Kavitha Gupta's blog

When employees leave: Non-compete agreements and protecting confidential information Soewito Suhardiman Eddymurthy Kardono prev next Indonesia December 14 2015 Indonesian labor and employment laws do not expressly impose or regulate non-competition obligations of employees with the exception of the Chief Representative of the local representative office of an overseas principal. However, Indonesian law recognizes the principle of freedom of contract. This principle is codified in Articles 1337 and 1338 of the Indonesian Civil Code (the Civil Code). The parties to a contract are free to include any provisions they wish, subject only to the mandatory provisions of Indonesian law, as well as the general principles that contract terms must be implemented in good faith and not contrary to public order. With regard to non-competition during the period of employment, it is essential to include a provision in the employment agreement imposing a duty on th...

DOJ/SEC Announce Enforcement Action for FCPA Violations Related to Travel and Entertainment Expenditures February 16, 2016 In its first enforcement action of 2016, the U.S. Department of Justice ("DOJ") has announced that two Chinese subsidiaries of PTC Inc. ("PTC"), a Massachusetts-based software company, agreed to pay $14.54 million as part of a non-prosecution agreement to resolve allegations that the companies violated the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act ("FCPA") by unlawfully providing recreational travel to Chinese government officials.  In a related proceeding, PTC agreed to pay the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") $11.86 million in disgorgement for the failure to keep accurate books and records and maintain adequate controls to detect and prevent the improper payments during several years.  This is the SEC's fourth FCPA resolution of 2016 and the second involving conduct in China. According to the DOJ...

Can technology bring lawyers into the 21st Century? By Jonathan Keane Business reporter 16 February 2016 From the section Business Image copyright Thinkstock Image caption The legal profession is not known for embracing technological innovation                  The legal profession is perhaps more associated with bulging files of papers, odd clothing and arcane procedures than with technological innovation. But several start-ups are trying to give this most conservative - and sometimes vexing - of professions a digital makeover. Basha Rubin, for example, co-founded New York's Priori Legal, an online marketplace that connects lawyers with businesses, after she perceived that there were too many obstacles in the way of businesses trying to find legal services. Lawyers listed on Priori Legal are vetted by the company and have to have ...

The European Court of Human Rights Decides that Accessing an Employee’s Work IM Account Did Not Breach His Privacy Rights Posted on  February 3rd, 2016  By  Elizabeth Slattery ,  Ed Bowyer  and  Victoria Hordern   Posted in  Employment Privacy To what extent are the personal communications sent by an employee from their employer’s computer private? In Europe it has been accepted for some years that employees do not lose their right to privacy in the workplace. However a recent decision from the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) confirms the rights of the employer to restrict employees from any personal use of the employer’s computer equipment and, consequently, rely on a contravention of the restriction (which is revealed through monitoring) as grounds for dismissal. What were the facts? The claimant in Barbulescu v Romania worked for a private company in Romania as a sales engineer. At his employer’s request, he set up a Yahoo Mes...

This judgment reinforces the quasi-judicial authority of ICC to take action against the perpetrator without interference of the Court on Sexual Harassment matters if the ICC's decision is based on clear evidence and principles of natural justice. Interesting read! India : Delhi HC Judgement Upholds Termination Of Senior Executive For Sexual Harassment At Workplace Last Updated: 27 January 2016 Article by Sunil Kumar Singhania & Partners LLP, Solicitors and Advocates A recent judgement of the Delhi High Court comes as a major landmark in India in validating the order of termination of the employee's services on the basis of the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) of a company, upholding charges of Sexual Harassment by a junior female staff complaining of Sexual Harassment by him. The High Court rejected the male supervisor's Petition challenging the findings and conclusions of the ICC. Among the various reasons recorded in the order, the Court rule...