articles
Direct Tax
Capital Gains arising out of Joint Development Agreements – Analysis of Section 45(5A) of Income-tax Act
22 July 2021
The transfer of immovable property by land owners under mechanism of Joint development, Agreement (‘JDA’) has evolved as a preferred mode of transacting, especially in urban areas where the land owners do not have the time or expertise to develop the land and market the property on their own. They, therefore, enter into an arrangement for mutual benefit with a developer for developing and marketing the land parcels to various buyers.
Arbitration, Commercial litigation, Insolvency
Contractual claims, Arbitration and the Insolvency Code – The interplay and fault lines
21 July 2021
The Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code, 2017 (‘Code’) was, inter alia, enacted for the resolution or liquidation of companies defaulting on their debts. These debts may include claims subject to an arbitration or sums determined in the form of an award. In the present article, we identify some potential scenarios where parties to an arbitration agreement must be conscious of the interplay between arbitration and the Code.
Corporate
Proposed E-commerce Amendment Rules – Whether reasonable to comply with?
14 July 2021
The Government of India through its Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, in exercise of its powers conferred under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 had notified the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 (‘E-commerce Rules’). The Government has now, on 21 June 2021, proposed certain amendments in the E-commerce Rules and is receiving comments or suggestions from the stakeholders.
International Trade & WTO
Revision in requirements for applications by the domestic industry - A balancing act by DGTR
01 July 2021
The provisions relating to conduct of anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations in India are contained in the Customs Tariff Act, 1975, and the Customs Tariff (Identification, Assessment and Collection of Anti-Dumping Duty on Dumped Articles and for Determination of Injury) Rules, 1995 (‘AD Rules’) and the Customs Tariff (Identification, Assessment and Collection of Countervailing Duty on Subsidized Articles and for Determination of Injury) Rules, 1995 (‘CVD Rules’) made therein under.
Goods and Services Tax
Bill of Supply whether a tax invoice for issuance of GST debit/credit note?
28 June 2021
GST as a law has been very dynamic with amendments happening day in and day out as the legislature and the subjects learn from implementing the law to the practical aspects of the business. One of the recent amendments to the law is the amendment to sub-section (4) to Section 16 of the Central Goods & Services Tax Act, 2017 (‘CGST Act’) which was made effective from 1 January 2021.
Intellectual Property
Coverage v. Disclosure – IPAB decides on what amounts to coverage and disclosure
21 June 2021
The Intellectual Property Appellate Board (‘IPAB’) in an order dated 29 September 2020 allowed the appeal filed by Novartis AG (‘Appellant’) challenging the revocation of Indian Patent No. 276026 (IN’026) by the Deputy Controller of Patents & Designs, New Delhi (‘Respondent No. 2’) following post-grant opposition proceedings initiated by Natco Pharma Limited (‘Respondent No. 3’), and set aside the revocation order (‘impugned order’) as being ‘devoid of merit’.
Direct Tax
Cess: An allowable expenditure under the Income-tax Act?
16 June 2021
It is a settled principle statutorily that the income tax paid by a taxpayer on its income is not allowed as a deductible expenditure under the provisions of the Income-Tax Act, 1961 (‘Act’). The term ‘income-tax’ has not been defined under the provisions of the Act, however, the term ‘tax’ has been defined to mean income-tax chargeable under the provisions of the Act. Section 4 of the Act creates a charge of tax on the total income of the previous year of a person.
Corporate
Introduction of the ‘On-going Projects’ regime under CSR – A Welcome Move
15 June 2021
Though the primary objective of Corporate Social Responsibility (‘CSR’) was not slated to be to bridge resource gap for the Government, the second wave of the pandemic Covid-19 has once again brought back into light the participation of Corporate India in supplementing the efforts of the Government.
Corporate
Limitation for filing of appeals under Section 37 of Arbitration and Conciliation Act
15 June 2021
Section 37 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (‘Act’) provides for an appeal against orders passed under Sections 9, 34, 16 and 17 of the Act. The Act does not provide any specific limitation for filing such appeals, however, Section 43 of the Act provides that the Limitation Act, 1963 (‘Limitation Act’) shall apply to arbitrations as it applies to proceedings in Court.
