In this 14th episode of our series of commercial litigation update podcasts, we look at the most recent decisions on trial witness statements, a decision on what parties can do when they have received a draft judgment under embargo, upcoming changes to the circumstances in which proceedings can be served on parties outside the jurisdiction and a recent decision on consequential losses.

This episode is hosted by Anna Pertoldi, a partner in our litigation team, who is joined by Maura McIntosh, a professional support consultant, and Ramyaa Veerabathran, an associate.

Below you can find links to our blog posts on the developments and cases covered in this podcast.

• High Court decision suggests party alleging witness statement fails to comply with PD 57AC must identify specific failures https://hsfnotes.com/litigation/2022/06/06/high-court-decision-suggests-party-alleging-witness-statement-fails-to-comply-with-pd-57ac-must-identify-specific-failures/

• Party penalised in costs for disproportionate application to strike out witness evidence for non-compliance with PD 57AC https://hsfnotes.com/litigation/2022/06/24/party-penalised-in-costs-for-disproportionate-application-to-strike-out-witness-evidence-for-non-compliance-with-pd-57ac/

• Another decision showing what parties can – and cannot – do when they receive a draft judgment under embargo https://hsfnotes.com/litigation/2022/05/17/another-decision-showing-what-parties-can-and-cannot-do-when-they-receive-a-draft-judgment-under-embargo/

• Expansion of jurisdiction gateways coming soon http://disputeresolutionblog.practicallaw.com/expansion-of-jurisdiction-gateways-coming-soon/

• Court of Appeal finds claim for wasted expenditure not excluded by clause excluding consequential losses https://hsfnotes.com/litigation/2022/05/26/court-of-appeal-finds-claim-for-wasted-expenditure-not-excluded-by-clause-excluding-consequential-losses/

Focusing on merger control in the EU and UK, Marcel Nuys (Partner, Dusseldorf), Francesca Morra (Partner, Milan), Peter Rowland (Of Counsel, Brussels) and Natalia Rodriguez (Of Counsel, London) explore key developments of interest to businesses engaged in M&A activity. They discuss updates to the European Commission's substantive and procedural guidance in respect of mergers, including the controversial ability to accept referrals from individual Member States of transactions that do not meet jurisdictional thresholds for review, and parallel national developments; the extent to which UK merger control practice has diverged from that of the European Commission post-Brexit; and developments on merger control in the digital sector.

In this episode of our Private Wealth & Charities podcast series Richard Norridge and Hussein Mithani talk to Richard Honey QC about his professional career as a barrister, village green disputes, and how he became involved in running a charity which supports a university in Sierra Leone. Part 1 of 2

Speakers: Richard Norridge https://www.herbertsmithfreehills.com/our-people/richard-norridge, Hussein Mithani https://www.herbertsmithfreehills.com/our-people/hussein-mithani and Richard Honey QC

Julian Lincoln and Susannah Wilkinson explain the fundamentals of buying, selling and issuing Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) to reach new consumers and marketplaces - describing NFTs as the “digital bridge" between traditional physical products and the metaverse. They outline some of the important legal aspects (e.g. IP rights, consumer protection and financial services regulation) to consider in issuing NFTs, alongside the equally important platform and technology aspects.

M&A activity in India in the first quarter of 2022 reached a four-year record high of US$30.3 billion dollars in activity.

Investment is being driven to India by geopolitical headwinds, and by the country's many policy developments in recent years. The innovation and scale of the market's micro economies also make it an increasingly attractive destination for private capital players focussed on Asia.

In our second episode of INside Asia M&A, we discuss the current state of India's M&A and private capital markets. Host and corporate partner specialising in private capital Jamie McLaren is joined by special guest Pratibha Jain, General Counsel and Head of Corporate Affairs at Everstone Capital, and London partner and cross-border M&A specialist Siddhartha Shukla.

Together they review: the hottest sectors in India right now; recent trends in transformation, valuation and exits; and consider the structuring and lending nuances needed for a successful transaction.

Visit our series here: https://www.herbertsmithfreehills.com/latest-thinking/inside-asia-ma

Nanda Lau and Gavin Guo outline the economic headwinds redefining business and life for consumers in China with geopolitical tensions, supply chain disruption, business transformation, digitalisation, decarbonisation and ESG issues driving recent legal and regulatory reform, particularly with regard to investment and M&A, competition law, data protection/cybersecurity, regulatory and IP protection. Investment activity in the consumer sector remains resilient, as China underlines it is open for business with a raft of measures to attract and retain foreign investment.

Visit our series: https://www.herbertsmithfreehills.com/insight/the-future-of-consumer-%E2%80%93-asia-pacific-predictions

Cellia Cognard and Stephanie set the social commerce scene before discussing regulatory considerations for building brands and driving sales including the various regulations specific to advertising products in Indonesia. They cover “negative content”, the significant role of influencers and data protection issues - noting some of the key regulatory gaps to monitor in this rapidly developing digital economy.

Visit our series: https://www.herbertsmithfreehills.com/insight/the-future-of-consumer-%E2%80%93-asia-pacific-predictions

Emma Iles and Rebekah Gay discuss the increasing focus on environmental claims in the promotion of consumer goods and the rise in activities by regulators aimed at preventing consumers form being misled. Against this background, Emma and Rebekah share their insights on the emerging risks for businesses.

Visit our series: https://www.herbertsmithfreehills.com/insight/the-future-of-consumer-%E2%80%93-asia-pacific-predictions

In the latest podcast from Herbert Smith Freehills’ pension team, Rachel Pinto, Partner, is joined by Simon Bramwell, Partner and Head of Longevity Risk Transactions at Barnett Waddingham and Matt Wilmington, Head of Origination – Bulk Annuities at Scottish Widows. In their conversation, Rachel, Simon and Matt cover:

• The preparations that schemes need to make before approaching the insurance market;

• the reasons why insurers need certain information from schemes at an early stage in the quotation process;

• how insurers "triage" schemes in a busy market; and

• the practical challenges that schemes can encounter when trying to respond quickly to pricing moving in their favour.

To receive future podcasts in this series direct to your inbox subscribe https://hsfnotes.com/pensions/subscribe/ to our UK pensions blog https://hsfnotes.com/pensions/.

To view our other pensions podcasts, including the other podcasts in this series, click here http://www.hsfnotes.com/pensions/?m=podcasts

If you would like to discuss any of the topics covered in this podcast speak with your usual HSF adviser or contact one of our specialists.

Dana Kim (Partner, Seoul) and Aoife Xuereb (Partner, Melbourne) tease out the issues in a hypothetical manufacturing scenario with an international supply chain and both online and in-store sales. They discuss how companies and the courts are grappling with the unique product liability risks arising from increasingly fragmented and complex supply chains as well as the online sale of goods across jurisdictions.

Visit our series: https://www.herbertsmithfreehills.com/insight/the-future-of-consumer-%E2%80%93-asia-pacific-predictions