11 exploited Pinoy workers awarded $15.2M in US human trafficking case
Manila Bulletin - 2016-05-18
Advancing Justice-LA said it has already secured special immigration status for the workers as victims of human trafficking, which also provides work authorization so the workers can begin rebuilding their lives and reunite with their families.

Simplified taxation for MSMEs
BusinessMirror. - 2016-05-18
Large businesses operating in the Philippines are insignificant compared to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in terms of numbers. This is based on a 2013 Department of Trade and Industry report which shows that, out of a total of 941,174 ...

Nokia makes a comeback to mobile phones, as Microsoft sells feature phone business for $350 million
Economic Times - 2016-05-18
The Finland based company has signed a strategic brand and intellectual property licensing agreement with a newly formed Finland firm HMD Global to develop Nokia-branded mobile phones and tablets for the next ten years. As per the agreement, Nokia has ...

Nokia confirms comeback via HMD agreement, smartphones and tables to be produced by Foxconn
Daily News and Analysis - 2016-05-18
Nokia signs strategic brand and intellectual property licensing agreement enabling HMD global to create new generation of Nokia-branded mobile phones and tablets Nokia has announced their intent to bring back the iconic handset brand to the mobile phone ...

Trillanes leaves Manila for business trip
Manila Bulletin - 2016-05-18
The Immigration officer who refused to be identified said Trillanes boarded a Philippine Airlines flight PR100 for Honolulu, Hawaii at 5:30 p.m. The source added that the senator said he was on a business trip. Trillanes was seen wearing a dark blue shirt ...

Results of nationwide labor dialogues bared
news.pia.gov.ph - 2016-05-18
QUEZON CITY, May 18 (PIA) - Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz has bared the results of government-initiated labor dialogues held nationwide recently. In her speech to keynote the 6th Workers in Informal Economy Labor ...

Change coming to DA, Pagcor, DPWH
Philippine Daily Inquirer - 2016-05-18
Silvestre Bello III was designated chief negotiator in upcoming talks with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines and former immigration chief Andrea Domingo was appointed head of Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. Duterte made the ...

DOLE cites SMB as labor law compliant firm
news.pia.gov.ph - 2016-05-17
STA. CRUZ, Davao del Sur, May 17 (PIA) - Labor Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz recently conferred a citation to the San Miguel Brewery, Inc. Darong Plant in the municipality of Sta. Cruz, for being a Labor Law Compliant firm. The recognition is the ...

Key posts reserved for rebels
Philstar - 2016-05-17
Duterte yesterday said he is keeping the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), and even the Department of Social Welfare and Development open to the Communist ...

Smartmatic told: Nobody leave
Philippine Daily Inquirer - 2016-05-17
Bautista said he did not see the need to coordinate with the Bureau of Immigration on the matter. In a memorandum, Guanzon urged the Comelec en banc, through steering committee chair Commissioner Christian Robert Lim, to issue an order for the prohibition ...

Intellectual Property Rights policy to help commercialise patents, copyrights: Government
Economic Times - 2016-05-16
NEW DELHI: The Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) policy will not only incentivise entrepreneurship and innovation in the country, but will aid in the conversion of copyrights and patents for commercial use, Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said today.

Last Man Finale Recap: [Spoiler]'s Dying Wish -- Plus: A Shocking Return!
MSN - 2016-05-16
Pat Brown, the seafarer (played by Sons of Anarchy vet Mark Boone Junior) who briefly took Mike under his wing upon his return from Space, was fast approaching the shoreline with a tag-team of hazmat-suited assailants bearing rifles, looking as though ...

Duterte: 4 Cabinet posts open to Reds
Philippine Daily Inquirer - 2016-05-16
DAVAO CITY--Presumptive President-elect Rodrigo Duterte offered to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) the Cabinet posts of agrarian reform, labor, social welfare and environment and natural resources as he welcomed the planned return of its ...

Remove investment barriers, PH urged
Inquirer - 2016-05-16
To date, the country remained "one of the countries with the most statutory restrictions on foreign investment," based on the OECD. "Nationalist provisions restricting investment arose in an era when the Philippine government was keen to assert its ...

Federal Judge Quits to Join Facebook
FORTUNE - 2016-05-16
six years ago. During his time on the bench, Grewal worked on high profile intellectual property cases between Silicon Valley giants, including the Apple-Samsung patent battle and the copyright clash between Google and Oracle. At Facebook FB, he will take ...

OFW remittances hit $2.7 billion in March 2016
Rappler - 2016-05-16
A preliminary report from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) indicated that total processed contracts reached 2.3 million in 2015, of which 1.2 million were deployed in the same year. In the first quarter of 2016, a total of 585,688 ...

Duterte offers cabinet posts to CPP
Mindanews - 2016-05-16
He added that he asked Perfecto Yasay, his roommate when he was taking up law at the San Beda College, to be the acting foreign affairs secretary even just for one year until Cayetano could assume a cabinet post. "He (Cayetano) might opt to be just a ...

