Blog Posts
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Possible Relaxation for Foreign Investors with “Existing Ventures”
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] Since 1998, the Indian Government’s policy has required foreign investors to obtain approval of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) while investing in a field where they have or had a previous joint venture in India. In other words, such investors are ineligible from investing under the automatic route. In considering…
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Supreme Court on Powers of the Competition Appellate Tribunal: SAIL v. Jindal Steel
[Posted by Mihir Naniwadekar] The Supreme Court of India has decided on the scope of the powers of the Competition Appellate Tribunal, in SAIL v. Jindal Steel. Reports of the decision are available on Legally India and Bar and Bench. We will carry a detailed analysis of the decision shortly. UPDATE: The judgment is now…
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Some Thoughts on the Vodafone Judgment: A Case for Reconsideration?
[Posted by V. Niranjan] The blog has discussed the Vodafone controversy in some detail, and commented on important extracts from the Bombay High Court’s judgment yesterday. This post discusses parts of the judgment in more detail, and suggests, with respect, that the judgment is incorrect. For the convenience of our readers, the paragraph number in…
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Confidentiality = Non-compete?
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] In India, there is a fair amount of debate regarding the enforceability of non-compete agreements given Section 27 of the Contract Act that invalidates contracts in restraint of trade. Recent developments in California may throw some further light on the issue. Oracle’s appointment of former HP-CEO Mark Hurd has given rise…
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Vodafone’s Petition Dismissed by the Bombay High Court
[Posted by V. Niranjan] It appears that the Bombay High Court has dismissed Vodafone’s writ petition challenging the jurisdiction of the Indian income tax authorities. Reports – the Wall Street Journal, ET, Reuters and Indian Express – are sketchy on the precise basis of the decision. We will discuss the implications in detail once a…
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The Rangaraj-Madhusoodhanan Conflict and the “Reformulation” of Rangaraj in Para 55 of Messer Holdings
[Posted by V. Niranjan] Section 111A of the Companies Act, 1956, is perhaps the most significant unresolved controversy in contemporary Indian corporate law. The blog noted today that a Division Bench of the Bombay High Court (Messer Holdings) has held that a private arrangement between shareholders conferring a right of first refusal is not contrary…
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A twist in the tale: Share transfer restrictions in a public limited company legal?
[Posted by Satyajit Gupta] A Division Bench of the Bombay High Court has ruled in Messer Holdings Limited v. Shyam Madanmohan Ruia that a private arrangement between shareholders of a public limited company on a voluntary basis relating to share transfer restrictions (right of first refusal) is not violative of Section 111A of the Companies…
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Parliamentary Standing Committee on Companies Bill, 2009
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] It has been reported that the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance has its made recommendations upon review of the provisions of the Companies Bill, 2009. Discussions reveal that in some areas the Standing Committee’s recommendations seek a reversal of the position stated in current version of the Companies Bill. On one…
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Nomination for LexisNexis Top 25 Business Law Blogs 2010
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] We are pleased to share with our readers the following communication received from LexisNexis: Each year, LexisNexis honors a select group of blogs that set the online standard for a given industry. I’m pleased to notify you that Indian Corporate Law Blog is one of the nominated candidates for the LexisNexis…
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Barclays Order: ODI Restrictions Lifted by SEBI
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] In December 2009, we had discussed SEBI’s order whereby Barclays was found to have failed in complying with certain disclosure norms while issuing offshore derivative instruments (ODIs) under the SEBI (Foreign Institutional Investors) Regulations, 1995. For this, SEBI had prohibited Barclays from issuing, subscribing or otherwise transacting in any ODIs until…