卓越的法律
As the summer Olympic games in Tokyo are approaching, we would like to dedicate this month’s post to Lausanne, the International Olympic Capital.
Lausanne is known for being home to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for a century now. Furthermore, the city hosts over 50 international sports federations.
For example the association of IOC recognised international sports federations (Sport Accord) and the International Swimming Federation (FINA) are located in Lausanne.
The third youth Olympic games where held in Lausanne in 2020 making the Olympic Capital an Olympic City.
Finally, the headquarters of the Court of Arbitration for Sports, which rules on most sport related disputes, are also based in Lausanne.
Expected for January 2022, the entry into force of the company law revision will allow companies to proceed to digital general assemblies without physical presence.
The option of a digital general assembly must be specified in the statutes of the company and if the company is listed, the board of directors must appoint an independent representative.
Furthermore, the board of directors has the responsibility to ensure the following:
The participants are identified;
interventions at the assembly are broadcasted live;
all participants have the possibility to issue propositions and participate to the debates;
the result of the votes cannot be falsified.
Companies willing to use this opportunity from the start are recommended to include a provision in their statutes at the next opportunity. According to the commercial register of the canton of Vaud, an early adoption of this right in the statutes should not be verified by the register or be ground for refusal of update. It is already possible to include the option of a digital assembly in the articles of incorporation before the legislative change and will therefore not be rejected by the register.
Unfortunately, the Federal Council did not wish to extend the extraordinary measures against bankruptcy. Nevertheless, there are solutions in the Swiss legal arsenal that can help save a company in the event of temporary financial difficulties.
Thus, the moratorium on debt restructuring aims to gain time for a sustainable reorganisation while guaranteeing the company's continuation. The debt-restructuring moratorium or the creation of a successor company are also interesting tools in certain cases.
If bankruptcy is unavoidable, it is important to prepare for it in advance in order to avoid liability claims and even criminal sanctions. H&B Law will assist and advise you in this process.
H&BLaw is pleased to announce that its partner Marc Häsler has been recognized as a leading lawyer in franchise matters in the Who’s Who Legal 2021 edition.
On March 7, 2021 the Swiss population is called to vote on the economic partnership agreement between the EFTA-States and Indonesia.
Indonesia is, according to the department of foreign affairs, the third economic partner of Switzerland in South East Asia with more than 150 Swiss companies operating in this market and a strong potential for growth.
Among other objectives, the agreement strives to liberalize the trade of goods and services in a way to contribute to the objectives of sustainable development.
In the context of palm oil, the parties integrated a sustainable management of the vegetable oils sector and associated trade clause to the agreement. The parties commit to «effectively apply laws, policies and practices aiming at protecting primary forests (...), halting deforestation, peat drainage and fire clearing in land preparation (...).». Furthermore, a unilateral ordinance by the Swiss government is in preparation and will require sustainability certificates in order for palm oil to benefit from the agreement.
An interesting fact about palm oil and why it is widely used is its efficiency. According to the WWF's website, to produce the same amount of alternative oils a surface of land 4 to 10 times greater would be needed.
According to Mrs. Shumei Wang, Chief Judge of the Supreme People’s Courts No 4 Civil Division, courts nationwide have seen the number of foreign-related cases grow rapidly. Chinese courts heard 22,330 of such disputes last year, up 3 percent year-on-year. In such context, Beijing courts need to strengthen their capacity to deal with foreign-related affairs as the city is the country’s international exchange center and the establishment of the two zones brings about new and higher requirements for the judiciary in this area.
Foreign mediators are expected to participate in dispute resolution in Beijing courts to improve the judiciary’s capacity to handle foreign-related affairs. This move was highlighted in a guideline issued by the top court to facilitate the construction of Beijing’s pilot free trade zone and demonstration zone for further opening up the services sector. A focus on building a foreign-related legal system was also written into the recently adopted Outline of the 14th Five Year Plan.
Finally, Beijing will also increase protection of data property and personal information, with more research on new issues regarding big data transactions.
These expected steps undeniably improve trade relation with China through an overall strengthening of the legal system for foreign companies.
The 14th Five-Year Plan period is the first five-year period after China achieved its centennial objective of establishing a well-off society in an all-round way. Proposal for this Plan supports Hong Kong to be an international legal and dispute resolution center in the Asia Pacific region.
According to Mrs Teresa Cheng, Hong Kong's Secretary for Justice, the Department of Justice (DoJ) has been liaising with the relevant Chinese mainland authorities, striving to implement more liberalization measures and new initiatives in the Greater Bay Area (GBA).
This will enhance cooperation on issues relating to legal and dispute resolution services in civil and commercial matters, as well as to promote collaboration with international and regional bodies.
Two recent major breakthroughs which would facilitate the promotion of the services in the GBA include the "GBA Legal Professional Examination" and "Supplemental Arrangement Concerning Mutual Enforcement of Arbitral Awards between the Mainland and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region".
Hong Kong has the opportunity to consolidate and enhance its role and positioning in the 14th Five-Year Plan, for the benefits of the GBA, as well as the whole country.
In 2009, China and Switzerland signed a comprehensive agreement on investment followed by a free trade agreement in 2013.
This enabled growth in both imports and exports of goods as well as an increase in company shareholdings.
On December 30th, 2020 China and the European Union signed a comprehensive agreement on investment going further than the Swiss agreement by including the market for cloud-services.
A further sign from China for market opening.