Non-Disclosure Agreements, also known as NDAs or Confidentiality Agreements, are agreements which legally bind individuals or organizations to secrecy and confidentiality regarding certain shared information such as data, trade secrets, unpatented inventions, etc. and allows the disclosure of such confidential information without the risk of use of that information for any other purposes than intended, or disclosure by the receiving party to any third party. Depending upon the nature of confidential information shared between the parties, NDAs may be made either mutual or unilateral.

In contrast to the previous regulations on overseas investment, the round-tripping structures under the OI Rules1 and OI Regulations2 do not require any explicit approval from the RBI, provided that, such structures must be confined to two layers, as prohibitions persist for structures exceeding this limit.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) introduced certain amendments to the SEBI (Alternative Investment Funds) Regulations, 2012 (“AIF Regulations”) vide its notification dated 15 November 2022 (“Fourth Amendment”). The Fourth Amendment primarily focuses on the following items:

In the current start-up dominated entrepreneurial world, companies have recognised the heating up competition for talent. With the increase in competition, companies have to ensure that the talented people are retained in the company by offering them incentives. The most common method to offer incentives to the employees is by issuing options under an Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP). An alternate incentive offered by the companies to the employees is phantom stocks.

JURISDICTION: European Union UPDATE: EUIPO Proposes Classification of NFTs and Virtual Goods Given the number of applications for protection of intellectual property rights that are being received by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (“EUIPO”) containing terms such as ‘virtual goods’ and ‘non-fungible token’ (“NFT”), the following approach has been proposed for classification of such goods. Virtual goods and NFTs are proposed to be included under Class 9 of the Nice Classification which includes recorded and downloadable media, computer software, blank digital or analogue recording and storage media among others. EUIPO clarifies that the terms virtual goods and NFTs cannot be accepted on their…

Foreign Direct Investment (“FDI”) plays a pivotal role in transforming the economy of any country, especially the developing ones. Bhutan, being a slow developing country actively encourages FDI to strengthen their economy. Hence, towards making the Foreign Direct Investment policy, 2019 (“FDI Policy”) more relevant and investor-friendly, the policy was periodically revised by the Bhutanese/Royal Government.

Flow of direct investment reflects unification of the economy with the world. Overseas Direct Investment (“ODI”) showcases the country’s capability to venture beyond the domestic arena. ODI is a strategy where the money flows out of the domestic country into a foreign country. In the Indian context, exports have been a predominant way of reaching the global markets, however, in the last few decades, increase in overseas investment has been playing a key role in globalizing the operations of the Indian entities.

Introduction In the Era of globalization, our Indian legal system is frequently appreciated for the importance it gives to enforcement of foreign decrees and judgment. Foreign judgments are recognized as per bilateral or multilateral treaties or conventions. This recognition happens when the court of one country accepts a judicial decision made by the courts of another foreign country, and issues a judgment in alike terms without rehearing the matter of the original lawsuit. The original judgment will only be denied if that judgment is not consistent with the basic fundamental principles of the recognizing country. The Indian Code of Civil Procedure, 1908…

Alternative Investment Funds (AIF), as a pooling vehicle, have great potential in India. With a view to facilitate and regulate the securities market in International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) at Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) issued the SEBI (IFSC) Guidelines in 2015 (Guidelines), including the fund framework in IFSC. Further in 2018, operating guidelines for AIFs in IFSC (Operating Guidelines) were issued by SEBI, which provided for a framework for setting up AIFs in IFSC. What is an AIF? An AIF is an investment vehicle which privately pools funds / monies from domestic…

COVID-19, the black swan of 2020, has clearly triggered a global economic fallout. The situation is growing even worse as the pandemic is affecting every industry and the economies worldwide in some way or the other. However, for some, these unexpected times have turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Where on the one hand businesses are rolling down the hill, there are others booming their way through this unprecedented economic catastrophe. Experiencing a significant surge in these times, one can rightly term the following industries as the beneficiaries of COVID-19:

Since the time Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 (Rules) have been introduced the social media intermediaries are apprehensive of the traceability prerequisites.

