Asia: Corporate/Commercial Law

The Hindu Undivided Family ("HUF") is one of the more structurally unusual entities in Indian law. Recognised as a separate taxable person under the Income Tax Act, 1961, it is managed by a Karta, and its assets are held for the benefit of all co-parceners and members of the family unit.

These events prompted regulators to strengthen governance standards by introducing stricter disclosure norms, enhanced board accountability and greater emphasis on transparency and stakeholder protection.

Singapore's Corporate and Accounting Laws (Amendment) Act 2025 introduces significant changes to director appointment procedures, corporate governance requirements, and regulatory compliance obligations. The amendments expand disqualification grounds for directors, introduce new anti-money laundering declarations, and modify operational requirements for companies while removing certain legacy reporting obligations.

By the time the evaluation is done, the remaining task is to commit well: to take advice that is substantive rather than a formality, to ask for clarification even where negotiation is unlikely, and to carry the disciplines of due diligence into the operation of the business. None of it removes risk, but together these change the character of the risk you accept.

Buyers tend to study the start of a franchise relationship in detail and give far less attention to three exposures that sit slightly out of view: the premises the business trades from, the capital the franchisor can require you to spend after you have signed, and the provisions that govern how the relationship ends. Each is capable of reshaping the economics of the deal, and each is easier to address before you commit than after.

If financial due diligence tests whether the opportunity adds up, the franchise agreement tests what you are actually agreeing to. Around that agreement the Code builds a framework of protections, and within it sit a handful of clauses that will shape your market and your margins for the life of the relationship. Both deserve closer reading than they usually receive.

A Paris roundtable examined China's transformation into a biotechnology powerhouse and the strategic opportunities this creates for European life sciences companies and investors. Industry leaders discussed how to structure cross-border partnerships that leverage Chinese innovation and development speed while navigating intellectual property protection, regulatory frameworks, and evolving geopolitical considerations.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) through the circular HO/19/34/11(2)2026-AFD-POD1/I/13764/2026 dated 16 June 2026 (Circular) has issued guidelines for AIFs seeking ‘Inoperative Fund’ status. The Circular follows SEBI’s consultation paper dated 5 February 2026 titled ‘Flexibility to Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) in Winding up the Scheme / Surrendering the Registration’, which proposed granting AIFs / VCFs greater flexibility to retain liquidation proceeds beyond the expiry of their permissible tenure in specified circumstances.

Australia's proposed capital gains tax reforms may inadvertently undermine government efforts to strengthen sovereign defence capability and innovation. As the nation faces increasing global instability and supply chain vulnerabilities, changes to the CGT regime could discourage investment in defence-focused startups precisely when such investment is most critical to national security objectives.

The Hindu Undivided Family ("HUF") is one of the more structurally unusual entities in Indian law. Recognised as a separate taxable person under the Income Tax Act, 1961, it is managed by a Karta, and its assets are held for the benefit of all co-parceners and members of the family unit.

Every M&A lawyer has, at some point, sat across the table from opposing counsel arguing over a single clause for far longer than its word count would suggest is reasonable. More often than not, that clause is indemnity. It rarely makes headlines the way valuation or deal structure does, but ask any dealmaker what actually gets fought over in the last mile of negotiations, and the answer is almost always the same - who bears the loss when things go wrong and how much of it.

The Competition Commission of India issued multiple antitrust enforcement orders in June 2026, investigating exploitative practices in beauty pageants, penalizing truck associations for price-fixing in Odisha's mineral transport sector, and closing a long-standing pharmaceutical distribution case. The Commission also approved numerous mergers and acquisitions across infrastructure, energy, consumer goods, and technology sectors while addressing allegations of abuse of dominance in real estate, airport trans