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US firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius may be planning an office in the Russian federation. The firm recently entered into a mutual referral agreement with Rothstein & Shaw, which has offices in Moscow and Almaty, Kazakhstan. Rothstein & Shaw's practice is focused in the areas of corporate and commercial law, securities, real estate and joint ventures. In return, Morgan Lewis has the expertise of its Russian and CIS practice group, which was recently strengthened by four lawyers who joined from Coudert Brothers. Partners Jake Redway and Jan DuBois have experience in providing advice to clients on transactions in the Russian Federation and are supported by associates Adam Deery and Michael Pekowsky. Pekowsky will be resident in the Moscow office of Rothstein & Shaw.

Despite the loss of partners to Morgan Lewis, Coudert Brothers is pressing ahead with its office in St Petersburg, headed by Marian Hagler, a senior associate from the Moscow office. The office will be staffed by Hagler and a Russian associate, and will advise US companies investing in the St Petersburg region, particularly in joint ventures, privatizations and real estate transactions. Partner supervision will be from Moscow and New York.

Various amended pieces of Canadian legislation now recognize and protect the enforceability of close-out netting for derivatives deals. By Margaret Grottenthaler of Stikeman, Elliott, Toronto

Ways of taking security interests are becoming increasingly sophisticated. Here is a guide, by James E Hogan, Aigoul Kenjebayeva, Gary Sullivan, Robert Starr and Karen Widess of Salans Hertzfeld & Heilbronn, Paris, Almaty and London

France has introduced new pledging and netting provisions which will be welcomed by participants in structured financings and derivatives deals. By Stéphane Mouy of Banque Paribas and Edward Nalbantian of Watson, Farley & Williams, Paris

Mark Daley of Berwin Leighton, London and Francesco Seassaro of Carnelutti, London reports on legislation which may mean the demise of a convenient cross-border borrowing structure

In the first of two articles on independent power projects in Asia, Tim Soutar and Judith Hanson of Clifford Chance, Hong Kong, consider the importance of the role played by government

Vietnam has reached agreement in principle with its creditor banks on the restructuring of its US$1 billion debt. The move should allow Vietnam to resume commercial borrowing in the international capital markets at more favourable interest rates.

Southern England utility Southern Water was the object of rival bids from UK utilities ScottishPower and Southern Electric. ScottishPower made a £1.56 billion (US$2.36 billion) hostile takover bid which was followed by an agreed cash and shares offer of £1.6 billion from rival Southern Electric. ScottishPower's subsequent offer of £1.67 billion went wholly unconditional on August 7.

US firm Dewey Ballantine and the UK's Theodore Goddard have broken up their four-office joint venture in central and eastern Europe, with Dewey buying Theodore out. The divorce of the former partners follows the split in the firms' London office when Dewey announced plans for a fully independent office (see International Financial Law Review, June 1996, page 4).