Insights

The Congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (the “Committee”) is currently scheduled to announce its proposals on November 23, 2011. Rumor has it that among the proposals presently being discussed are changes to the current gift, estate and generation-skipping transfer tax laws. We believe two of these proposals merit your attention and possible prompt…

Client Alerts | November 8, 2011 | Estate Planning and Administration

Planning for the future, yours and other’s, is very important in today’s environment. There are some current estate planning opportunities that may not be available in the future. TUESDAY APRIL 17th IS TAX DAY 2012 Did you take any actions in 2011 that could trigger the requirement to file a gift tax return? Examples of…

Client Alerts | November 8, 2011 | Estate Planning and Administration

On July 22, 2011, in Business Roundtable c. Securities and Exchange Commission, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia vacated Rule 14a-11 promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the “proxy access rule” (the “Rule”), adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) in 2010. The Rule would have allowed shareholders…

Client Alerts | July 25, 2011 | Securities and Corporate Finance

The Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) has adopted a new rule, defining the term “family office” for purposes of exempting family offices from registration under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (the “Advisers Act”). Rule 202(a)(11)(G)-1, and Release No. 1A-3220. In adopting the final Rule, the SEC considered approximately 90 comment letters,…

Client Alerts | July 11, 2011 | Family Office | Securities and Corporate Finance | Hedge Funds

The SEC adopted rules today implementing the investment adviser registration requirements imposed by the Dodd Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd Frank Act”). As expected, the SEC delayed the registration requirement for hedge fund managers and private equity fund managers until March 30, 2012. The SEC passed rules today: amending Form…

Client Alerts | June 21, 2011 | Securities and Corporate Finance | Hedge Funds

Investment advisors registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission may charge performance fees only to clients who meet the definition of “qualified client” under SEC Rule 205-3. In Release No. 1A-3198, the SEC announced that it intends to issue an order increasing the dollar thresholds contained in the definition of “qualified client.” Currently, a client…

Client Alerts | May 18, 2011 | Securities and Corporate Finance | Hedge Funds

In November 2009, the SEC, along with seven other agencies1, adopted amendments to the rules implementing certain privacy provisions of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (the “GLBA”) and adopted a model privacy form (the “Model Form”). In order for financial institutions (including investment advisors) to fall within the safe harbor for satisfying their initial and annual privacy…

Client Alerts | April 18, 2011 | Securities and Corporate Finance | Hedge Funds

In a letter to the president of the North American Securities Administrators Association, the Associate Director of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) Division of Investment Management, Robert E. Plaze, stated that although the Commission’s staff anticipates that the implementing rulemaking under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank…

Client Alerts | April 10, 2011 | Securities and Corporate Finance | Hedge Funds

The Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) adopted amendments (the “Amendments”) to Part 2 of Form ADV (commonly referred to as the “brochure” and currently designated Part II of Form ADV).1 The Amendments are intended to provide advisory clients with clearly written, meaningful, current disclosure of the business practices, conflicts of interest and background of…

Client Alerts | January 24, 2011 | Securities and Corporate Finance | Hedge Funds

A recent decision by New York’s Appellate Division for the First Department, Gotham Partners, L.P. v. High River Limited Partnership, 2010 NY Slip Op. 6149, 2010 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 6223 (1st Dept. 2010), confirms that the wording of an indemnification provision must be very specific in order to afford indemnified parties the full protection…

Client Alerts | August 10, 2010