International Trade & WTO
De-minimis dumping margin: Termination of an anti-dumping investigation?
01 June 2021
On 7 May 2021, the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (‘DGTR’) concluded the anti-dumping investigation concerning imports of ‘Plain Medium Density Fibre Board having thickness 6mm and above’ (‘subject goods’) produced by Kim Tin MDF Joint Stock Company, Vietnam (‘Kim Tin’) by terminating the investigation. Though the termination of this investigation is not unusual, the reasons for the termination of the investigation are interesting.
Insolvency
License dues trump the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code?
01 June 2021
The NCLAT, in its recent decision in Union of India v. Vijaykumar V Iyer, has arguably created a new class of creditors, not previously known to the provisions of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (‘IBC’). The Appellate Tribunal effectively found that licenses granted by the Department of Telecommunications, Government of India (‘DoT’) to private players for the use of spectrum can override provisions of the IBC.
Goods and Services Tax
Improved system of e-way bill and its implications on the business
25 May 2021
Implementation of e-way bill system under the Goods and Services Tax regime has been an excruciating exercise for the Government as well as the taxpayers. While Government was initially grappling for timely enforcement of e-way bill system due to inherent constraints in the portal, the taxpayers were finding it difficult to cope up with the frequent amendments in the e-way bill related rules.
Competition and Antitrust
Blockchain technology on the CCI’s radar
25 May 2021
Businesses constantly seek to innovate to obtain an edge over their competition and sometimes this leads to particularly noteworthy innovations that become disruptive forces within the market segment. This allows the innovator to determine their own price for their products and operate independent of the market forces of supply and demand
Direct Tax
Managing the impact of Covid-19 – Navigating cross-border tax questions in India
21 May 2021
The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed catastrophic outcomes. The limited experience of handling such a crisis in India has already revealed its overbearing effect on business and industry, while the tax landscape has also faced significant transformation. In an interconnected world, some of the issues that have arisen in the context of cross-border taxation have created concern, with the potential of leading to far-reaching implications. Some of these issues are considered in detail in this article.
Direct Tax
Redesigned taxation upon exit from Partnership Firm – New jeopardy for taxpayers?
18 May 2021
Taxation upon exit of a partner from a partnership firm has been a contentious issue since long. Till Financial Year 1987-88, distribution of capital assets on dissolution of partnership firm was specifically excluded from capital gain taxation . Resultantly, as a tax planning exercise, taxpayers used to convert partnership assets into individual assets either upon retirement or dissolution, contending that no capital gains tax was payable in relation to the same
Corporate
Extension of limitation by Apex Court due to second wave of Covid-19
17 May 2021
The sudden onset of the pandemic Covid-19 in March 2020 had pushed litigants across the country into hardships with respect to the filing of petitions/ suits/ appeals/ applications etcetera and initiating and continuing legal proceedings before the various Courts and Tribunals.
Corporate
Contract labour – New dynamics under new Labour Code
17 May 2021
In the recent past, the engagement of contract labour has witnessed a spike across various sectors, both in the manufacturing as well as service sectors. Presently, the framework of the contract labour is regulated by Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970 (‘CLRA Act’). This may continue for one more year, as implementation of new Labour Codes may get delayed due to the massive second wave of Covid-19 across the country.
Intellectual Property
Exploring TRIPS Covid-19 waiver: Is the remedy effective?
14 May 2021
The unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc by not only taking countless lives but also by robbing the families of their means to livelihood. Countries across the world are grappling with both economic and social breakdown. While vaccinations have started in most countries, there is a glaring difference in accessibility and affordability of vaccines, drugs and other resources required to combat Covid-19 pandemic between the developed, developing and least developed countries.
International Trade & WTO
ADD and CVD on goods removed from SEZ to DTA – ‘Missing link’ filled by Finance Act, 2021
28 April 2021
Union Budget 2021-22 (‘Budget’) was one of the most anticipated budgets given that it was the first Union Budget to be presented after the onset of the COVID pandemic. In the Budget, while the Finance Minister announced the repeal/suspension of a number of existing anti-dumping duties (‘ADD’) and countervailing duties (‘CVD’), the Finance Minister also proposed several legislative measures for strengthening the existing ADD and CVD mechanisms. With the recent enactment of the Finance Act, 2021