The Government has released a draft Bill seeking to amend the century-old Indian Stamp Act 1899 in a bid to enlarge its scope and introduce numerous changes in the extant provisions, including introducing a definition of conveyance.

The commerce and industry ministry is likely to propose 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail outlets, according to an unnamed source in the department quoted by the Economic Times today.

The Supreme Court has ruled today that all Indian company-related cases should be transferred to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) from high courts and company adjudication bodies throughout the country, by upholding the validity of a 2002 amendment to the 1956 Companies Act.

Two far-reaching legal developments that will impact the transaction restructurings were published this month, following a Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) circular amending clause 24 of the Equity Listing Agreement and a Delhi High Court decision imposing stamp duty on court approved schemes of amalgamation.

The Union Minister of Commerce & Industry has released a new foreign direct investment (FDI) policy framework to rescind all previous FDI Press Notes and consolidate all FEMA, RBI Circular and Press Note regulations into one consolidated document.

Khaitan & Co has won a landmark order from the Authority for Advance Rulings (AAR) for the firm’s client E*trade Mauritius (ETM) to obtain tax exemptions under the India-Mauritius Tax Treaty on capital gains accrued from a sale of shares it held in an IL&FS investment.

In a decision that could have major adverse consequences in the practice of corporate law the Bombay High Court on 15 February 2010 has effectively declared that transfer restriction clauses like rights of first refusal, tag along and drag along rights, or put and call options in joint venture agreements and shareholder agreements of public companies are void.