A measure of bond price sensitivity to changes in yield.

Restructuring & Insolvency analysis: The court heard an application for the sanction of a scheme of arrangement proposed by PlusHolding GmbH under Part 26 of the Companies Act 2006. The scheme was required because certain of the scheme creditors were collateralised loan obligations (CLO) vehicles which were, for governance reasons, unable actively to consent to an extension to the maturities of the relevant term facilities. A meeting of a single class of creditors to vote on the scheme had been convened pursuant to an order made by Mr Justice Adam Johnson on 15 November 2023. 100% of scheme creditors present and voting at the scheme meeting voted in favour of the scheme, with the CLO vehicles abstaining. After the meeting, an issue arose in that one of the conditions precedent to the implementation of the restructuring (receipt of a ruling from the German tax authority) was not capable of being met. The scheme was revised in order to address this issue and updated documents circulated to scheme creditors. Mr Justice Rajah sanctioned the scheme in its revised form. Written by Charlotte Cooke, barrister at South Square.

'Unconventional' petroleum is developed through anything other than conventional means (essentially vertical and horizontal drilling). This includes shale oil and shale gas (oil or gas which is fixed within relatively fissile shale rock strata, requiring hydraulic fractionation, or 'fracking', for its liberation), coal bed methane (methane adsorbed on to the surface of coal deposits), tight gas (gas trapped within rock formations of such low permeability that fracking is essential) and hydrates (gas trapped within ice-like crystalline water structures). For more information, see: Unconventional Oil & Gas—overview. A conventional joint operating agreement (conventional JOA) will require modification in a number of ways in order to reflect the nuances of an unconventional petroleum project. For more information on conventional JOAs, see Practice Notes: The purpose and the principles of the joint operating agreement and Joint operating agreements: operator and non-operating party perspectives. In 2014, a specifically tailored unconventional petroleum operations JOA was issued by the Association of International Energy Negotiators (AIEN) (formerly known as the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators), although in many

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced that Mr Mohammed Zina has been found guilty of six offences of insider dealing and three offences of fraud following a 12-week trial at Southwark Crown Court brought by the FCA. He was sentenced to 22 months in prison on 16 February 2024.

1. What is the applicable legislation? The main legal instrument governing the foreign direct investment (FDI) control is the Law No. 174/2021 on the mechanism for examining investments of importance for state security, which establishes the conditions for investors to conduct investment activities in areas of importance for state security and outlines the mechanisms for state supervision to enhance the transparency of these investments. The examination and prior approval procedure is further governed by the regulation in Annex 3 to Government Decision No. 437/2025 of 9 July 2025. 2. Which government or other body (or bodies) reviews foreign investments? The Council for the Examination of Investments of Importance for State Security (the Council) is a body established by the Government Decision No. 437/2025, with the purpose of reviewing investment projects in the fields of national security importance to protect national interests and ensure state security. Its secretariat is provided by the Public Services Agency (ASP). 3. What is the scope of the foreign investment regime? Does it only apply to specific sectors or types of investors

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands has announced that the Republic of Moldova has acceded to the Hague Convention of 18 March 1970 on the Taking of Evidence Abroad in Civil or Commercial Matters, with the Convention set to enter into force for Moldova on 22 September 2025. The Convention will apply only between Moldova and those Contracting States that formally accept its accession. Moldova made several reservations and declarations, including requiring Letters of Request to be in Romanian or accompanied by a Romanian translation, excluding the application of Chapter II and refusing to execute requests related to pretrial discovery of documents. Additionally, Moldova allows foreign magistrates to be present during evidence collection with prior court approval, and designated its Ministry of Justice as the Central Authority for handling such requests.

