Author Archives: JWPwordpress
Private Client Commission session, AIJA Annual Congress
“The Art of Dealing with Art” – Speaker
September 2nd, 2015 – London, England
Mr. Wilson spoke at the Private Client Commission session on the topic of “The Art of Dealing with Art” from the perspective of Sri Lanka.
JOHN WILSON PARTNERS had contributed to the Private Client Commission general report on the topic for 2015.
The session focused on cultural property and the art market and considered the issues which arise in connection with the ownership and acquisition of artworks, (including cultural heritage schemes and the recovery of stolen art), as well as succession planning.
The session took place at the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square, which houses one of the greatest collections of paintings in the world. Mr. Wilson addressed various aspects of the topic including import and export regulations, and licenses.
Key speakers included legal experts from a variety of jurisdictions including the U.K., Switzerland, Brazil, Hungary and France.
Commonwealth Law Conference Bi-Annual Conference
“Child Abduction” – Speaker
April 14th, 2015 – Glasgow, Scotland
Mr. Wilson spoke on the Child Abduction session where he spoke on the Sri Lankan Experience of the Hague Convention on International Child Abduction. His presentation explained the main features of the law that was passed to give effect to the Hague Convention and the various cases that have been filed in terms of the said legislation and concluded with recommendations for the better implementation of Convention in Sri Lanka.
Key speakers were Anne-Marie Hutchinson from Dawson Cornwell and Sulema Jahangir from the same firm who spoke on the topic from the perspective of Pakistan.
Labor Law Commission session, AIJA/ABA(SIL) Joint Seminar
“Discrimination in the Workplace for LGBTs” – Speaker
April 10th, 2015 – Brighton, England
Mr. Wilson was a speaker at the Employment Law session of the above mentioned conference titled “the HNW Same Sex Family – going global” and spoke on the topic of “Discrimination in the Workplace for LGBTs”.
The session was in the format of a hypothetical scenario where panelists were requested to address the issue and factual scenariofrom the perspective of their respective jurisdictions. The hypothetical factual scenario was where a gay associate (who had reached the glass ceiling) of a law firm was told by one of this partners that they do not have gay partners.
Mr. Wilson’s presentation addressed the absence of laws protecting the rights of the LGBT community in Sri Lanka and in particular the absence of specific labor laws that prevent discrimination against LGBTs at the workplace.
His presentation also gave examples of the discrimination that was taking place at the workplace in Sri Lanka and what steps the Government was taking to protect the rights of the LGBT community.
Mr. Wilson was joined in his panel by speakers from leading law firms from England, the U.S.A., the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain.
LAWASIA Annual Conference
“Thinking Ahead – Estate Planning” – Speaker
October 4th, 2014 – Bangkok, Thailand
Mr. Wilson spoke on the topic of “Thinking Ahead – Estate Planning” where he spoke on wills, trusts, succession and the cross border issues that emerge in Sri Lanka.
Mr. Wilson shared the panel with speakers from Australia and Hong Kong
Private Client Commission and Immigration joint session, AIJA Annual Congress
“Movement of High Net Worth Individuals” – Speaker
August 27th, 2014 – Prague, Czech Republic
Mr. Wilson spoke on the topic of “Movement of High Net Worth Individuals” which addressed primarily the Brussels IV Regulation. Mr. Wilson addressed the impact of the Brussels IV Regulation on a third party country – Sri Lanka.
His presentation provided a brief overview on succession law in Sri Lanka, and the view on Brussels IV from the perspective of a third country.
Mr. Wilson shared the panel with speakers from England and Belgium.
IP and Entertainment Law Committee Session, International Bar Association Annual Conference, Co-Moderator
“FRAND Declaration – is it a gentleman’s agreement?” – Moderator
October 21st, 2014 – Tokyo, Japan
Mr. Wilson was a co-moderator for the panel “FRAND Declaration – is it a gentleman’s agreement?” which was held at the IP High Court of Japan and an IP High Court Judge will participate as a speaker/panelist. The session focused on the patent litigation in relation to Fair, Reasonable, And Non-Discriminatory terms (FRAND) declarations and standard essential patents (SEPs). Issues that were discussed in this session included recent and important developments in patent litigation in connection with FRAND declarations and SEPs. The session also focused on various aspects of this important and topical issue from the points of view of not only courts and attorneys but also industry players and SSOs.
