Civil Law

Frozen Funds, Sinking Deals: Navigating bank delays in ship sales – who should pay?

In the fast-paced world of ship sale and purchase (S&P), timing is everything. When millions of dollars are expected to change hands promptly between counterparties, even short delays can derail closing timelines, lead to contractual defaults, and trigger costly disputes.

With the decline of traditional payment letters and conditional SWIFT messages in maritime transactions, escrow arrangements and balance pre-positioning have become the standard mechanism for de-risking payment flows in ship sales. However, this shift has introduced new complexities. Increasingly, … Read the rest

Civil Law

The FDA and CDC should not be stopped from doing their jobs

Since the start of the Trump Administration, the CDC and FDA have withheld from the public details about a Romaine Lettuce E. coli O157:H7 outbreak that sickened 89 in 15 states with 36 hospitalized, 7 with kidney failure – hemolytic uremic syndrome –  and 1 death.

(Bainbridge Island, WA – April 21, 2025)  “It is disappointing, but with 20,000 employees at Health and Human Services (HHS) being fired, investigating, and reporting on outbreaks and alerting the public to the … Read the rest

Civil Law

Publisher’s Platform: House and Senate should act now on Boar’s Head plant

— OPINION —

The years of inspection reports (Here are the Inspection Reports in PDF.) leave little doubt that the Boar’s Head plant’s food safety plan must have been non-existent. It is hard to wrap your head around how food could be produced in these conditions by this company and under the gaze of the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service inspectors.

It is time for the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate committees use their authority … Read the rest

Civil Law

EU BANS PRODUCTS MADE USING FORCED LABOUR – WHAT SHOULD COMPANIES EXPECT?

On March 5, 2024, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union reached a “political agreement” on a Regulation prohibiting products made with forced labour (“the EU Forced Labour Regulation” or “the EUFLR“) on the European Union (“EU“) market (see Insight of 6 March 2024 hhttps://www.mayerbrown.com/en/insights/publications/2024/03/eu-political-agreement-on-forced-labor-product-ban). The EUFLR prohibits companies from “placing and making available” on the EU market, or exporting from the EU, products made with forced labour.

Continue reading at Mayerbrown.com.

LexBlog… Read the rest

Civil Law

Why Small and Mid-Size Law Firms Should Hire a Fractional Marketing Director

Have you considered the power of hiring a fractional marketing director?

Marketing plays a vital role in attracting clients, enhancing brand visibility and driving business growth.

However, many small and mid-size law firms face the challenge of limited resources and time constraints, making it difficult to implement effective marketing strategies. That’s where a fractional marketing director/outsourced CMO like me comes in.

Here are a few compelling reasons why your should consider hiring a fractional marketing director:

  1. Expertise without Breaking the
… Read the rest
Civil Law

The Rise of ESG and What HR Professionals in Germany Should Do to Keep Up

Both the financial sector and the real economy are faced with increased regulatory requirements and expectations of various stakeholders to meet ESG criteria, which are a benchmark for sustainability and sustainable investments. A high ESG rating not only promotes corporate policy, but also serves the profit interest of investors.

Currently, in the EU only capital market-oriented companies with an average of more than 500 employees and financial institutions/insurance companies are required to report. In the future, the limit is to … Read the rest