Dublin Solicitors

Generation Gmail poses major risk to firms’ security

2011-02-27T13:21:00.000-08:00

Some 85pc of workers under 25 admit that they send work-related emails or documents to or from personal email accounts like Gmail or Hotmail. ‘Generation Gmail’ finds corporate mailbox sizes too constrained and work around this hurdle.

Results from an international research project commissioned by Mimecast have revealed that offices are being compromised by an emerging ‘Generation Gmail’ of corporate email users.
A new cohort of social media savvy employees, Generation Gmail, displays a particular frustration with corporate email restrictions, complaining that mailbox sizes are too constrained and that they will readily “work around” using personal email to be as productive and flexible as possible.
The findings have revealed that corporate email users under the age of 25 are putting businesses at risk with a slapdash attitude to company intellectual property (IP) flowing outside the organisation and being stored on public servers. Use of personal email for work purposes is pervasive, with 85pc of under 25s admitting that they send work related emails or documents to or from personal email accounts, the highest of all age groups.
Mimecast commissioned Loudhouse, an independent marketing research consultancy, to conduct a survey to investigate how attitudes to work email use are evolving and how progressive employers are managing this core communication channel. The research comprised a total of more than 2,400 online interviews with corporate email users in the UK (1,080 interviews), the US (805), Canada (272) and South Africa (300).

Personal email is bleeding into the workplace

“With social networks and personal email a ubiquitous part of their life, the way email is used by this demographic is bleeding into the workplace,” Nathaniel Borenstein, chief scientist at Mimecast explained.
“So it is not surprising that expectations for workplace technology are shifting accordingly,” commented. “The results find workers frustrated with corporate restrictions and working around these using personal email accounts in order not to affect their productivity or flexibility,” Borenstein said.
In tandem with Generation Gmail’s appetite for technology – and instinctive desire to share and collaborate - comes a frustration with traditional workplace tools and behaviours.
Over half (51pc) of under 25s say if they had an unlimited work mailbox they would be less likely to send work emails to personal accounts – 11pc higher than other age groups.
The Generation Gmail report also found that:
·         More than a third (36pc) of incoming email to work inboxes is NOT work related
·         Over 300 work-related emails are sent per person via personal accounts each year
·         Typically around half of these emails contain attachments, meaning that the average employee under 25 will send approximately three emails a week containing corporate IP and potentially sensitive information outside of their corporate environment
·         Generation Gmail is particularly predisposed to personal email; 52pc rated it as better than work email in terms of mailbox size, compared to just 29pc of over 55s
Borenstein, one of the creators of the MIME standard, which makes modern email delivery possible, continued: “Email is a vital channel, indeed the preferred choice, of communications within companies today. Although more fanciful headlines would have us believe that email is on the verge of extinction – the reality is that email is embedded within company culture and will remain a core communication channel for some time to come.
“However, unprecedented change is afoot as a new generation of people who have had lifelong exposure to technology enter the workforce, bringing with them unique challenges in the provision and management of email and other technologies for companies.
“The proliferation of social networks and mobile devices has transformed the communications landscape within companies; employees increasingly mix and match technologies, using devices and platforms interchangeably to find workarounds that maximise their flexibility and productivity. Employers need to work out what they are going to do in the face of this cultural shift,” concluded Borenstein.

Attorney General’s advice sought on 'illegal downloads' powers for judges

2011-02-24T07:59:00.000-08:00

The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Innovation has confirmed that the gap in Irish copyright laws governing illegal downloads and the role of internet service providers (ISPs) is "being considered carefully" and that the advice of the Attorney General has been sought.

In October, UPC was successful in a court case over the implementation of ‘three strikes’ rules against illegal downloaders which were sought by the music industry’s big four labels, EMI, Universal, Warner and Sony. The judge presiding the case, Mr Justice Peter Charleton, held that laws seeking to identify and disconnect copyright infringers was not enforceable in Ireland regardless of the record companies’ complaints.
Yesterday, Siliconrepublic.com reported that a statutory instrument was believed to have been rushed through the legislative process and was due to be signed by the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation Mary Hanafin TD. The statutory instrument – understood to be in the hands of the parliamentary draftsman – would have amended the existing Copyright Act and given judges the power to grant injunctions against ISPs.
Siliconrepublic.com asked the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Innovation if a statutory instrument granting judges the power to grant injunctions in copyright cases arising from the three strikes case was being hurried through without political debate.
In reply, the department that neither confirmed or denied a statutory instrument was being pushed through said: “The situation is that in the wake of the High Court judgment in EMI Records (Ireland) Ltd and others v UPC Communications Ireland Ltd, the very serious question as to whether Ireland is fully in compliance with its obligations under European law is being considered carefully by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Innovation.”

Advice of Attorney General sought

“The advice of the Attorney General was sought and on foot of this, consultations are in train with the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources.
“It may be necessary for the avoidance of doubt, to introduce measures clarifying Ireland’s position under the Copyright Directive (2001/29/EC) in relation to injunctions.
“In relation to the general question of intermediary liability, the consultation on the EU Commission Report on the enforcement of intellectual property rights (Enforcement Directive – 2004/48/EC) may be of interest.
“Likely interested parties have been informed of this consultation,” the department said.

HP disappoints as forecasts are cut

2011-02-23T01:50:00.000-08:00

US computer giant Hewlett-Packard saw its share price tumble in the US last night after it cut its forecasts for the rest of the year. This triggered fears that the economic downturn would continue to affect the firm.
HP said its net profit climbed to $2.6 billion in the first three months to January 31 as businesses upgraded IT systems, but it also said computer sales to consumers lagged behind.

Contracts for services, such as hosting and maintaining business computer networks online in the internet 'cloud', also yielded less revenue than the company had hoped, though HP predicted its commitment to the sector would pay off handsomely.

