King & Wood Mallesons
9 Experts
6 Contributions by King & Wood Mallesons
PRACTICE NOTES
A discussion with Intan Eow, Partner, at the Sydney office of international law firm King & Wood Mallesons, on key matters concerning foreign direct investment (FDI) control in Australia.
1. What is the applicable legislation?
The chief statute regulating acquisitions of Australian businesses, entities or land by foreign persons, and other activities by foreign persons, is the Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Act 1975 (Cth) (FATA). The Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Regulations 2015 (Cth) (FATR) complement FATA and provide additional particulars of the framework. Moreover, the Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Fees Imposition Act 2015 (Cth) and its associated regulations further strengthen the Australian FDI regulatory regime.
2. Which government or other body (or bodies) reviews foreign investments?
The Australian Federal Treasurer holds ultimate responsibility for all decisions relating to foreign investment. Australia’s foreign investment regime authorises the Treasurer to make orders on foreign investment proposals that the
Competition
PRACTICE NOTES
Loan market and developments
Please provide a concise overview of the present condition of the loan markets in your jurisdiction together with any material recent developments. Reflecting on the last three to four years, China’s loan market has experienced a succession of notable shifts and reforms. For the purposes of this Practice Note alone, ‘PRC’ or ‘China’ denotes the People’s Republic of China, excluding the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Macau Special Administrative Region and Taiwan. The ongoing structural overhaul of both the financial supply side and the overarching regulatory architecture has been advancing in a measured and steady fashion. On 18 May 2023, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC), the authority supervising the banking and insurance industries, was superseded by the National Financial Regulatory Administration (NFRA). NFRA’s mandate has been broadened beyond that of CBIRC, and it now regulates all
Banking & Finance
PRACTICE NOTES
The Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS)
ESOS is a statutory programme for energy assessments and savings, mandatory for organisations that meet the eligibility criteria. It originates from the EU Energy Efficiency Directive 2012/27/EU, art 8(4)–(6), which requires Member States to ensure that enterprises other than small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) undergo an energy audit at least once every four years. For further information, see Practice Note: Energy Efficiency Directive 2012/27/EU—snapshot [Archived]. The UK implemented art 8(4)–(6) via the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme Regulations 2014 (SI 2014/1643). Post-Brexit, the Energy Act 2023 provided powers to update ESOS, and the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (SI 2023/1182) introduced revisions ahead of the Phase 3 compliance deadline. Qualifying organisations must carry out an assessment and audit of their total energy consumption. In most circumstances the audit must be performed or reviewed by a ‘lead
Environment
PRACTICE NOTES
Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS)—issues in corporate (private M&A) transactions
The Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS)
ESOS is an energy review and savings programme. It is compulsory for organisations that satisfy the qualification thresholds. It stems from the EU Energy Efficiency Directive 2012/27/EU, art 8(4)–(6), which obliges EU Member States to ensure enterprises that are not small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) undergo an energy audit at least once every four years. For further detail, see Practice Note: Energy Efficiency Directive 2012/27/EU—snapshot [Archived].
Articles 8(4)–(6) of the Energy Efficiency Directive have been given effect in the UK through the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme Regulations 2014, SI 2014/1643 (the ESOS Regulations). The Energy Act 2023 provides powers to make the necessary ESOS changes post-Brexit, and the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (Amendment) Regulations 2023, SI 2023/1182 introduced amendments ahead of the Phase 3 compliance
Environment
PRACTICE NOTES
The International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. (ISDA) issues two standard forms of its widely used master agreement, setting out the terms and conditions governing over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives dealings. The versions are:
the ISDA Master Agreement (Multicurrency—Cross Border) (the 1992 Master Agreement); and
the ISDA 2002 Master Agreement (the 2002 Master Agreement).
This Practice Note summarises the principal updates introduced by the 2002 Master Agreement and indicates matters to weigh up when negotiating a 2002 Master Agreement as compared with the 1992 Master Agreement.
Payments on early termination—close-out amount replacing market quotation, loss and first and second methods
The most notable revision to the Master Agreement concerns how sums are determined upon an early termination. By adopting the ‘Close-out Amount’ in the 2002 Master Agreement, two key elections under the 1992 Master Agreement fall away: the choice between ‘Market Quotation’ and ‘Loss’, and the election between the ‘First
Banking & Finance
PRACTICE NOTES
What is the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS)?
ESOS is an energy assessment and efficiency scheme that is compulsory for organisations meeting the qualification thresholds. It stems from the EU Energy Efficiency Directive 2012/27/EU, art 8(4)–(6), which obliges EU Member States to ensure enterprises that are not small-medium enterprises undergo an energy audit at least once every four years. For further details, see Practice Note: Energy Efficiency Directive 2012/27/EU—snapshot [Archived].
The obligations in art 8(4)–(6) have been implemented in the UK via the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme Regulations 2014, SI 2014/1643. The Energy Act 2023 has conferred powers to make necessary ESOS changes post-Brexit, and the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (Amendment) Regulations 2023, SI 2023/1182 introduced updates ahead of the Phase 3 compliance deadline.
Qualifying organisations must carry out an energy assessment and an audit of their total energy consumption. In most instances, a ‘lead
Environment
1 Contributions by King & Wood Mallesons Experts
PRACTICE NOTES
Third-party funding in Singapore arbitration
This Practice Note centres on the statutory scheme governing third-party funding in Singapore arbitration, together with guidance derived from case law and relevant soft law instruments. For an overview of third-party funding in international arbitration generally, see Practice Note: Third-party funding and arbitration.
Since its legalisation in 2017, the use of third-party funding has grown across Singapore litigation and arbitration. Although not novel to international arbitration, leading arbitral hubs—including London, Paris and Geneva—have long allowed such funding.
Singapore’s statutory framework was introduced in 2017 and, under section 5B of the Civil Law Act, applied to specified dispute resolution proceedings. At the outset, this captured international arbitration and court or mediation proceedings associated with that arbitration.
In 2021, the Civil Law (Third-Party Funding) (Amendment) Regulations 2021 broadened the regime to domestic arbitration proceedings, certain proceedings before the Singapore
Arbitration
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