Month: November 2011

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Anger Across the Atlantic: Flying to Europe May Be More Expensive Than Ever

                How many times have you heard a friend or a coworker lament their dream of visiting Paris or London be deferred by the expense of a transatlantic flight? Well, get ready to hear a whole lot more lamenting! Earlier this fall, the European Court of Justice’s (ECJ) Judge Advocate General, Juliane Kokott issued an opinion that the EU’s decision to extend its Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) does not offend other nation’s sovereignty or international aviation agreements.[1] Her opinion is a hard pill to swallow for international actors like America and China who stand to be hit by fines. International actors can then either pass the cost of the fines onto their customers or alter their operations to meet the requirements and pass that cast on. That doesn’t sound very non-threatening to sovereignty, does it?

                The Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS),… Read the rest

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“Friend” for Funding: Are social networks the future of startup funding?

Soon, entrepreneurs may be able offer their Facebook “friends” and Twitter “followers” more than just virtual friendship and updates on what they had for breakfast.  They may also be able to offer equity stakes in their business.  In an increasingly rare instance of bipartisanship, last Thursday (Nov. 3) the House passed both the Entrepreneur Access to Capital Act (“Entrepreneur Act”) and the Small Company Capital Formation Act (“Small Company Act”), each aimed at spurring small business growth through the method of “crowdfunding,” “a form of capital raising whereby groups of people pool money, typically comprised of very small individual contributions, to support an effort by others to accomplish a specific goal.” If approved by the Senate, the bills would allow entrepreneurs to use online social networks to solicit small equity investments in enterprises, a capital raising strategy that is illegal under current securities law. However, some warn that, if passed, … Read the rest

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World Business Chicago: Helping the masses or just a few?

 

Chicago, Illinois… ever heard of it? Apparently their mayor, Rahm Emanuel, doesn’t think enough businesses have, or at least seriously consider it as a place to set up shop. Incorporated in 1999, World Business Chicago (“WBC”), a city-funded nonprofit group, is the city’s economic development office, tasked with the duties of “coordinating retention, attraction and expansion efforts in order to spur and accelerate economic growth.” Emanuel has taken a specific interest in this office, roughly tripling its size since his election this past May. Wanting to stimulate Chicago’s and Illinois’ economic growth is warranted. You may have seen the “IL: Deadbeat State” headlines highlighting debts totaling $200 billion.

Despite such need for economic growth, Chicago’s Inspector General has been skeptical of the WBC, even suggesting in the 2011 Budget Options to eliminate the $1.4 million city subsidy the WBC receives. This article explores the three reasons the Inspector General has proposed cutting the WBC: … Read the rest

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The NBA Lockout: A Momentum-Killing Millionaire v. Billionaire Showdown

On July 1, the National Basketball Association (NBA) instituted a lockout when its collective bargaining agreement (CBA) expired and negotiations, which began in January 2010, stalled. Over the past four months, owners and players have made multiple attempts to reach an agreement with no success. On October 10, NBA Commissioner David Stern canceled the first two weeks of the season and stated that both sides are still, “very far apart on virtually all issues… we just have a gulf that separates us.” A number of issues have been discussed including: revenue sharing, salary caps, luxury penalties, guaranteed contract lengths, and player exceptions. The owners and players have three ways to resolve these issues: bargaining, mediation, and/or legal action. After bargaining failed, a federal mediator was called upon and, after a week of mediation, Stern cut an additional two weeks. If mediation also fails to produce results, owners and players could … Read the rest