Its net revenue climbed to $32.3 billion in the first quarter, compared to $31.2 billion in the same period a year earlier. Revenue was up 4% compared with a year earlier, while net profit rose 16% with the help of 'financial discipline' according to chief financial officer Cathie Lesjak. The earnings figures fell short of Wall Street forecasts.
HP estimated that its revenue in the current quarter would range from $31.4 billion to $31.6 billion and that net earnings per share would be from 99 cents to $1.01.

HP predicted that its fortunes would improve in the second half of the year as revenues begin kicking in from cloud services and a TouchPad tablet computer and two smartphones powered by Palm's webOS software.

Mahwah Police Chief James Batelli - parents should steal their kids’ Facebook passwords

2011-02-22T05:52:00.000-08:00

Some parents are friends with their children on Facebook so they can keep an eye on things. Those that aren’t, however, should hack, steal, or do whatever it takes to get their kids’ Facebook passwords, and they should not feel guilty about it, according to a New Jersey cop.
Mahwah Police Chief James Batelli recently declared that all parents should use keystroke-logging tools to keep tabs on every site their children visit, and every status update or photo they post to Facebook. Batelli, who has his own teenage daughter to worry about, seems particularly concerned about sexual predators and drugs that the social network could be encouraging.
“Trust sounds good. It’s a good cliché,” Batelli told NBC New York. “[But] to stick your head in the sand and think that, in 9th, 10th, 8th grade, your child is not going to be exposed to alcohol, is not going to be exposed to drugs is kind of a naïve way to go about it. If you sugar-coat it, parents just don’t get it. Read the paper any day of the week and you’ll see an abduction [or] a sexual assault that’s the result of an Internet interaction or a Facebook comment. When it comes down to safety and welfare of your child, I don’t think any parent would sacrifice anything to make sure nothing happens to their children. If it means buying an $80 package of software and putting it on and seeing some inappropriate words you don’t want your child to say. Then that’s part of society.”
Batelli is not the only one on the force that offers his extreme Internet-monitoring advice to parents. The Mahwah Police department has free seminars where detectives show parents how to install keystroke-recording software on home computers.
While I’m sure that all parents would at least consider using software to block certain sites from their children, spying on your loved ones is never the solution. At one point or another, the child will find out, and at that point it will be evident that the parent chose to lie and be secretive to their offspring. The Facebook “problem” can be solved without encouraging such practices.
In fact, Facebook has its own tool for parents who are worried about what is going on with their kids: the Safety Center. The webpage has general safety resources, as well as tips specifically for parents, teens, educators, and law enforcement. Palo Alto considers anyone over 13 an “authorized account holder,” so the company is forbidden to give access to others, including parents. Instead, Facebook encourages open communication in the family, and gives suggestions on good practices on the social network.

How Apple will crush its competition with iTunes Online

2011-02-22T05:50:00.000-08:00

What do these four music subscription services have in common? Each company survives on monthly subscription revenues. Each one has an iPhone/iPad app that is prominently featured on its home page. Each one offers a free trial that they hope you’ll love and that you’ll convert to a paid subscription when the trial runs out.
And under Apple’s new subscription rules, each one will soon be forced to start paying 30% of its revenue for each of those easy, one-click subscriptions it gets through an app on an Apple device.
In short, each of those four services has just been torpedoed by Apple. Each one is taking on water. The question now is deciding in what order they go under.
Where do people listen to music? On the go. Even if you initially sign up for a free trial on the web, you’re likely to use the subscription on your phone. As a Rhapsody spokesperson told me last December, “Mobile is everything, and people are increasingly using their mobile devices like Swiss army knives—buying an expensive new (closed) device limits the addressable market. In fact, it was being tied to certain devices that posed challenges to Rhapsody in the past.”
This is a completely new challenge. Yes, Apple says it won’t take a cut if you place your order elsewhere. But they’ve made it inevitable that most of those subscriptions will come from the app.
If you decide to convert a trial to a paid subscription, where are you going to do the transaction? Will you use the easy one-click button on your iPhone? Or will you open your web browser, navigate to the sign-up page, and pay the exact same price after you enter a page full of details including your credit card number, CVV code, and billing information, and then go back to your iPhone to complete the process?

Google snaps up Dublin's landmark Montevetro development

2011-02-17T10:16:00.000-08:00

Google has bought Dublin's tallest commercial office building for almost €100m in cash.

The global internet search engine firm snapped up the landmark 15-storey Montevetro development, which had been on the books of the State's bad bank.
The National Asset Management Agency (Nama) would not disclose the profit it made on the deal, but confirmed it recovered in excess of the combined amount of the money paid to acquire the loan and additional funding spent to complete the building, at Grand Canal Dock.

Chairman Frank Daly said the successful completion and sale of Montevetro reflected the positive potential of Nama to support the commercial property market in Ireland.

He said: "Nama played an intrinsic part in brokering the deal between purchaser and seller and in putting this deal together.
"I believe the sale of a building of the size of 210,000 sq ft will be seen as a very positive sign for the future of the Irish commercial property market."
Construction work on the landmark building started in March 2008 but the finance for the project has been overseen by Nama since last April.
It was developed by Real Estate Opportunities (REO), the property investment and development group, and reaches 67 metres high.

The €99.9m sale of Montevetro to Google was agreed after year-long discussions between the multinational and REO's investment adviser, Treasury Holdings.

Completion of the transaction is expected soon.
John Herlihy, head of Google in Ireland, said the firm now has the space and flexibility to support future operations at its EMEA headquarters.

"The majority of the team in Dublin help businesses across Europe, the Middle East and Africa to take advantage of the internet," he said.

