http://www.bellgully.com Welcome to Bell Gully's regular round-up of issues relevant to in-house counsel. ../gfx/bell_gully_logo.gif http://www.bellgully.com Copyright 2006 Bell Gully. All Rights Reserved. webmaster@bellgully.com?subject=RSS_Query 60 en-us An updated double tax agreement between New Zealand and the United Kingdom has come into force. The update means the two tax authorities can share tax information and assist each other in recovering debt. http://www.taxpolicy.ird.govt.nz/index.php?view=622 NElite General Counsel in the US are collecting lucrative cash bonuses and stock awards that seem to swell year after year. The average bonus/nonequity incentive compensation for the top legal officers at Fortune 500 companies has soared to US$1.1m - double their average salary. Can this kind of compensation survive the credit crunch? And will in house counsel elsewhere in the world ever reap similar awards? http://www.legalweek.com/Navigation/34/Articles/1150854/Compensation+for+America's+top+GCs+world-leading+and+still+defying.html Negotiating tricky contracts and dealing with disciplinary matters make in-house lawyers natural candidates to play a leading role in the management of sporting bodies. In this article Eugenie Buckley, once general counsel for the International Cricket Counsel (ICC) and now tournament director for the ICC Women's World Cup 2009 talks about the area of sports law and opportunities that exist to work in-house for sporting bodies. http://www.lawyersweekly.com.au/articles/How-law-makes-you-a-key-player_z202049.htm The massive Siemens bribery scandal brought US-style internal investigations to Europe. Many expect to see more international investigations of multinational companies driven by US prosecution. While there remains significant resistance to this type of internal investigation throughout Europe, that may not matter as long as US regulators continue to set the agenda in multinational boardrooms. http://www.legalweek.com/Navigation/34/Articles/1150402/Germany+Internal+affairs.html The public war of words that has broken out between Minister of Commerce Lianne Dalziel and media commentator Brian Gaynor about the Capital Market Development Taskforce is a useful reminder of pending developments arising from the Review of Financial Products and Providers (RFPP). http://www.bellgully.com/resources/resource.01848.asp Lawyers and their in-house counterparts can often have different views on what constitutes a conflict of interest. Despite much debate, there appears to be little consensus on the issue and recently many UK legal providers have fallen foul of major clients due to litigation-related conflicts. Up-front communication can go a long way to resolving these conflicts, argues Leigh Jackson. http://www.legalweek.com/Navigation/34/Articles/1146175/In-house+Lawyer+Conflicting+views.html The public sector competes fiercely against private practice law firms for top legal talent. This article looks at the competitive career alternatives the Australian public service can provide and talks to three lawyers who traded in top jobs in private practice to take up government legal roles. http://www.lawyersweekly.com.au/articles/The-pull-of-the-public-sector_z175426.htm The Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006 (Act) is set to come into force on 1 August. The "client care" elements in the Act and associated rules require lawyers to inform clients of the basis on which fees will be charged and about professional indemnity insurance arrangements and complaint mechanisms. In this article, Ron Pol looks at some of the drawbacks of the new legislation and suggests that, in some cases, client relationships will be strained, not strengthened, by some of the suggested "client care" letters. http://www.nzlawyermagazine.co.nz/CurrentIssue/Issue92/F8/tabid/1148/Default.aspx Legislation came into force this week which gives many employees the right to request flexible working arrangements - a small step towards achieving what has become the Holy Grail of the modern workplace: work-life balance. http://www.bellgully.com/resources/resource.01800.asp A recent survey in Australia has found that, while resources may be tight, increasingly, more work is being done by in-house counsel. http://www.lawyersweekly.com.au/articles/In-house-finding-the-help-within_z175429.htm Global financial challenges and threatening recessions in many western economies serve to highlight the many opportunities Asian markets can provide. This article takes a look at some of the best opportunities in the region; Japan, Hong Kong, China and new developing markets. http://www.newzealandlawyer.co.nz/SpecialistReports/2008AsiaReport/tabid/1113/Default.aspx Telecommunications Commissioner Dr Ross Patterson is seeking feedback on a number of issues likely to be relevant to the Commerce Commission's study into Next Generation Networks. He has released a questionnaire on the four areas of Services, Architecture, Transition and Environment, and is seeking responses by 29 August. http://www.comcom.govt.nz//MediaCentre/MediaReleases/200708/telecommunicationscommissionercons.aspx The future of the Serious Fraud Office is in question as submissions close on the Serious Fraud Office (Abolition and Transitional Provisions) Bill. The Bill looks to disestablish the Serious Fraud Office, transferring its functions to a taskforce within the New Zealand Police. http://www.newzealandlawyer.co.nz/CurrentIssue/Issue90/F5/tabid/1062/Default.aspx Australia and New Zealand have signed a landmark agreement which will make it simpler for companies in both countries to meet document requirements. Under the Mutual Recognition of Securities Offerings regime issuers of securities can use one prospectus to offer shares, debentures or managed or collective investment schemes to investors in both countries. http://www.bellgully.com/resources/resource.01766.asp The chief legal officer of one of the world's largest brewing companies has published a candid article on how to win and keep her business. The article is the result of a year-and-half -long review of external service providers. She frankly outlines her expectations of legal advisers and presents six important rules to consider when it comes to billing. http://www.law.com/jsp/ihc/PubArticleIHC.jsp?id=1202421748634 In bridging the gap between technology and business, the CIO is often the primary contact with external legal providers - particularly on large outsourcing or procurement deals. Choosing the right lawyer and properly managing that relationship can help a CIO achieve his or her desired business outcomes. http://www.bellgully.com/resources/resource.01748.asp Concerns about certain aspects of the Financial Advisers Bill, introduced into Parliament in December last year, prompted Commerce Minister Lianne Dalziel to take the relatively unusual step of proposing changes to the Bill, in this article, we discuss those changes. http://www.bellgully.com/resources/resource.01762.asp With the Free Trade Agreement now signed by New Zealand and China, the focus has moved to enacting the changes it will bring. http://www.bellgully.com/resources/resource.01693.asp