Court bars departure of Purisima as he faces graft
Philippine Daily Inquirer - 2016-05-16
In a resolution, the antigraft court issued the order to the Bureau of Immigration to prevent the accused from leaving the country unless they seek permission from the court. The others who were barred from leaving the country are: dismissed Police Chief Supt.

Comelec: Coordination with BI not necessary for Smartmatic officials
Manila Bulletin - 2016-05-16
For the head of the Commission on Elections (Comelec), there is no need yet to coordinate with the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to prevent Smartmatic officials from leaving the country. "At this point, I think it (coordination with BI) is not necessary ...

Infosys veteran Subrahmanyam Goparaju joins LeaderAmp
Economic Times - 2016-05-16
At Infosys, Goparaju headed the intellectual property cell and Infosys Labs, where he was responsible for handling the firm's research and development strategy along with IP management. He was inducted into the executive council shortly before leaving the ...

Scholarships, voucher program to help ease K-12 birthing pains
Philippine Daily Inquirer - 2016-05-15
"Most of the students come from families who cannot afford college education, but still hope to pursue their studies and work right after graduation. Under K-12, a senior high school graduate is already legally employable," Landicho said. Fidelis ...

Prioritize long-awaited tax reforms, Duterte urged
Inquirer - 2016-05-15
You may also want to copy the idea of your friend, Sec. Mar Roxas, who proposed to review the estate tax as it amounts to "double taxation" since all income or wealth accumulated were already subject to income tax, among others. There are other equally ...

Immigration mulls over e-payment for visa extension
thestandard.com.ph - 2016-05-14
THE Bureau of Immigration will soon allow electronic payment through credit cards for foreigners applying for a visa extension. In a memorandum of agreement signed by Commissioner Ronaldo Geron, the bureau will accept credit card payments for foreigners ...

Doolittle and the Allyn Street Controversy
Patch - 2016-05-14
Not know all the fantastic restaurants and shops there, along with possible boating adventures to be had? To that end, I wrote Mystic Seafarer's Trail so tourists could follow me all over Mystic as I walked the trail I designed. Perhaps hotels and ...

Trump-Ryan quest for GOP unity threatened by deep policy divides
BusinessMirror. - 2016-05-14
WASHINGTON--Donald Trump and Paul Ryan left their high-profile summit pledging to unify the Republican Party, but it could take a while to bridge their substantial gaps on issues like immigration and free trade. Ryan meets with reporters on Capitol Hill ...

US Industry Body Welcomes India's New IPR Policy
NDTV - 2016-05-14
Washington: The US Chamber of Commerce has welcomed India's new intellectual property rights or IPR policy, saying it hopes the move is a "precursor" to the "concrete, structural" changes necessary for implementation of a strong innovation model.

GCC countries deny reentry to OFW deportees
Manila Standard Today - 2016-05-13
Foreign migrant workers, including Filipinos, who have been deported from any member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) will be barred from entering any other GCC country, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration said. POEA chief Hans Leo ...

POEA advises OFWs to use BM Online System
news.pia.gov.ph - 2016-05-13
In an advisory issued by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), the agency also encouraged Balik Manggagawa (BM) to use the BM Online System for straight online OEC processing. The e-appoint system is a built-in component of the existing ...

Tax Court allows Mikey Arroyo to travel to Europe
Philippine Daily Inquirer - 2016-05-13
a copy of which was submitted to the court and personally submitting a photocopy of his passport showing a stamp from the Bureau of Immigration upon his arrival. In a separate ruling, the Tax Court also dismissed the demurrer to evidence filed by Arroyo.

US plans new wave of immigrant deportation raids
MSN - 2016-05-12
WASHINGTON -- US immigration officials are planning a month-long series of raids in May and June to deport hundreds of Central American mothers and children found to have entered the country illegally, according to sources and an internal document seen by ...

President Obama Signs Defend Trade Secrets Act
JD Supra - 2016-05-12
The new law is the most significant expansion of Federal intellectual property law in a generation, and brings with it significant benefits -- but also new responsibilities -- for intellectual property owners and employers. And in this era of narrowed ...

Companies Engaged in Different Business Could be Competitors under the Anti-Unfair Competition Law
Lexology - 2016-05-12
In its Guidelines for Trial of Network-Related Intellectual Property Cases issued on April 13, 2016 ("Beijing High Court Guidelines"), the Beijing High Court has taken the second approach mentioned above. Article 31 of the Beijing High Court Guidelines ...

IFC, SEC to tweak Corporate Governance Code
Inquirer - 2016-05-12
Ultimately, the MOU between the IFC and the SEC "aims to raise market awareness of good governance to entice more foreign investment to the country." "By adopting good corporate governance practices, Philippine companies can enhance their ...

Bureau of Immigration to adopt online payment system
news.pia.gov.ph - 2016-05-12
Dela Paz, Country Head and Mr. Jerome B. Vinarao, Sales Manager, Partner Channel together with the Bank of the Philippine Islands represented by Mr. John Vic A. Bolido on 10 May 2016 for the provision of an online payment system. The online payment system ...