"It's already a big part of the way Europe does business but there's still a long way to go."
REO chairman Ray Horney said the transaction is one of the largest sales of commercial property in Ireland in several years.
He said: "The company believes it has achieved a very good price in the current market environment.
"Google is an iconic name globally and its decision to buy Montevetro is good news for Ireland and we wish them every success in their new home."
REO also announced the international oil and gas exploration company, Tullow Oil plc, plans to lease 48,000 sq ft in the Central Park development in Leopardstown, Dublin.

Council Implementing Decision of 7 December 2010 on granting Union financial assistance to Ireland

2011-02-17T10:01:00.001-08:00

2011/77/EU: Council Implementing Decision of 7 December 2010 on granting Union financial assistance to Ireland

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2011:030:0034:0039:EN:PDF

Child porn blocking won't work, says Euro ISPs

2011-02-16T15:00:00.000-08:00

The EU’s attempts to get all member states to block porn at ISP level would do little to stop the problem, the European Internet Services Providers Association (EuroISPA) has said.
According to EuroISP president, Malcolm Hutty, the Directive on child exploitation, due to be voted on by the Parliament next month, blocking would only distract from the bigger issue of removing the imagery from host servers.

"In order to make the Directive as strong as possible, emphasis must be placed on making swift notice and take-down of child sexual abuse material focused and effective,” Hutty was reported to have said.

“Blocking, as an inefficient measure, should be avoided. Law enforcement authorities’ procedures for rapid communication to Internet Hosting Providers of such illegal material must be reviewed and bottlenecks eliminated," he added.

Critics have pointed out that blocking, currently used by all large ISPs in the UK from a list of child porn websites maintained by the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), can be circumvented by paedophiles in a number of ways, including undocumented websites, FTP servers and P2P networks.
The problem is that the alternative approach suggested by critics – tackling the source servers and the networks themselves – requires more police time and, when servers are not in the EU, government involvement. The proposed EU Directive acknowledges this in Article 21 without specifying how it will be achieved. Digital rights groups have also expressed concern in recent days about possible unintended consequences of proposals.

Interestingly, Swedish company NetClean has been marketing an alternative to flawed site list blocking in the form of its ProActive system which fingerprints, identifies and blocks individual known images clinked to a police database. Originally, this had to be implemented at the gateway level and was designed to work in a business rather than ISP content.
More recently, the company has released NetClean Analyze for police forces, and WhiteBox for ISPs, which uses the IWF list to filter addresses.
But the idea behind ProActive might offer a possible future avenue for blocking of illegal images, namely the blocking of real images rather than the sites assumed to be serving them.

EU Concerned About Hungarian Law to Register Bloggers

2011-02-16T14:56:00.000-08:00

Europe's Digital Agenda Commissioner has joined the debate on Hungary's controversial new media law which many fear damages freedom of expression.

Speaking to Parliament on Tuesday, Commissioner Neelie Kroes said that the recently adopted Hungarian Media Act raises specific concerns regarding "the respect for the fundamental media freedoms such as freedom of expression and media pluralism." There are also worries in Brussels that the law does not comply with the E.U. Audiovisual and Media Services Directive.

Critics say that the Hungarian law, which came into force on Jan. 1, will jeopardize fundamental rights by requiring all media, even forums and blogs, to register with the authorities.

"The proportionality of a requirement that all online audiovisual media need to be registered needs to be examined," Kroes said.

The law also requires balanced coverage of national and European events, meaning that individual bloggers could face fines if they are deemed "unbalanced."

The European Commission will make a full legal assessment of Hungary's new law as soon as official notification of the law is received. Meanwhile, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has said that the law would be amended if necessary after the Commission's judgment.

On Monday, European Economic and Social Committee President Staffan Nilsson called on the Commission and the Hungarian government to involve press and publishers' associations in the debate.

Hungary

took over the rolling six-month presidency of the European Union on January

N.Y. Courts Grapple With Discovery of Social Media Posts

2011-02-16T14:50:00.000-08:00

Use of social media tools such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and LinkedIn, as well as many lesser-known or more specialized online media services, has become pervasive throughout every segment of society. For example, in excess of 500 million people around the world are registered with Facebook, and there are over 100 million tweets on Twitter every day.

Social media allows users to post their photos and videos online, and discuss their lives, health, and interests. Indeed, Facebook recognizes that "one of the primary reasons people use Facebook is to share content with others. Examples include when you update your status, upload or take a photo, upload or record a video, share a link, create an event or a group, make a comment, write something on someone's Wall, write a note, or send someone a message." Sharing this personal information can be virtually instantaneous and, of course, worldwide.

That, as might be expected, can lead to a host of litigation issues, including whether information that parties to a lawsuit have made available via social media is discoverable. The recent decision in Romano v. Steelcase Inc. sheds significant light on that issue under New York law.

Analysis of the discoverability of social media content begins with CPLR 3101, which provides for full disclosure of all nonprivileged matter that is both material and necessary to the defense or prosecution of an action. Generally speaking, trial courts have broad discretion when supervising pretrial discovery, including in determining what is "material and necessary."

Courts have decided that something is "necessary" for purposes of pretrial discovery when it is needed, even if it is not indispensable. Courts have said that, together, the "material and necessary" standard should be interpreted liberally, requiring disclosure of any facts bearing on the controversy that will assist preparation for trial by sharpening the issues and reducing delay and prolixity. The test is one of "usefulness and reason."

Courts decide discovery requests on a case-by-case basis, keeping in mind what they refer to as the "strong public policy" in favor of open disclosure. If a court finds that the information sought is sufficiently related to the issues in litigation so as to make the effort to obtain it in preparation for trial reasonable, then they typically will permit discovery. That may very well be the result even if the information sought might not be admissible at trial as pretrial discovery extends not only to proof that is admissible, but also to matters that "may lead to the disclosure of admissible proof."