The traceability requirement in the Rules is a pre-requisite that directs all significant social media intermediaries (i.e., those who have more than 50 lakh registered users in India) to identify the first originator of a message on receiving a judicial order or an order issued by a competent authority under Section 69 of the Information Technology Act. The intermediaries were given a three-month timeline to comply with the guidelines.

Intellectual Property (IP) laws were enacted to protect the intangible creations of human intellect. IP includes designs, names, inventions, literary & artistic works, music, images, etc. For the protection of various kinds of such intangible creations, IP has been classified under the head of patents, trademarks, designs, geographical indications and copyright. IP is an intellectual’s capital, therefore, the ownership of an IP and transfer of rights to the rightful owner are crucial in the eyes of law. One must note that in the absence of an appropriate legislation for IP protection, it may be subject to misappropriation.

Litigation Funding or third-party financing is currently a lesser-known concept in India. It safeguards the interests of those parties who are unable to finance themselves and provides a chance to the financers to get better return on their investments. The return rate on this type of investment can range from 50%-100% which is far better than any investment in traditional corporate finance deals. Covid-19 has led to widespread economic distress, resulting in parties being unable to bear the high costs of litigation. Owing to the current pandemic situation and higher return rate on investments, litigation funding might be the new normal in the country for capital infusion and resolution of disputes in both, domestic litigations as well as international disputes. In addition to the exclusive third-party funders, investment banks, hedge funds, insurance companies also invest in legal claims as an asset class.

The decade-long battle between Google LLC and Oracle has come to an end now with the decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in Google LLC vs. Oracle America, Inc. The Supreme Court held that the unauthorized copying of Oracle’s JAVA SE API by Google was a ‘fair use’ of the declaring code and such use is not prohibited under the U.S. copyright law. The judgement of the court proceeded with an assumption, not a declaration, that JAVA SE API is a copyrightable material for addressing the issue between the parties of the case.

Whenever two parties enter in an agreement, designating a seat of arbitration is commonly the most debatable clause of the agreement. The uncertainties in ongoing judicial decisions have further fueled this debate. Numerous options are available to parties for deciding the forum of arbitration. Earlier, international arbitration was considered as a well-established channel for arbitration. However, now, parties lack clarity and various questions pops up in their mind like can the arbitration orders of international forums be enforced by the Indian court? Is it even valid to choose a foreign seat for arbitration? And so on.

When, apparently, everything was returning to normalcy, the deadly second wave of novel coronavirus hit the nation, overrunning all hospitals and healthcare facilities and sadly, even crematoriums. Just a year back, the virus hit India, in the month of March, creating an alarming situation around the country. The then situation was addressed by the Supreme Court, whereby, the Court took cognizance and passed an order dated 23 march, 2020 extending the limitation period for filing cases, applications, suits, appeals and other proceedings.

Legality of online gaming such as fantasy sports has been recognized by various courts in India, however, currently, there is no specific central legislation regulating online gaming in the country. Many companies like Dream11, MyTeam11, My11Circle, etc. who are in the online gaming industry are making the most out of the judgments passed in favor of fantasy sports by advertising and claiming their games to be a “game of skill”.

Since the time Over the top (OTT) platforms have entered the Indian market, a tussle was going on amongst the judiciary, government and media and entertainment industry for regulating these platforms. Apparently, this tussle has finally come to an end as the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology notified the Information Technology (Guidelines for Intermediaries and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021 (“Rules”). The Rules supersede the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules, 2011. The applicability of the Rules will extend to OTT platforms and will also apply to intermediaries and publishers operating in India including the overseas platforms that target Indian audiences unlike the earlier rules which were applicable only to intermediaries.

Owing to coronavirus disease (Covid-19), the traditional healthcare systems in India are constantly being questioned. Physical examination and consultation with a doctor is challenging as stringent restrictions are implemented on movement of people around the country. In India, the Covid-19 pandemic has brought a swift shift from use of traditional healthcare systems to the modern technology of virtually visiting the doctor.

A company limited by guarantee or a guarantee company is one wherein the liability of its members is limited by the memorandum and the members agree to pay a nominal amount in the event of company being wound up. Unlike the concept of shareholders holding shares and the ownership of the company, a guarantee company is owned by members called guarantors.