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UK firm Sinclair Roche & Temperley is to form an alliance with Singapore firm Colin Ng & Partners. Sinclair Roche, which specializes in shipping law, is to cooperate as closely with the Asian banking firm as it can without breaking strict bar regulations. A merger is forbidden by the Singapore law society.

Swedish firm Hellström & Partners, Stockholm, announced on January 12 it is excluding star finance partner Peter Sederowsky from the firm. The announcement comes after Sederowsky, who has joined rival firm Setterwalls, announced in his own letters that Hellström & Partners was to cease operating.

Montreal firms McMaster Meighen and Mackenzie Gervais are to merge in March 1998. The merged firm will be called McMaster Gervais and will be one of Montreal's biggest, with about 100 lawyers.

Central Bank Circular No. 19 of 1997 establishes guidelines for banks, finance and investment companies to follow when lending funds to persons who wish to subscribe to shares of public joint stock companies. The growing number of initial public offerings of shares in public joint stock companies in the UAE represents an attractive and relatively new investment opportunity for UAE nationals.

In theory, depositors of securities with a custodian have always been able to reclaim them if the custodian goes bankrupt. But this theory has never been tested in the courts. New legislation removes any doubt. By Urs Schenker of Baker & McKenzie, Zurich

Corporate governance and insider trading rules limit the options for a target's management. Long-term planning is essential. By Philip Rogers of Arnheim & Co*, London, and Christian Altvater of Nehm & Co*, Frankfurt

China's new foreign loans regime bars non-profitable companies from seeking international finance, and also limits the profitable ones. Worries about the Asian crisis have ensured caution. By Guanxi Zheng of Stikeman, Elliott, Hong Kong

Quebec has moved to drop the requirement that prospectuses must be published in French, as well as other discouragements to foreign issuers. By Andrew Fleming of Ogilvy Renault, London

The collapse of BCCI resulted in a number of cases. The Hong Kong Court of Appeal and the Privy Council (replaced by the Court of Final Appeal in Hong Kong since July 1 1997) have recently delivered two judgments.

On November 1 1997, the Investment Fund Ordinance was amended to include an Institutional Investor's Exemption for foreign investment funds. The amendment states, provided there is no public solicitation, non-registered foreign investment funds may be offered and sold in Switzerland to institutional investors with professional treasury, such as banks, insurance companies and pension funds. The limitation to investors with professional treasury does not exclude institutional investors, which have outsourced the treasury department to a bank or the like.