OECD investment policy review backs removal of FDI restrictions
BusinessMirror. - 2016-05-12
"The Philippines is one of the countries with the most statutory restrictions on foreign investment. It has more restrictions than any of the large Asean member-states with a score [on the index] almost as high as Vietnam--a country which is often seen ...

OECD joins calls for easing foreign investment limits
Manila Bulletin - 2016-05-12
The 34-member countries of the Overseas Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have joined the chorus for the Philippines to remove statutory restrictions on foreign direct investments in the Constitution and address under-investments in the country ...

Sin Tax Collection for the month of March 2016
news.pia.gov.ph - 2016-05-12
QUEZON CITY, May 12 -- The Excise Tax collection from the Sin Products (cigarettes and alcohol) for the month of March 2016 amounted to P8.09 Billion, consisting of the following: Decrease of total collection from Sin Products in March 2016 over March 2015 ...

ABS-CBN files TRO over DOLE Advisory
Manila Bulletin - 2016-05-11
ABS-CBN has reportedly filed a temporary restraining order with the Regional Trial Courts of Quezon City over the recent Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Advisory on the welfare of movie and TV workers. DOLE Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz ...

Forget the long lines, BI now has online registration for aliens
Manila Bulletin - 2016-05-11
The Bureau of Immigration (BI) will start implementing before the end of the month an electronic filing and payment system for foreigners desiring to extend or prolong their stay in the country. To carry out the project, BI Commissioner Ronaldo Geron ...

Political clans dominate local polls
Philstar - 2016-05-11
Among them were three new governors of Central Luzon - Amor Deloso of Zambales, Susan Yap-Sulit of Tarlac and Abet Garcia of Bataan - who were proclaimed by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) yesterday. Deloso defeated Gov. Hermogenes Ebdane Jr ...

Solon seeks labor code revision
thestandard.com.ph - 2016-05-11
The chair of the House Committee on Labor and Employment has sought to amend Presidential Decree 442 or the Labor Code of the Philippines, as amended, to provide regular employment to workers repeatedly hired on probationary status. Deputy majority leader Rep.

Solon seeks labor code revision
thestandard.com.ph - 2016-05-10
The chair of the House Committee on Labor and Employment has sought to amend Presidential Decree 442 or the Labor Code of the Philippines, as amended, to provide regular employment to workers repeatedly hired on probationary status. Deputy majority leader Rep.

Senate, House to set final agenda of 16th Congress
BusinessMirror. - 2016-05-10
Financing Companies and Investment Houses Cited in The Foreign Investment Negative List, except those in the Constitution; Modernizing the National Bureau of Investigation; Banning the Reappointment of a Regular Member of the Judicial and Bar Council ...

Changes to Amla, bank secrecy eyed
BusinessMirror. - 2016-05-10
the Panama Papers exposing offshore bank transactions from across the globe that may have avoided or evaded domestic taxation; the "derisking" phenomenon, where foreign banks are closing the accounts of our money-transfer operators abroad, which may ...

Manatt Nabs Ex-Stroock Tech Patent Pro In NY
Law 360 - 2016-05-10
Law360, Los Angeles (May 9, 2016, 9:45 PM ET) -- Manatt Phelps & Phillips LLP has bolstered its intellectual property practice in New York by snagging a former Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP partner with experience advising clients on software, wireless ...

3D Printing: Good Reads/What Executives Should Be Thinking About
JD Supra - 2016-05-09
There will be threats, including, of course, intellectual property threats. Gartner analysts maintain that there will be at least $100 billion per year in annual IP losses from 3D printing by 2018. Channing Flynn comes at 3D printing from a tax perspective ...

Groupon sues 'once-great' IBM over patent
Economic Times - 2016-05-09
"IBM, a relic of once-great 20th Century technology firms, has now resorted to usurping the intellectual property of companies born this millennium," Groupon said in its lawsuit. On March 2, IBM accused Groupon in a federal lawsuit in Delaware of ...

Villar: Next Congress must reduce tax rates for workers
BusinessMirror. - 2016-05-09
Villar, citing the 1987 Constitution, said "the rule of taxation shall be uniform and equitable. Congress shall evolve a progressive system of taxation." The lawmaker vowed to file the tax-reform proposal should he earn another seat in the 17th Congress.

Myanmar targets $8-billion FDI in fiscal year 2016-17
BusinessMirror. - 2016-05-09
Meanwhile, Thai and Myanmar labor ministers have agreed to proceed with a labor-cooperation plan to import migrant workers through a government-to-government agreement, says a senior ministry official. Labor Spokesman Theerapol Khunmuang said the plan is ...

Persistent paradox: So many jobs available, so many unemployed
BusinessMirror. - 2016-05-09
The Internet hosts numerous sites where job seekers can apply. Tens of thousands of jobs are also offered during job fairs organized by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and other government agencies, including local government units ...