Talent challenges ahead: It's back to basics for companies in 2023 after year of the big quit

India Inc will have vastly different talent challenges in 2023 compared to 2022. It is finally time to steady the talent game plan after three years of firefighting when companies dealt with uncertainties of the pandemic, unforeseen levels of attrition in sectors including technology, challenges stemming from hybrid and remote work, and accelerated digitalisation and automation.

Corporate Laws

Corporate India in battle-ready mode as Covid concerns return

1st January 2023

India Inc is gearing up with a slew of initiatives to stay one step ahead of rising Covid-19 cases. Companies are issuing advisories to employees to follow all Covid-19 protocols, facilitating booster doses to their workforce, conducting temperature checks at random, importing components in advance and ensuring the continuation of contactless services, industry executives told ET.

Corporate Laws

Order of stay/moratorium under the Companies Act, 2013 prohibits the initiation of any proceedings; Parties cannot be referred to Arbitration: Delhi High Court

30st December, 2022

The Delhi High Court ruled that the moratorium granted by the NCLAT, staying the institution of suits and proceedings against the Corporate Debtor, after the resolution process was initiated against it under Sections 241 and 242 of the Companies Act, 2013, was akin to an order of moratorium passed under Section 14 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016.

Delhi High Court: In a case where a petition was filed under Section 11 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 for appointment of a sole arbitrator for the resolution of disputes between the parties, a Single Judge Bench of V. Kameswar Rao, J. held that the moratorium granted by the NCLAT staying the institution of suits and proceedings after the resolution process was initiated under Sections 241 and 242 of the Companies Act, 2013 was similar to an order of moratorium passed under Section 14 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC).

Corporate Laws

31st DECEMBER, 2022

The tax returns of Donald Trump, former US president, will be made public. The return tax papers are expected to include the records of the returns he filed from 2015 to 2021, covering the presidency and pre-presidency period. A US House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee spokesperson released the information of the much-awaited news. The Democrats obtained the tax return papers of Donald Trump after the investigation and a lengthy court battle. The issue reached the US Supreme Court, where the decision was made in favour of the investigation committee.

The investigation committee obtained the papers last month. It released a report which states that Donald Trump was not audited for three years during his four years presidency by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), breaking the rules of the IRS.

 

International Tax

Auditors' red flag in time could have averted many financial misdoings: NFRA chief

31st December,2022

Many financial misdoings could have been detected and averted at an early stage if the auditors concerned had pointed out such instances to stakeholders in time, a top NFRA official has said. The National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) was set up in October 2018 and has more than 8,000 listed and other companies under its purview.

"Not only in hindsight but otherwise also, I believe that had many of the violations that we observe in our proceedings been pointed out by the auditors to the shareholders and other stakeholders in time, many of the financial misdoings could have been detected and averted at an early stage," NFRA Chairperson Ajay Bhushan Prasad Pandey told PTI in an interview.

Audits

KMPG UK appoints new head of law

31st DECEMBER, 2022

Professional services firm, KPMG UK, has appointed Stuart Bedford as its new UK Head of Law. Bedford is set to join the firm from Linklaters where, in his position as corporate partner, he advised on a broad range of deals across Europe, Asia and Africa, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and fund structures.

Bedford also spent two years as in-house counsel with BAE Systems. He moved to become a senior consultant for the technology and outsourcing consultancy, Grosvenor, and he also spent 18 months as a partner of a private equity firm focused on high growth companies, Leapfrog Investments. He will succeed Nick Roome, who has led KPMG’s UK law practice since 2015 and has now been promoted to take on a global focused role, concentrating on growing KPMG’s global legal solutions. Bedford and Roome will take up their new roles from April 2023.

KPMG’s UK CEO, Jon Holt, commenting on the appointment said: “We know there is a huge opportunity in this space to help clients succeed, and these leadership appointments position us well to accelerate that growth, both in the UK and globally.” Speaking on his new role, Stuart Bedford said: “I am excited to be taking on this new challenge and aim to build on the impressive strides KPMG Law has made in the past few years. We have a huge opportunity to build on the great work we are already doing at a time of accelerated change within the legal sector. I am very much looking forward to working with the team as we help our clients and the firm to achieve their ambitions.”

General

Mukesh Ambani outlines goals for GeNext in $207 billion empire

31st December,2022

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani outlined his ambitions for various businesses under his flagship Reliance Industries that are now helmed by his three children, in a clear sign that leadership transition was firmly underway at India’s largest company by market value.

Under elder son Akash Ambani’s chairmanship, Reliance Jio Infocomm should aim to provide “unique digital products and solutions” after emerging as India’s largest wireless service operator that rolled out world’s fastest 5G network, the 65-year-old Ambani said. He was speaking at an internal Reliance event, according to the copy of a speech shared by the company on Thursday.

Reliance’s retail business run by Akash’s twin, Isha, has “grown rapidly” with the widest and deepest reach in India, he said. The retailer should now aim to expand further, providing more jobs and revenues for various partners along its supply chain, according to Ambani.

General

31st December,2022
Tata Motors shall conclude the buyout of Ford India’s Sanand plant by January 10, 2023, the company said in a notification to the exchanges on Friday. The Tata Group flagship together with its Tata Passenger Electric Mobility (TPEM) had executed the so-called unit transfer agreement with Ford India Pvt Ltd (FIPL) on August 7, 2022 for acquisition of the latter’s manufacturing plant situated at Sanand, Gujarat.

This includes entire land and buildings, vehicle manufacturing plant along with machinery and equipment and transfer of all eligible employees of Ford’s vehicle manufacturing operations at Sanand, for a total consideration, exclusive of taxes, of Rs725.7 crore. As part of the transaction, all eligible employees of FIPL’s vehicle manufacturing plant have been offered employment with TPEML on terms, conditions and benefits of service similar to those that are currently availed by them, Tata Motors said in the statement.

General