The court considered all of these principles when it concluded that disclosure was warranted in Romano.

The plaintiff in Romano brought suit against Steelcase for personal injuries she claimed she suffered. According to Steelcase, its review of the public portions of the plaintiff's MySpace and Facebook pages revealed that the plaintiff had an active lifestyle during the time period she claimed her injuries prohibited such activity.

In light of this, Steelcase said it had sought to question the plaintiff at her deposition regarding her MySpace and Facebook accounts, but to no avail. Following those depositions, Steelcase served the plaintiff with a Notice for Discovery and Inspection requesting, among other things, "authorizations to obtain full access to and copies of Plaintiff's current and historical records/information on her Facebook and MySpace accounts."

The plaintiff refused to provide the requested authorizations, and Steelcase applied for an order granting it access to the plaintiff's current and historical Facebook and MySpace pages and accounts, including all deleted pages and related information. Steelcase argued that the plaintiff had placed certain information on these social networking sites that it believed was inconsistent with claims she was making with respect to the extent and nature of her injuries, especially with respect to her claims for loss of enjoyment of life.

The court agreed with Steelcase and granted its application. The court explained that plaintiffs who place their physical condition in controversy may not shield from disclosure material that is necessary to the defense of the action. Accordingly, it continued, in an action seeking damages for personal injuries, discovery generally is permitted with respect to materials that may be relevant both to the issue of damages and the extent of a plaintiff's injury. That includes, the court added, a plaintiff's claim for loss of enjoyment of life.

The court explained that the plaintiff claimed that she had sustained permanent injuries as a result of an accident and that she could no longer participate in certain activities or that these injuries had affected her enjoyment of life. In the court's view, the information sought by Steelcase regarding the plaintiff's Facebook and MySpace accounts was "both material and necessary" to Steelcase's defense of the lawsuit, and/or could lead to admissible evidence.

In this regard, the court said, it appeared that the plaintiff's public profile page on Facebook showed her smiling happily in a photo outside her home despite her claim that she had sustained permanent injuries and was largely confined to bed.

In light of the fact that the public portions of the plaintiff's social networking sites contained material that apparently was contrary to her claims and deposition testimony, there was "a reasonable likelihood" that the private portions of her sites might contain further evidence, such as information regarding her activities and enjoyment of life. All of that, the court added, was material and relevant to Steelcase's defense.

The court ruled that preventing Steelcase from accessing the plaintiff's private postings on Facebook and MySpace "would be in direct contravention to the liberal disclosure policy in New York State." Moreover, it declared, denying discovery would condone what the court characterized as the plaintiff's attempt "to hide relevant information behind self-regulated privacy settings."

Interestingly, the court also rejected the plaintiff's privacy concerns, deciding that disclosure of her entries on her Facebook and MySpace accounts would not be violative of her right to privacy and that, in any event, any such concerns were outweighed by Steelcase's need for the information.

The Romano court reasoned that, because neither Facebook nor MySpace guaranteed complete privacy, the plaintiff had no legitimate reasonable expectation of privacy. In this regard, it referenced Facebook's privacy policy, which currently states that "no security measures are perfect or impenetrable. We cannot control the actions of other users with whom you share your information. We cannot guarantee that only authorized persons will view your information. We cannot ensure that information you share on Facebook will not become publicly available."

Thus, the court decided, because the plaintiff knew that her information might become publicly available, she could not claim that she had a reasonable expectation of privacy. The court also noted that Steelcase had attempted to obtain the information via other means (e.g., via deposition and notice for discovery), but that they had proven to be inadequate. It then concluded that without access to this information, Steelcase would be "at a distinct disadvantage in defending this action."

'MCCANN' DECISION'

Notably, the only appellate division case to consider the issue did not order disclosure of the plaintiff's social network accounts, although it left open the possibility for a properly supported application to compel the disclosure at a future date.

Approximately two months after the Suffolk County Supreme Court decision in Romano, the Appellate Division, 4th Department, decided McCann v. Harleysville Ins. Co. of N.Y., which also concerned the extent of personal injuries that were allegedly sustained by the plaintiff.

Although not set forth in the opinion, it can be inferred that the defendant sought disclosure of the plaintiff's social media postings based on a general expectation that they would include information as to her activities and lifestyle during the relevant time period. Therefore, after direct inquiry at deposition and documentary demands were not successful, the defendant moved to compel the plaintiff to provide authorizations to allow it to view the plaintiff's present and historical Facebook account contents.

However, the court concluded that the defendant failed to set forth an adequate factual foundation to justify the discovery it sought and that the defendant was, essentially, just hoping to conduct an impermissible "fishing expedition" through the plaintiff's account in hopes of obtaining relevant information.

Accordingly, although the court left the door open for the defendant to renew its demand for an authorization for release of the plaintiff's Facebook account contents if a factual basis for it could be shown, the court tacitly rejected the proposition that by their very nature, social media postings contain discussions of plaintiff's activities and state of mind that are material and relevant to a personal injury claim.

The court signaled its intention, therefore, to hold the proponent of discovery of social media to what may be a difficult burden to meet if the plaintiff actively opposes it.

There is a clear distinction between the Romano and McCann decisions in that the Romano defendants relied on the public portions of the plaintiff's postings to establish that the material on the plaintiff's Facebook and MySpace account was relevant to her activities and state of mind. No corresponding showing appears to have been made in McCann, although it is far from clear as to whether this resulted from a failure to inquire by defense counsel or a careful lack of publicly available content by the plaintiff.

ETHICS OPINIONS

Regardless, before charging headlong into the social media of a claimant, care must be taken to avoid any ethical impropriety. The issue was addressed last year in a pair of New York ethics opinion.

