This latest guide looks at developments at the end of last year and the beginning of 2020. It covers: Brexit and the transition, final-form recommendations for audit and auditor reform, new stewardship obligations for investors, tougher new anti-money laundering rules, FRC guidance for this year's annual reports and Section 172 statements, the extension of the FCA's Senior Manager regime, market abuse, ESG and climate, private equity reporting, transparency of ownership of UK real estate and late payment. ...

At a time when global powers continue to test international trade rules, a World Trade Organization decision involving Australian tariffs on Indonesian A4 copy paper highlights some of the key legal issues that caused tension between international trading partners in 2019. ...

Australia's modern slavery reporting regime was introduced one year ago, and 2020 will see the first set of modern slavery statements published by reporting entities. ...

The Australian Government has tabled the Crimes Amendment (Combatting Corporate Crime) Bill 2019 (the 2019 Bill) in the Senate, and the Attorney-General's Department has released Draft Guidance on the steps a body corporate can take to prevent an associate from bribing foreign public officials for public consultation (the Draft Guidance). Like the 2017 version of the Bill that lapsed earlier this year (the 2017 Bill), if passed, the 2019 Bill will strengthen Australia's foreign bribery laws, including by introducing a new corporate offence of failure to prevent bribery by an associate, and will introduce a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) scheme for resolving serious corporate criminal matters. Partner Rachel Nicolson, Senior Associate Andrew Wilcock and Associate Lewis Winter report on the key differences between the 2017 and 2019 Bills, and the content of the Draft Guidance. ...

Anti-corruption was high on the agenda at the B20 Australia summit recently held in Sydney Allens Partner Rachel Nicolson a director of the UN Global Compact Network Australia and convenor of its Anti-Corruption Leadership Group attended the summit and provides an overview of the issues discussed ...

Australia and japan have enetered into an economic partnership agreement to reducel tariff barriers on the majority of Australian exports to Japan. In contrast to the recently concluded Korea-Australia Free Trade Agreement, it does not include an investor-state dispute settlement mechanism. ...

In the past 12 months the Indian Parliament has passed two important pieces of legislation relating to corporate social responsibility and the allegations of corruption made against public servants. How does it affect you? ...

The Australian Government has signed an agreement with India for the sale of uranium and has now made the agreement publicly available Partner Richard Malcolmson Senior Associates Emily Gerrard and Anna Vella and Lawyer Jayde Geia report on the agreement and its implications ...

The Papua New Guinean Government has continued to take significant steps in progressing its anti-corruption agenda in the first quarter of 2014 Partner Allan Mana Senior Associates Sarah Kuman and Michael Gomm and Lawyer Anthony Graham report on recent developments in Papua New Guinea and their ...

Big business should be aware of mandatory publishing requirements for whistleblower policies and a reverse onus of proof for compensation which is among a raft of whistleblower reforms contained in draft legislation released following a Senate inquiry report Partner Rachel Nicolson and Associate ...