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The arrival of the euro has far reaching implications in areas such as monetary obligations, legacy currency securities and share capital. Geoffrey Yeowart of Lovells, London, answers some of the key questions for those getting ready to change over

Jones Day Reavis & Pogue has established a joint enterprise with Showa Law Office in Tokyo to strengthen its mergers and acquisitions, antitrust and IP practices.

The Takeover Panel’s ruling on WPP’s bid for Tempus could spell the end for material adverse change conditions. Tunde Ogowewo of King’s College London’s School of Law reviews the case

Key deals - Czech Republic Privatization of Komercni Banka (October 2001) Société Générale buys Czech government's majority stake Value: euro 1.2 billion ($1.07 billion) Société Générale Allen & Overy

Many employers have incorporated a pay in lieu of notice clause (PILON) into their contracts of employment. This clause reserves the right of the company to terminate an employment with immediate effect by making a payment in lieu of that person's entitlement to notice. (The legal advantage of the clause is that termination can occur with immediate effect but without any breach of contract. This means any post-termination obligations on the employee, such as restrictive covenants, may remain in force rather than fall away due to the employer's breach.)

Czech Republic Baker & McKenzie vos Praha City Center

In a significant liberalization of the currency laws, Russia has abolished the licensing requirement for foreign currency loans with terms of over 180 days. This dramatic new change appeared in Central Bank Regulation No.1030-U, dated September 10 2001, and became effective on October 1. The new regime substantially simplifies the ability of Russian corporate borrowers to attract and repay hard currency loans from non-resident banks and companies for terms of over 180 days (long-term currency loans). Previously, such loans required individual licences from the Central Bank, and this requirement often delayed cross-border financings.

A recent study (October 2001) of takeover bids for Canadian targets has produced some interesting results. The survey looked at 75 announced bids since Justice Blair gave judicial approval for the use of breakup fees (also known as break fees) as bid inducements in the contest for WIC Western International Communications in early 1998.

The Financial Services Reform Act 2001 (FSR Act) and consequential legislation was passed by the Federal Parliament, and received Royal Assent on September 27 2001. The start date for the FSR Act has been pushed back from October 1 2001 to March 11 2002 following consultation with key companies and industry associations from the financial services sector. A two-year transitional period will apply to licensing and disclosure provisions for existing participants.

The Product Liability Act (PLA) is expected to come into force in July 2002. However, a recent court ruling should alert consumer product manufacturers and distributors in Korea about product liability risks even before the PLA comes into force. The case concerned a tort claim for injuries from a sudden acceleration incident involving an automatic transmission automobile. The burden of proof on the alleged defect of the automobile in this case was shifted to the manufacturer, for the reason that the manufacturer has more detailed technical knowledge while the consumer is not expected to have the high level technology to test such product and would purely rely on the manufacturer. Until last year, in several similar reported cases, courts had ruled that the burden is on the claimants to prove alleged defects on the products.