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Potential moratoria on payments of foreign currency to overseas persons need not necessarily worry exporters. They can structure to protect their interests. By Andrew O’Keeffe of Simmons & Simmons, London

Can the resolution of future sovereign debt crises be eased by changes in the legal documents that evidence these obligations? In the first of a series of three articles, Lee C Buchheit of Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton, New York considers the sharing clause

Together with the Federal Stock Exchange Act, of which the second part entered into force in January 1998, Article 161bis of the Swiss Criminal Code has been amended. Under this provision, any person who substantially influences the price of stock traded on the Swiss stock exchange with the intention of enriching him or herself or a third party, will be punished by imprisonment or a fine.

The Court of Appeal has delivered a judgment of potentially major significance for auditors of group companies. The case arose from claims brought by the liquidators of three BCCI companies against their former auditors, Price Waterhouse and Ernst & Whinney. The Court held that the auditors of the holding company and of one operating subsidiary could owe a duty of care to another operating subsidiary of which they were not the appointed auditors.

A non-US court applying the non-US law governing a swap contract may not recognize a restraining notice served by a creditor as a defence to payment. By Mark P Zimmett from the Law Offices of Mark P Zimmett, New York

The double tax treaties executed between Portugal and Germany, Italy and Finland include a provision whereby a tax credit is granted to the residents of any of these countries if they obtain some elements of their income in Portugal where it is subject to tax but exempt. Relevant elements of income include the payment of interest and the payment of dividends.

A newly proposed Accounting Act is scheduled to be adopted by the Norwegian parliament before the summer break and to go into effect on January 1 1999. This will involve major changes to the financial year, dividend distribution and how assets are reported in mergers.

On January 1 1998, new regulations of the National Securities Depository of KDPW (Krajowy Depozyt Papierow Wartosciowych) entered into force. These new regulations became necessary due to the new Public Trading and Securities Act, published on October 3 1997 and which entered into force at the beginning of the year (see International Financial Law Review, May 1998 page 58). The regulations of the National Securities Depository describe the basic conditions of the deposit and clearing procedures in the field of public securities trading.

Article 1, paragraph 1 of Legislative Decree No. 239 of April 1 1996, containing provisions aimed at amending the financial treatment of interest and other capital gains deriving from securities and similar bonds, as amended by Article 12, paragraph 3 of Legislative Decree No. 461 of November 11 1997, will enter into force on July 1 1998. It provides that the 12.5% withholding tax under Article 26, paragraph 1 of the Decree of the President of the Republic No. 600 of September 29 1973 will not be applied to interest and other capital gains deriving from securities and similar bonds issued in Italy by certain entities to the extent that:

In April 1998 the government submitted a bill to parliament regarding a reform of the Finnish Companies Act to enable the conversion to the euro in private and public limited companies during the transition period between January 1 1999 and December 31 2001 and set the rules governing the move to no par value (NPV) shares in limited companies.