Key speakers of the session were the IP High Court Judge, in-house Counsel from Blackberry, IEEE, Noerr and lawyers from leading law firms from Australia and Japan (ex – Herbert Smith Freehills – Australia).
AIJA/IBA Joint Seminar, Private Client Commission session on“Foundations on Trust in International Estate Planning and Governance and Succession Planning for the Family Business”
“Migration of settlors and beneficiaries of trusts and foundations: common law vs. civil law jurisdictions” – Speaker
June 20th, 2014 – Berlin, Germany
Mr. Wilson spoke on the topic of “Migration of settlors and beneficiaries of trusts and foundations: common law vs. civil law jurisdictions”.
The session featured panelists explaining the basic rules of Private International Law with regard to trusts and foundations applicable in each of the panelists’ jurisdictions.
The hypothetical factual scenario raised concerned the immigration/emigration of private individuals from/to the respective jurisdictions and the fact that these private individuals have or would like to constitute a trust or foundation.
The following questions were addressed during the course of the session –
1) Why do clients want to set up a trust or foundation?
2) [Does your jurisdiction provide such a structure or a good alternative solution in order to respond to the needs of clients?]
3) [Would it be possible upon immigration to transfer the assets of a trust / foundation to a trust /foundation in the new home country?]
4) How differ trusts / foundations in selected US States (Brad) and [what upon immigration (whether intra US or otherwise)]?
Mr. Wilson shared the panel with speakers from prominent law firms from Germany, England (Farrer & Co) and Belgium.
LEGALWISE 3rd Annual Australian Family Law Conference, Speaker
“Selected Aspects of Sri Lankan Rules in Private International Law in the Context of Family Law and the Sri Lankan Experience of the Hague Convention on International Child Abduction” – Speaker
September 17th, 2013 – Colombo, Sri Lanka
The Legalwise Annual Family Law Conference is a conference for Australian practitioners to listen to insights from the very best family law minds from across Australia and of the hosting country and discusses current family law issues, and provides an advanced analysis of the year’s most important case developments.
The 3rdAnnual Conference was held in Colombo, Sri Lanka in September 2013. Mr. John Wilson was invited to speak at the said conference and provide perspectives of a local practitioner.
Mr. Wilson’s presentation was on “Selected Aspects of Sri Lankan Rules in Private International Law in the Context of Family Law and the Sri Lankan Experience of the Hague Convention on International Child Abduction”.
He spoke on cross-border divorce in Sri Lanka and the applicable principles and on the Sri Lankan experience ofthe Hague Convention on Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. He discussed the law and provide summary of the various cases that have been filed in Sri Lanka in terms of the Convention
Mr. Wilson shared the panel with a Justice of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka and a leading Professor of the University of Colombo.
IP and Entertainment Law Committee of the International Bar Association Session, IBA Annual Conference
“Trademark bad faith applications: famous and ‘almost famous’ trademarks under attack!” – Moderator
October 9th, 2013 – Boston, U.S.A
Mr. Wilson was a moderator for the session titled – “Trademark bad faith applications: famous and ‘almost famous’ trademarks under attack!” This session focused on different jurisdictions in Europe, the Americas and Asia and attempted to find answers to the question: ‘How famous is famous?’
The presenters discussed the latest cases involving famous trademarks, the scope of protection for ‘famous’ trademarks and the impact of social media and cross-border use on territorial recognition of famous trademarks. In addition, the session addressed the evidence required in their jurisdictions to prove the existence of a ‘famous’ trademark such as use of polls, etc.
The session also focused on how to define and fight abusive registration of famous trademarks in various jurisdictions. The discussions took into account the WIPO joint recommendation on the issue. Key speakers who joined Mr. Wilson in his panel included in-house counsel from Harley-Davidson, Fox International Channels, WIPO and lawyers from various leading law firms.
John Wilson was appointed a Director of the European Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka in May.
John Wilson was appointed a Director of the European Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka in May. The position follows a long period of involvement with the activities and legal work of the Chamber as In-House Counsel. In his new role, John will continue to be responsible for advocacy and public policy matters. The ECCSL is the only Chamber of Commerce in Sri Lanka which focuses on supporting and expanding trade, business and investment links between the EU and Sri Lanka.