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Italian blue-chip energy group Eni has kick-started European capital markets for the new year with the largest non-privatization initial public offering in Italy to date. The group's listing of Snam Rete Gas, the Italian gas transportation company it partially owns, raised almost euro 3 billion ($2.6 billion) and was the first initial public offering to raise more than euro 30 million since the mid-July listing of De'Longhi ($114 million).

Clifford Chance and Simmons & Simmons have closed the second whole-business securitization of a shopping centre in Europe. The Meadowhall Shopping Centre near Sheffield, UK, which has around 132, 000 square metres of space including 230 shops and kiosks and 27 restaurants to let, has raised £875 million ($1.3 billion) against rent receipts. The deal is larger than Europe's first shopping centre deal, the £610 million securitization of the Trafford Centre in Manchester last year.

US and UK firms have joined forces to advise on the creation of the biggest luxury cruise company in the world. Working with lawyers at London firm Slaughter and May, partners at "best friend" firm Davis Polk & Wardwell are advising Florida-based Royal Caribbean Cruises on its $6.1 billion merger with UK company P&O Princess Cruises. Sullivan & Cromwell is advising P&O Princess, whose UK counsel is Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.

"It has become a self-fulfiling momentum as issuers try to take advantage of low interest rates and the recovery of the stock markets".

The Canadian Securities Administrators have adopted National Policy 46-201 (Escrow for Initial Public Offerings) setting out uniform terms of escrow applicable to IPOs when an issuer files its first prospectus in: (i) an initial distribution; (ii) a secondary offering (eg a corporate spin-off); or (iii) a distribution where no escrow has been previously imposed in connection with its existing business.

The Security by means of Movable Property Act 1993 commenced on May 7 1993 and regulates the legal consequences of a special notarial bond over movable property described in the notarial bond. The effect of registration of such a bond is that the bondholder is placed in the same position as a pledgee and acquires a so-called "real right" to the movable property described in the bond, which means that the rights to the bonded property are not affected, even where the bonded property is alienated to third parties. A real right is distinguishable from a personal right, in that a real right is enforceable against third parties and not just against the person(s) privy to the security arrangements (as is the case with the personal rights).

Canadian firms may be coping well with in the present economic climate but many in the legal market are still struggling to decide on a strategy. Tom Nicholson reports

Lawyers at firms throughout Asia are advising on a 17,000km submarine cable that will connect bandwidth technology between China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and the Philippines. On completion the cable will be able to carry 90 million voice conversations simultaneously.

The Commission des opération de bourse (COB) will soon complete its radical shake-up of securities regulation for the French markets. The reforms were inspired and influenced by the globalization of markets and increased volatility of share prices. The COB has to an extent been forced to follow both the markets and SEC’s lead. However, as Edward Kamman of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom in Paris explains, the French reforms have much to teach other regulators in the fields of present disclosure and communications restrictions during offerings

Allen & Overy has advised J P Morgan Securities on a euro 300 million ($260 million) synthetic issue of collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) by Robeco CSO III.