In Opinion 843, the New York State Bar Association's Committee on Professional Ethics opined that a lawyer representing a client in pending litigation may access the public pages of an adverse party's social media websites for "the purpose of impeachment materials for use in the litigation." No doubt this was the type of investigative inquiry that was undertaken in Romano but was either overlooked or unavailable in McCann.

Indeed, what can an advocate do when a plaintiff's publicly available postings indicate only that social media accounts exist, but do not otherwise disclose the contents of what can be found on those accounts? How far can an advocate go, either alone or through an agent, such as an investigator, to gain access to a claimant's private material by, for example, seeking to "friend" the claimant?

The New York City Bar, in Formal Opinion 2010-2, addressed the question head on. First, it discussed the benefit to the legal system of "informal discovery" and the wealth of information that could reasonably be assumed to be available on social media websites. The city bar concluded therefore that an advocate could access public postings and even request access to "private" portions of a website -- i.e., request to "friend" the claimant -- so long as it was done without trickery and with full and accurate disclosure of who the person was. However, neither the advocate nor an investigator could misrepresent who they were or the purpose of their request.

CONCLUSION

Since the Romano ruling, Facebook has added an application that allows users to download "everything" they have ever posted on the site and all correspondence with friends "in a few easy steps." The ease with which users can access and download their own information may make requests for disclosure of the information that much more appealing.

Of course, each decision is going to be fact-determinative. However, at this juncture, New York courts appear to be carefully balancing a properly laid foundation for inquiry against the treasure trove of information that may be found once unfettered access to a party's social media postings is obtained.

Ireland's cost of borrowing is continuing to rise this afternoon.

2010-11-09T14:05:00.000-08:00

After briefly dropping below 8% earlier, the interest rate demanded by investors to lend money to Ireland for ten years stood at 8.14% this evening. The spread between Irish and German government bonds also set new highs for the seventh trading day in a row. Spanish, Portuguese and Italian spreads are also very high. Investor concerns over the euro zone peripheral countries' beleaguered finances have plagued the markets this week.

Bloomberg TV today focused its attention once again on the Irish debt and banking troubles.

Mark Grant, managing director at Southwest Securities, told Bloomberg TV that Ireland is going bankrupt. He said the country is running out of money and has only got about 60 days left of cash.
He said the issue is going to get down to whether the Government is going to pay the senior debt of the Irish banks or whether the EU is going to say enough is enough and let the banks go.

A spokesman for the National Treasury Management Agency described the claim that the country is running out of money as 'totally incorrect'.

'It is a matter of public record that this country is funded through to the middle of next year. To suggest otherwise is mischievous nonsense,' a statement from the NTMA said.

John Brynjolfsson, chief investment officer at Armored Wolf, also told Bloomberg that the Irish situation is certainly worse than originally thought and is continuing to worsen all the time.
But he says the sovereign debt problem is bigger than just Ireland and says it is an ECB problem. He says the weak point in the euro zone is the euro, which continues to weaken.

English law firm behind the petition to the have Irish Nationwide wound up

2010-11-09T05:39:00.000-08:00

English law firm SJ Berwin is behind the petition to the have Irish Nationwide Building Society wound up.

The firm is representing two unnamed holders of subordinated bonds. The winding-up proceeding is the first legal step in seeking to have a company placed into liquidation by creditors, under English law.
Most Irish Nationwide subordinated bondholders have not backed the petition.

A spokesman for Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich's Millhouse fund said it was not behind the case. Millhouse previously threatened legal action over the plan to impose burden sharing on subordinated bondholders.

A larger group of Irish Nationwide subordinated bondholders being advised by law firm Bingham McCutcheon is also not involved in the case.

SJ Berwin took the case in the English courts because UK rules give enormous power to lenders, if a court can be convinced a borrower is in default. London-based lawyers said Irish Nationwide could fall under the jurisdiction of the English courts.

The building society has branches in Belfast and London, many of its creditors are based in London and its bonds were issued under English law. That could be enough of a legal connection for a case to proceed.
Even so, Irish Nationwide says the bondholders have no case to bring. It says bondholders have not suffered any losses and the borrower has not missed interest payments. The Irish Government has offered 20pc of face value for similar Anglo Irish Bank subordinated bonds.

NAMA challenge to go to Supreme Court

2010-11-08T12:38:00.000-08:00

The Commercial Court has allowed one of two issues raised by developer Paddy McKillen in his challenge to the National Asset Management Agency to be appealed to the Supreme Court.

The appeal could go before the Supreme Court before the end of this week.
Under the NAMA legislation, there is an automatic right of appeal for Mr McKillen in relation to the constitutionality of the legislation.

The High Court had to certify that other issues he wanted to raise in his appeal were of exceptional public importance and it was in the public interest that the appeal be taken.

The court ruled today that the point raised by Mr McKillen's legal team that he had been denied his right to fair procedures because he had not been given the opportunity to make representations before a decision was taken to acquire his loans, was of exceptional public importance and could go to the Supreme Court.
However it refused to certify the point made by Mr McKillen that the European Commission's decision meant only impaired borrowers could be taken in to NAMA.

Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns said the relevant section of the legislation did not expressly exclude Mr McKillen from relying on issues that were not certified in his appeal. However, he said that was an issue solely for the Supreme Court.

Timing is everything.

2010-10-26T13:00:00.000-07:00

Sean Lemass is rightly regarded as Ireland's greatest ever Taoiseach. However, he was deprived of the leadership role by the unwillingness of his predecessor to relinquish leadership of the party. Nonetheless, he benefited from only being the sheriff for a short period of time. It is forgotten that he was deputy during the toughest years of the 1950s. This can be contrasted to the perceptions of Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern.