NOTE—to see whether notification thresholds in Moldova and throughout the world are met, see further: Where to Notify. 1. Have there been any recent developments regarding the Moldovan merger control regime and are any updates/developments expected in the coming year? Are there any other ‘hot’ merger control issues in Moldova? Competition Law No 183 of 11 July 2012 (the Competition Law) entered into force on 14 September 2012, and thus its application is relatively recent. The Competition Council, which is vested with regulatory powers under the Competition Law, and has since adopted several subordinated regulations that supplement and complete the existing legal framework. The Regulation on Economic Concentrations, approved by Decision No.17 of the Competition Council dated 30 August 2013 (the Regulation), entered into force on 11 October 2013. The Regulation partially transposes the EU Merger Regulation (EUMR), the EU Implementing Regulation, the European Commission’s (Commission) Notice on simplified procedure and the Commission’s Consolidated Jurisdictional Notice. In general, the Regulation sets out the concept of economic concentration, the relevant thresholds, the undertakings concerned, the method for calculating overall

CASE HUB ARCHIVED–this archived case hub reflects the position at the date of the abandonment of the transaction on 4 April 2018; it is no longer maintained. See further, timeline and related cases. Case facts Outline UK merger investigation into the anticipated acquisition by Mole Valley Farmers Limited of the retail business of Countrywide Farmers Plc. The transaction involves horizontal overlaps in the market for country stores. Latest developments On 4 April the CMA cancelled its investigation after receiving assurances from MVF that the transaction has been abandoned. This followed the merging parties’ request for a three week suspension of the phase 2 timetable following referral to consider their positions. Parties Mole Valley Farmers Limited (MVF) is a private limited company owned

The smallest portion of a substance that can exist by itself and retain the properties of the substance. Molecules consist of multiple atoms and a particular molecule has a specific number of atoms arranged in a specific way. Water is a molecule consisting of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom – the hydrogen atoms are bound to opposite sides of the oxygen atom with an angle of about 104.5? between the two hydrogen atoms.

Molestation involves any form of physical, sexual or psychological molestation or harassment that has a serious impact on the health and well-being of the applicant. Violence is not a prerequisite. A positive intent to molest does not need to be established nor does there need to be some direct interaction between the respondent and the applicant or child. It is sufficient if the conduct is deliberate and that it has the consequence of causing or being likely to cause distress or harassment to the applicant or a child.

CASE HUB ARCHIVED—this case hub reflects the position at the date of the decision of 23 May 2024; it is longer maintained. See further, timeline. Case facts Outline European Commission Article 101 TFEU investigation into whether Mondelēz International, Inc restricted competition in a range of national markets for chocolate, biscuits and coffee for hindering cross-border trade of these products between EU Member States (AT.40632). Latest development On 23 May 2024, the Commission issued its infringement decision and imposed a fine of €337.5m for: (i) engaging in anti-competitive agreements and concerted practices aimed at restricting cross-border trade of various chocolate, biscuit and coffee products; and (ii) abusing its dominant position in certain national markets for the sale of chocolate tablets. Parties • Mondelēz International, Inc (Mondelēz): Mondelēz is headquartered in the US, is one of the world's largest producers of chocolate and biscuit products. Its portfolio includes well-known chocolate and biscuit brands such as Côte

CASE HUB ARCHIVED–this archived case hub reflects the position at the abandonment of the transaction on 15 December 2015; it is no longer maintained. See further, timeline and related cases. Case facts Outline European Commission merger investigation into the acquisition by Mondi Group of two of Walki’s packaging plants (Case M.7566). The transaction involves a horizontal overlap in the market for extrusion coating products. Latest developments On 15 December 2015, Mondi and Walki announced that they had decided to withdraw the application to the Commission and terminate the acquisition agreement. This follows discussions with the Commission about ways to address the competition concerns; Mondi and Walki stated that no workable solution suitable for all parties has been found. The Commission was notified of the withdrawal on 15 December 2015, with the subsequent notice being published in the OJEU on 22 December 2015.   Parties Mondi is an international packaging and paper group headquartered in the UK and listed on both the London Stock Exchange and the Johannesburg Stock