HIRE A LAWYER AND GET ONE FOR FREE?
Law firms differ from shoe selling businesses
There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to shoes. There is also no one-size-fits-all lawyer as a solution for all your legal matters. In many cases and for many clients, the size of a law firm is not of much importance. What is important may differ from client to client, however the following more or less general concepts will undoubtedly play a role: the attitude of the professional, the quality of the services provided, timely response, personal attention, the ability to stand in the client’s shoes, creativity and pricing. The job of a …
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$1.3 BILLION SETTLEMENT OF FORTIS INVESTOR ACTIONS
Interesting post by Kevin LaCroix (The D&O Diary)
“In what is by far the largest investor settlement ever under the Dutch collective settlement procedures, several shareholder foundations have reached an agreement to settle the Fortis shareholder claims for a total of €1.204 billion ($1.3 billion).
The shareholder foundations’ settlement with Ageas, as Fortis is now known, relates to Fortis’s ill-fated October 2007 participation in the ABN AMRO acquisition just before the global financial crisis. Under a parallel settlement, €290 million ($313 million) of the shareholder settlement will be funded by Fortis’s D&O insurers. The shareholder settlement is subject to the …
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CURACAO – NOS PAIS TELEVISION
Programming in several languages: Papiamentu, Dutch and English
Nos Pais Television is an innovative multimedia company that has the potential to improve the economic and social well being of the nation in general, thereby creating a more prosperous and harmonious society that is of the benefit to all inhabitants of the Dutch Kingdom.
Nos Pais Television is a new commercial multimedia company with its headquarters in Curaçao, broadcasting on channel 4. The objective of the company is to perform as a full professional and high definition quality television station with a daily airtime ultimately of more than …
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QUEEN BEATRIX ABDICATES IN FAVOR OF SON
The Queen will formally stand down on 30 April 2013
Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands announced earlier today that she will abdicate on April 30 after 33 years as head of state. The abdication secures the Dutch throne for Crown-Prince Willem-Alexander at the age of 45.
“Responsibility for our country must now lie in the hands of a new generation,” Queen Beatrix said in a short televised statement.
Karel Frielink
(28 January 2013)
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CURACAO TAX REFORM 2011
New Opportunities for the International Sector
The Curacao tax reform 2011 was recently adopted by the Curacaoan parliament. The Curacao tax reform 2011 has some interesting features for the international financial sector. The expectations are that more features will follow during the next few years, however, no formal announcements have yet been made in this respect. A switchover from direct to indirect taxation is already evident in the Curacao tax reform 2011, although still on a modest scale. Expectations are that this trend will continue. Personal and corporate income tax rates will decrease, while turnover tax will increase from 5% …
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CARIBBEAN KIDS NEWS
CKN is seeking financial support
Caribbean Kids News (CKN) is a unique program for Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, St. Maarten, St. Eustatius and Saba, thus for six very special but quite different islands.
For the first time a news program informs young people between 9 and 14 years and gives them a voice in the Caribbean region. The Caribbean Kids News broadcasts since September 2009 in English and Papiamento (with subtitles in Dutch or English).
The Foundation Youth into Media, a nonprofit organization responsible for the sustainable development of this youth news program, is looking for businesses, organizations and private persons willing …
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WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT GEERT WILDERS BEFORE LISTENING TO HIS SPEECH ON 9/11
Geert Wilders: “There is nothing wrong with Islam”
The Dutch congressman Geert Wilders (Freedom Party (Partij voor de Vrijheid)) will deliver a speech on September 11, 2010 in New York in opposition to the proposed building of a mosque close to Ground Zero. He will not only condemn the followers of Islam, but also Islam itself. He has already talked about a “dreadful mosque”. It is a great pity that he makes these sorts of statements. About 10 years ago Geert Wilders had very different opinions.
On September 24, 2001 Geert Wilders was a guest on the Dutch TV program …
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INADEQUATE CAPITALIZATION OF AN ARUBAN COMPANY
Liability for thin-capitalization?
In terms of ‘piercing the corporate veil’, thin or inadequate capitalization usually means capitalization that is not in proportion to the nature of the risks the business of the corporation necessarily entails; in other words it is based on likely economic needs rather than legal requirements.
Shareholders of a company in Aruba are under an obligation to pay to the company what is due with respect to the shares, i.e. the shareholder’s capital contribution, and such contribution may not be withdrawn without due process. This is the only financial obligation of a shareholder towards the company, unless …
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DUTCH GOVERNMENT INJECTS $13 BILLION IN ING GROUP
Restoring confidence is key
Recently, the Dutch government acquired all shares in the capital of the Dutch subsidiary of Fortis, i.e. Fortis Bank Nederland, including ABN AMRO Bank.
Furthermore, the Dutch government has set aside $27.5 billion of capital to protect the financial institutions of the Netherlands. Although there are many banks that have enough capital to get them through this period of market turmoil (a ‘credit tsunami’, according to Alan Greenspan), many of these financial institutions are not in a position to lend money at the levels that are necessary to support the Netherlands …
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INADEQUATE CAPITALIZATION IN THE DUTCH CARIBBEAN
Liability for thin-capitalization?
In terms of ‘piercing the corporate veil’, thin or inadequate capitalization usually means capitalization that is not in proportion to the nature of the risks the business of the corporation necessarily entails; in other words it is based on likely economic needs rather than legal requirements.
Shareholders of a company in the Netherlands Antilles are under an obligation to pay to the company what is due with respect to the shares, i.e. the shareholder’s capital contribution, and such contribution may not be withdrawn without due process. This is the only financial obligation of a shareholder towards the …
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PRE-EMPTION RIGHTS IN THE DUTCH CARIBBEAN
Prevent a shareholder from dilution
According to article 2:106 of the Netherlands Antilles Civil Code shareholders have a pre-emption right on the issue of new shares, being the right to be offered any new issue in each class, pro rata to the number of shares of such class held by them. The pre-emption right is intended to protect the interests of shareholders and to prevent their stake from being diluted.
According to the Civil Code there are three ways to limit the pre-emption rights of the shareholders:
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