I strongly wonder what the general public's view would be of their respective Prime Ministers if they had not held on to power for so long. Tony Blair will remain in a good light with the majority of people in the Republic of Ireland due to his influence in the Peace Process. However, the perceived poor judgement with regards to the war in

Iraq

and his slowness to hand over power to Gordon Brown will forever taint his legacy. Bertie Ahern has suffered a similar fate due to his longevity, inability to explain his financial dealings and poor decision making after leaving office (drinking tea in a cupboard in order to advertise a cheap English tabloid).

Therefore, we must now look at the current government and ask the question as to when they should have handed the seals into the President with their ministerial Mercedes. Indeed, should they not make the call now? The hunger from the current government to hold onto power has probably been more damaging to their prospect of regaining seats around the Cabinet table after the next government runs its course. Brian Cowen could have benefited more from an early election in his reign in order to rebuild the party. We now have a situation in which Fianna Fáil is at it’s lowest ratings since the foundation of the State. The rebuilding process will take many years and will take place with a complete reconstruction of the party starting with each cumman. Ironically, it may invigorate the party as new young blood will have to be found and it may not be found from the traditional nepotistic constituencies. However, my main concerns relate to the rebuilding of the Irish economy and not the internal workings of the Fianna Fail parliamentary party.

We need the certainty of a long term government with a mandate to follow through with the necessary pain over the next four to five years. The painful readjustments must be made by a government that is not looking over it’s shoulder thinking about damage limitation. Minister Lenihan has clearly not done when he has made tough calls but the pressure of backbenchers worried about theirs seats will not help his case in arguing for the necessary cuts when the backbenchers will argue for their vested interests.

I have no doubt that Fianna Fail can regroup under the leadership of a new leader. However, the country needs to make a total of €15bn in cuts and it may be time for a strong government with a long term mandate to make these calls?

IBM to discuss use of IT in renewable energy and energy efficiency with Oireachtas Joint Committee on Climate Change and Energy Security

2010-10-26T11:21:00.000-07:00

Dr Lisa Amini from IBM will discuss her vision for the application of information technology in the area of sustainable and renewable energy and energy efficiency at the meeting of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Climate Change and Energy Security in Leinster House tomorrow, Wednesday, 27 October. Chairman of the Committee on Climate Change and Energy Security, Dinny McGinley, TD, said: “Dr Lisa Amini is a distinguished engineer and the first Director of IBM Research's Smarter Cities Technology Centre in Dublin. Researchers at the Smarter Cities Technology Centre focus on advancing science and technology for intelligent urban and environmental systems. Our meeting with Dr Lisa Amini will provide her with an opportunity to highlight how innovative technologies can lead to greater energy efficiency and help cut down on carbon emissions, while Committee Members will have a chance to question her on the latest developments in the use of IT to gain energy efficiency.
Transformation in the way people and businesses use technology could reduce annual man-made global emissions by 15 per cent by 2020 and deliver energy efficiency savings to global businesses of over €500 billion, according to the Smart2020 report by The Climate Group.
The use of information technologies in smart buildings, smart electricity grids, smart transport and logistics - among other industrial uses - can help slash annual global greenhouse gas emissions. The biggest gains that can be made from better use of technology are in power generation and distribution, buildings and transportation – three areas which contribute to the bulk of greenhouse gases.”
This meeting will take place in Committee Room 1, Leinster House at 2.30pm tomorrow, Wednesday, 27 October.

Whenever Irish politicians fear the people they put democracy on ice

2010-10-25T09:27:00.000-07:00

Whenever Irish politicians fear the people they put democracy on ice - Ryle Dwyerhttp://fb.me/MLDiP6Rx

Saturday, October 23, 2010

SINCE Dáil Éireann was established in 1919 there have been 125 by-elections. All but 11 of those were held within six months of the vacancy occurring. But the current Dáil has three vacancies, two of which are already more than six months old and the third well over a year and heading for a record delay.

The first by-election that was held after a six-month delay was a disputed vacancy in 1928. James Larkin, the first avowed communist elected to Dáil Eireann, was disqualified due to bankruptcy.

His case took some time to resolve as the opposition resisted efforts to call a by-election. Larkin had lost a libel case taken by the labour organiser William O’Brien in 1924, and he had refused to pay the costs, with the result that he was declared a bankrupt by the High Court that year.

He was therefore deemed ineligible for election to the Dáil on September 15, 1927, because he had not discharged the bankruptcy.

Éamon de Valera, the Fianna Fáil leader, sought to delay proceedings by referring them to the courts and arguing that Kathleen Clarke, the widow of the 1916 leader, should be deemed elected because she was the unsuccessful candidate with the most votes in the constituency, but the Government forced through a by-election. Cumann nGaedheal duly won the seat on April 3, 1928 – six months and little under two weeks after the general election.

Prior to the 1990s more than 94% of the by-elections were held within six months. Only six of the 108 by-elections overran that timespan. The longest delay was almost 10 months – from February 7 to December 4, 1945 when five by-elections were held on the same day.

Since the beginning of the 1990s the longest delay of all followed the appointment of Pádraig Flynn to the European Commission on January 4, 1993. The by-election was not held until June 9, 1994, which was more than 17 months later. At the time Fianna Fáil were in coalition with the Labour Party. Was the delay because Fianna Fáil was afraid of losing the by-election? Michael Ring of Fine Gael duly won the seat.

The last by-election won by any government party was back on July 20, 1982 when Noel Tracy retained the Galway East seat for Fianna Fáil in a contest necessitated by the death of John Callanan.

At the time the Dáil was on a knife-edge with Charles Haughey in power, partly thanks to an infamous deal for the support of the late Tony Gregory. That by-election was called just 35 days after Callanan’s death. Two by-elections have been held during the current Dáil to fill vacancies caused by the deaths of Seamus Brennan and Tony Gregory.

