal letterhead. However, a lawyer may also have ideas about how to protect your work in the future, and they may even be able to help you strengthen the copyright protection you currently have in place.
Plagiarism has been occurring for a long time, and there’s no way to prevent every case of it from happening. However, there are plenty of ways you can reduce the risk and fight to claim full ownership of your book once more.
However, something of near-equal importance that can also be worth exploring is punitive damages. While not every personal injury case will be eligible for them, several can be. Read on to begin understanding punitive damages and how they could relate to your lawsuit.
When you visit a law firm, you can gain significant insight into the intricacies on how to settle a personal injury case. Your chosen personal injury attorney might talk about compensation, but they also might discuss your eligibility for punitive damages. There are two reasons why these damages can be integral in a personal injury case. Firstly, they can punish someone for particularly bad behaviour. A jury may also impose these damages to dissuade the defendant and others from behaving in the same way in the future.
The law restricts punitive damages to certain types of cases. If your lawyer can prove that the defendant acted intentionally, fraudulently, wantonly, or willfully, you may have a case for damages. However, there can also be other requirements. You must be able to prove direct harm and malicious intent. The punitive damages also have to be awarded in conjunction with other damages, and those other damages must be awarded first. When you are learning how to settle a personal injury case, you’ll gain insight into what other compensation types can be.
Punitive damages are often carefully calculated by a judge or jury. Typically, juries determine how much to award a plaintiff based on information from the Book of Approved Jury Instructions (BAJI). They look at the severity of the behaviour, the level of harm, and even the defendant’s wealth level. The amount awarded is often proportionate to their wealth level. For example, a wealthy defendant usually has to pay more than a less wealthy defendant.
[ymal]
Also taken into account are the plaintiff’s vulnerability, the type of harm they conducted, how long for, and how often it happened. However, a jury doesn’t have complete control over how much a defendant has to pay. A judge can also impose limits on the damages awarded.
Given the broad range of requirements that make a plaintiff eligible for punitive damages, there is an equally wide range of personal injury case types. As long as the case meets the criteria, it may be one that sees punitive damages awarded. Once negligence has been proven, medical malpractice claims can be one such case type. A disregard for the law, such as speeding and dangerous conduct with the potential to cause harm, may also prove eligibility.
Even if you had every intention of representing yourself in court, the potential for punitive damages might be enough to make you change your mind. If you believe your case could be eligible, it may be worth consulting a personal injury attorney to find out more.
