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The European Council meeting in Luxembourg on December 12 and 13 1997 developed a specific pre-accession strategy for Cyprus. The conclusions note the accession process formally begins on March 30 1998 when the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the 15 member states meet their opposite numbers from Cyprus and the 10 central and eastern European applicant states. The European Council decided to convene bilateral inter-governmental conferences with Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia to negotiate the conditions of their entry into the EU and the necessary Treaty adjustments. In addition to the establishment of an accession partnership and an increase in pre-accession aid available to all applicants, the specific pre-accession strategy for Cyprus will be based on the following:

A recent High Court decision (Anchorage Management Limited v D A Oldham & P J Cordner as trustees of the Royds Family Trust) provides a useful reminder of the potential impact of the Limitation Act 1950. The case involved a debt due from a family trust which was 'payable on demand'. The court reaffirmed a centuries' old rule that, on their own, the words 'payable on demand' are not sufficient to qualify the implied promise of immediate repayment.

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

New York-based Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom is set to open an office in Silicon Valley, California. It will be the centre of Skadden's high technology practice as well as focusing on mergers and acquisitions and intellectual property (IP) issues, capital market transactions and litigation matters.

UK firm Allen & Overy announced that it is to merge with 65-lawyer Italian firm Brosio, Casati e Associati. Meanwhile, Haarmann Hemmelrath & Partner has become the second German firm to open an office in Italy. In the last year the following foreign firms have all opened in Italy or added to an existing presence: Clifford Chance, Freshfields, Simmons & Simmons and Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton.

• Dechert Price & Rhoads has won the services of Susan Ervin, former deputy director and chief counsel of trading and markets at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the US derivatives regulator. Ervin joins the firm's Washington DC office as counsel.

Despite turbulence on the markets, Malaysia's investment-led infrastructure development programme looks quite promising. By Winston Bernard Silva, advocate and solicitor, Singapore

The market for Brazilian sovereign debt is becoming increasingly attractive for international banks. By Walter Douglas Stuber and Adriana Maria Gödel of Amaro, Stuber e Advogados Associados, São Paulo

Anne Counihan of National Treasury Management Agency, Ireland talks to Diana Bentley