sakate khaitan
Sakate Khaitan

In keeping with my goal of presenting important topics concerning jurisdictions outside the United States, I am pleased to present this guest post by Sakate Khaitan of Khaitan Legal Associates about recent legislative changes in Indian that will impact the availability of arbitration procedures in that country. I would like to thank Sakate for his willingness to publish his article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sakate’s guest post. Continue Reading Guest Post: Arbitration in India – Is it Now Feasible?

frisbeeWith summer winding down, more readers have been sending in pictures of their Tenth Anniversary D&O Diary Frisbees, with many of the pictures taken on family vacations. It always a pleasure to see the many places where readers have taken their Frisbees for their photo shoot.   Readers will recall that in connection with The D&O Diary’s recent tenth anniversary, I offered to send out a D&O Diary Tenth Anniversary Frisbee to anyone who requested one – for free — but only if the Frisbee recipient agreed to send me back a picture of the Frisbee and a description of the circumstances in which the picture was taken. I have already published several rounds of Frisbee Photos (all of which can be found here), and now it is time for the next round. Continue Reading Yet Another Round of Frisbee Photos

2016-08-31 01.11.52aThe D&O Diary was on assignment last week in Australia, to attend and participate in the annual conference of the Australian Professional Indemnity Group (APIG), in Sydney. As a result of my travels to the conference, I once again experienced the miracle of modern technology. You can leave your home in, say, Cleveland, and less than 24 hours later you can be walking on a beach in Australia. I have made this trip or its equivalent many times now, but it still never ceases to amaze me. Continue Reading Notes from Sydney

keeping a lookoutEvery year just after Labor Day, I take a step back and survey the most important current trends and developments in the world of Directors’ and Officers’ liability and D&O insurance. This year’s survey is set out below. Once again, there are a host of things worth watching in the world of D&O. Continue Reading What to Watch Now in the World of D&O

uschamberLitigation Funding is an increasingly important part of the current litigation scene, but it remains controversial. One of the important issues under debate is the question of whether or not litigation funding arrangements must be disclosed. In a recent discovery-related ruling (here), Northern District of California Judge Susan Illston confronted this question of whether or not a class action plaintiff must disclose third-party litigation funding contracts. As discussed below in the following guest post from Lisa Rickard, the President of U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, takes a look at Judge Illston’s decisions and examines its relevance in the ongoing debate regarding litigation funding. I would like to thank Lisa for her willingness to publish her article as a guest post on my site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit and article. Here is Lisa’s guest post. Continue Reading Guest Post: Litigation Finance: Stop The Hide-And-Seek Game

namibiaA very long ten years ago – before the financial crisis, before the Euro crisis, before the Brexit vote — there was the options backdating scandal. The wave of litigation the scandal stirred up took its time to work its way through the system, but eventually the litigation was resolved and the scandal moved into the past. Even though the the scandal moved into the realm of history several years ago, there was one small but important unresolved item. The criminal case against Jacob “Kobi” Alexander, the former CEO of Comverse Technology, Inc., remained open, because shortly before he was about to be indicted, Alexander fled to Namibia. This strange but interesting chapter of the options backdating saga came closer to resolution last week when Alexander – back in the U.S. from his Namibian refuge — appeared in federal court in Brooklyn to enter a guilty plea to a single charge of securities fraud. Continue Reading A Blast from the Past: Fugitive Comverse Technology CEO Kobi Alexander Returns to Enter Guilty Plea

chris smith
Christopher Smith

In our increasingly global economy, corporate boards are increasingly diverse, and among the diversities boards increasingly encompass are geographic and cultural diversity. However, while diverse directors may serve for many reasons, they still must be able to discharge their duties to the corporation. In the following guest post, Christopher Smith of the Sydney office of the the Clyde & Co. law firm, take a look at an interesting recent case from an Australian Court, in which the court held that directors who sign corporate documents must be able to read and understand the documents in order to discharge their duties. A copy of the August 11, 2016 Federal Court of Australia ruling to which Chris refers in his guest post can be found here. I would like to thank Chris for allowing me to publish this article as a guest post on this site. Readers interesting in submitting guest posts should contact me directly. Here is Chris’s guest post. Continue Reading Guest Post: Company Directors Who Cannot Read or Understand English Warned by Australian Court

CHRIS_BOGART_Color
Christopher Bogart

One of the most noteworthy recent developments in the litigation arena has been the rise of litigation funding.  Litigation funding is well-established in Australia and Canada, and it is becoming increasingly important elsewhere. Among the largest litigation funding firms is Burford Capital, which is a publicly traded company with offices in London and New York and whose securities trade on the London Stock Exchange. The company’s most recent interim financial results can be found here. Christopher Bogart, who previously was EVP and General Counsel of Time Warner and whose background includes a stint at the Cravath law firm, is the company’s CEO. In the following post, Chris answers my questions about litigation funding and about his firm. My questions appear in italics, followed by Chris’s answers in plain text.  I would like to thank Chris for his willingness to participate in this Q&A. Continue Reading Interview with Christopher Bogart, CEO of Litigation Funding Firm Burford Capital

frisbeeReaders continue to send in their pictures taken with their Tenth Anniversary edition D&O Diary Frisbees. The Frisbee Photos have been taken in locations both far and near, with the most recent collection including a very heavy representation of pictures taken at beaches or in bars, as well as with kids and dogs.  Readers will recall that in connection with The D&O Diary’s recent tenth anniversary, I offered to send out a D&O Diary Tenth Anniversary Frisbee to anyone who requested one – for free — but only if the Frisbee recipient agreed to send me back a picture of the Frisbee and a description of the circumstances in which the picture was taken. I have already published four rounds of Frisbee Photos (here, here, here, and here), and now it is time for the next round. Continue Reading Another Round of Frisbee Photos

SEC logoThe SEC has long made it clear that it intends to protect whistleblowers and to suppress activities it believes will have the effect of discouraging whistleblower activity. The agency recently launched enforcement actions against companies that had incorporated various waivers in employee severance agreements that discouraged employees from reporting possible securities law violations to the SEC. The agency’s actions shows that the agency is prepared to actively target corporate actions the agency believe may suppress the whistleblowing process. Continue Reading The SEC Wants You to Know that It Intends to Protect Whistleblowers’ Rights