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2000 was a bumper year for lawyers in Paris working at the high-end of capital markets and M&A – and not just those at the international firms. Now, as Thomas Williams reports from Paris, it is up to the regulators to make sure restrictive regulations do not stifle the boom

Decision 486 of the Andean Community Commission, the new Intellectual Property Law for the member countries of the Andean Community (Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela), grants additional protection for well-known trademarks. This protection guards well-known signs against unauthorized registration of a domain name, in all countries of the Community.

Hong Kong’s mobile operators have waited since late last year to find out how they will be asked to pay for the territory’s 3G licences. Michael Reede and Alana Triscott of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison in Hong Kong reveal how the sale will work

Clifford Chance has advised Gulf Indonesia on its $9 billion gas deal with Singapore Power. Lawyers from the firm's oil and gas team in Singapore advised Gulf Indonesia and Santa Fe Energy Resources on the gas supply, transportation and sale arrangements between Pertamina, Indonesia's state-owned oil and gas company, and Singapore Power.

Pillsbury Winthrop of the US and Mexico's Creel, Garcia-Cuellar y Muggenburg have advised UK mobile phone company Vodafone on its first bid to establish a market in Latin America. Last month the company bought a 34.5% stake in Grupo Iusacell from the Peralta family for $973.4 million. Iusacell is Mexico's second largest mobile operator after Telefonica of Spain. The deal is being seen as a much needed boost for Iusacell, which last October lost out to Telefonica in negotiations to acquire five mobile phone companies operating in the north of the country.

Despite a slowing economy, the turf war in New York between established firms and new entrants continues to grow ever more aggressive, with mid-size firms coming under the greatest pressure.

Lovells has represented the world's oldest mutual life assurer, the UK's Equitable Life, in a sell-off that has dominated the British business press.

Corporations will have to endure mounting legal bills and poorer service unless the rules governing lawyers are changed, a US antitrust organization has warned.

Clifford Chance will soon offer one-stop legal advice in Tokyo thanks to a joint venture with a local Japanese firm. Just over one year after mergers with US firm Roger & Wells and German firm Pünder, Volhard, Weber & Axster, Clifford Chance is tying up with Japan's Tanaka & Akita. However, this latest deal is hardly likely to overshadow the firm's landmark mergers in the US and Germany. When Tanaka & Akita goes ahead with the joint venture on May 1 it will add 10 lawyers to the 28 Clifford Chance already has in its existing Tokyo office. The joint venture will operate from the existing offices of Clifford Chance and will be known as Clifford Chance and Tanaka & Akita (T&A). Never let it be said that lawyers are afraid of change.

The Commodity Futures Modernization Act will revolutionize the regulation of derivatives trading in the US by loosening the ties on larger market users and allowing the SEC to take part. Philip McBride Johnson of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom reviews the Act