Those by-elections were held in conjunction with the European and local elections of 2009. George Lee of Fine Gael won the Dublin South seat only to resign from the Dáil in disgust eight months later – in February of this year. Martin Cullen of Fianna Fáil resigned his seat on health grounds the following month.

There are, therefore, three vacancies in the current Dáil because Pat ‘the Cope’ Gallagher had to resign following his election to the European Parliament on June 5, 2009. His seat has remained vacant now for 16 months and 18 days, which means that even if the by-election were called next week it could not be held until after the record delay to fill Pádraig Flynn’s seat had been surpassed.

It is also well over six months since the other two vacancies occurred. Such delays really undermine the very essence of representative democracy and the republic. Will some twit in government suggest next that they suspend the Dáil altogether for a term as a cost-saving measure?

Senator Pearse Doherty appealed to the High Court to ensure that the date for a by-election to fill the Donegal South West seat is conducted without further delay. By comparison with the hypocrites in Fianna Fáil, even Sinn Féin is now looking positively republican.

The three current vacancies in the Dáil were caused by resignations. Prior to Fianna Fáil’s entry into the Dáil in 1927 all but four of the 21 by-elections held during the lifetime of the fourth Dáil were necessitated by resignations or disqualifications rather than deaths. Henry Coyle was ousted after he was jailed for fraud in 1924, while Alfred O’Rahilly and Richard Hayes resigned because they had become disillusioned with the Dáil.

O’Rahilly – who went on to become president of University College, Cork – never actually spoke in the Dáil before resigning on August 1, 1924. For his part, Richard Hayes later became film censor and director of the Abbey Theatre.

The greatest number of by-elections ever held on one day was nine on March 11, 1925. Little over four months earlier nine deputies had resigned from the Dáil in protest over the refusal of the Cumann na nGaedheal government to reinstate army officers purged the previous year following the Army Mutiny.

History tells us Cumann na nGaedheal was lucky to survive an early vote of no confidence in the fifth Dáil, after one opposition deputy failed to show up and the vote ended in a tie, allowing the speaker to save the government with his vote. There were two crucial by-elections the following week to fill vacancies caused by the deaths of Kevin O’Higgins of Cumann na nGaedheal and Constance Markievicz of Fianna Fáil. Cumann na nGaedheal won both seats and Cosgrave called another general election.

The first three by-elections of the sixth Dáil were due to rather bizarre resignations. Probably very few people know that WT Cosgrave resigned his Dáil seat in Carlow-Kilkenny in 1927. He had also won a seat in Cork Borough, so he resigned the safer seat to make way for a colleague to win that by-election.

AS I mentioned earlier, Jim Larkin’s seat was declared vacant due to his bankruptcy, and Alfie Byrne, the colourful Dubliner, resigned his seat when he was elected to the Seanad. The government won all three by-elections. Even in those difficult times the Dáil was able to hold by-elections within six months. So there is no excuse for what is happening now.

Fianna Fáil is the worst violator because it has been in power for no less than 10 of the 11 by-elections that were delayed by more than six months. Of course, it has done its worst with the cooperation of the Greens and the Labour party. Moreover, when it comes to self-interest Fine Gael is currently demonstrating that it is prepared to play the same game.

It could have moved the writ for the Dublin South by-election to fill George Lee’s seat, but it is playing procrastinating politics too because Labour would likely win that seat. On this issue, Fine Gael has essentially jumped into bed with Fianna Fáil and the Green party.

All of this confirms the need for the kind of legislation introduced earlier this year by Fine Gael for vacancies to be filled within six months, but the Government blocked it. Hopefully, the High Court will now have the guts and integrity to defend people’s democratic rights. Otherwise, we are in even more trouble because all of the parties have demonstrated that our democracy is expendable to party interests.

Ahern Opens new Kilkenny Courthouse

2010-10-24T15:01:00.001-07:00

The Minister for Justice and Law Reform Mr. Dermot Ahern T.D., today officially opened the newly restored Kilkenny Courthouse. The restoration, overseen by the Courts Service and the Office of Public Works, cost in the region of €17 million to complete.

Speaking at the opening the Minister said "The Courts Service, which celebrated its first decade last year, must be congratulated for the ambitious programme of new courthouse development and refurbishment projects which it has rolled out throughout the country over that period. This programme has physically transformed the courts infrastructure throughout the country. These new and refurbished courthouses are a lasting testament to the commitment of the Courts Service Board and the Courts Service staff to the delivery of improved standards and services to all its stakeholders."

The works provide new and improved accommodation for all Court users and include two new courtrooms, judges’ chambers, consultation rooms for legal practitioners to meet their clients privately, victim support room, improved jury facilities, office accommodation for Circuit and District Court offices and a holding cell area for prisoners.

The Minister continued "Even though staff resources are scarce, through initiatives such as centralising the processing of payments and providing other e-government services including Small Claims Online and the electronic exchange of data with An Garda Síochána, the Courts Service will be able to continue to deliver high quality front line services to all court users."

The Minister concluded "The new courthouse here in Kilkenny is a great credit to the Office of Public Works and their architects who have once again done a magnificent job. I would also like to single out the conservation architects team from Bluett O'Donoghue who helped preserve the integrity of the past whilst sympathetically marrying the modernity of the new extension and atrium. The main contractor on the project was Michael McNamara & Co. who brought all the planning and design to fruition. While the traditions of the past have been respected and enhanced, I think you will agree the building is thoroughly 21st century. "

Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Constitution announces a review of the Parliamentary Power of Inquiry

2010-10-24T14:59:00.001-07:00

Article 15 of the Constitution Should the Constitution expressly authorise the Houses of the Oireachtas to hold inquiries so that it may exercise its parliamentary accountability functions effectively and advisedly? This is the key question that the Constitution Committee will explore in its review of the parliamentary power of inquiry announced today at a Press Conference in Leinster House.

Commenting Deputy Jim O’Keeffe, Vice-Chairman of the Committee said:
“The challenge of growing executive dominance, and concerns over lack of accountability, have led to a renewed focus on parliament’s power of inquiry.
This review will allow an examination of the powers of the Houses of the Oireachtas to undertake in-depth investigations into matters regarding public policy-making, administrative affairs and cases of maladministration.
In particular, it will address the extent to which legal obstacles to the powers of inquiry have frustrated the work of Oireachtas Committees. The Abbeylara Supreme Court decision suggests that there are, at the moment, significant limitations on the power of Oireachtas Committees to hold such investigations. This shows that the Irish Parliament has much less power in this field than its equivalents in almost all other EU Member States.
Safeguards for witnesses will form a key element of our review. In any parliamentary inquiry it is necessary for the Houses to observe due process and recognise and protect the rights of witnesses and other individuals affected by inquiries.”
The Committee will hold public hearings in Leinster House with expert witnesses, members of the academic community and other interested parties.
The Committee will also invite submissions from members of the public and interested parties. Interested individuals and organisations are invited to submit submissions in writing to the Committee by 3 December 2010. Views expressed in the written submissions and presented at the public hearings will contribute to the Committee’s deliberations and will inform its report, including conclusions and recommendations, which will be presented to the Houses of the Oireachtas and the Government.

Apple Reaching for the Cloud with MacBook Air and North Carolina data centre

2010-10-24T11:59:00.000-07:00

Steve Jobs says the MacBook Air is the future of the MacBook and the future of the notebook as well. But if that’s to be the case, the machine–and Apple’s ecosystem–needs to evolve a bit more to appeal to that strata of user tethered to the high-capacity hard drives that the Air has summarily dispatched.
This being Apple we’re talking about, that evolution is likely already well under way and perhaps–perhaps–being engineered at the company’s massive new North Carolina data centre. With its 500,000 square feet of data center space (currently, sources tell me that Apple is considering doubling that) the facility has been built for something. And what better use to put it to than the cloud services that might completely eliminate the need for high-capacity hard drives and give the Air storage to match its performance characteristics.

Were Apple to create the cloud-based version of iTunes that’s long been rumored–one from which users’ entire iTunes libraries could be streamed–and were it to bolster MobileMe’s iDisk and Gallery services with more-robust storage, even the 64GB Air might seem an attractive option to the high-end user. And Apple’s new N.C. data center, which is nearly five times the size of the one it operates in Newark, Calif., may well make both those things possible.

“We believe it makes sense to have a cloud service linking Apple devices to personal photos, videos, games, music and other entertainment–eliminating the limitations and expenses of excess storage,” writes Barclays analyst Ben Reitzes. “We believe such a service would only enhance the loyalty toward Apple and the benefits of using devices in its vertically integrated model.”
Saving to disk is slowly becoming a fixture of the past and, as Apple’s recently rejiggered Apple TV business model demonstrates, streaming is the future. Which makes perfect sense, when you think of the MacBook Air as the future of the notebook.

Judges back prenups for Britain: Traditional marriage laws are swept aside in landmark decision by Supreme Court

2010-10-24T11:41:00.000-07:00

The Irish Times indicated yesterday that the Family Law Bill will contain proposals for the recognition of prenuptial agreements in Irish law.

The heads of the Bill are currently being prepared, but there is no date for their publication.

This week the highly publicised Supreme Court decision in London ruled that prenuptial agreements should have “decisive weight” in English divorce cases. This ruling will have persuasive, but not decisive, weight in Irish courts.

The Supreme Court decided to uphold a signed pre-nuptial agreement by Katrin Radmacher which was challenged by her former husband Nicolas Granatino. She is a German paper industry heiress who is worth more than 100 million pounds and this was one case that was viewed as the pivotal test to see if such agreements and its likes can be enforced in English law.

This recent decision by the court will help the wealthy individuals to guard their money by signing pre-nuptial agreements which will be given “decisive importance” by judges in many divorce cases involving huge finances.

Prenuptial agreements are typically entered into when one party has considerable assets which he or she wishes to preserve in the event of a marriage break-up. Under both UK and Irish family law the combined assets of the couple are divided, though not necessarily on a 50/50 basis, when a marriage breaks down.
The UK supreme court case concerned a wealthy German heiress, Katrin Radmacher, possessor of an estimated fortune of £100 million (€112 million), and her French banker husband Nicolas Granatino, who signed a prenuptial agreement when they married in 1998.

The couple had two children. In the agreement he agreed to make no claims on her fortune if the marriage failed, which it did. They separated in 2006 and divorced in Britain. The settlement awarded him £1 million and the use of a home worth £2.5 million until his youngest daughter is 22.

Mr Granatino, then a mature student at Oxford University, challenged the agreement, arguing it had no status in English law. Pre-nuptial agreements are enforceable in US and European law, but have not been enforceable in English law, though they can have influence on settlements.
This week Lord Phillips, president of the UK supreme court, delivered its judgment, stating that the agreement should have “decisive force”. Lady Hale, the only woman sitting on the court, dissented, stating that a prenuptial agreement should be considered as only one of a number of factors which should be taken into account in a divorce settlement.
Lord Phillips also stated that courts would still have the discretion to waive prenuptial agreements if they are not fair or do not provide for the needs of the children of a marriage.
This case differs from most other British cases in that both parties were from other European countries where such agreements are routine, and also in that the wealthy party was the woman.