Latest news from Danowsky & PartnersSat, 18 May 13 08:47:38 -0700http://www.danowsky.se/en/Sat, 18 May 13 08:47:38 -0700Insurance company AFA has entered into an agreement with HSB regarding the acquisition of HSB's head office in central Stockholm. The property has about 11,500 square meters and is currently undergoing a complete reconstruction. The property has been the head office of HSB since it was built by HSB in 1939-40. HSB is the largest cooperative housing association in Sweden and is owned by its 554,000 members. Danowsky & Partners has assisted AFA in the transaction. http://www.danowsky.se/en/nyheter/afa_acquires_the_head_office_of_hsb/108Mon, 22 Apr 13 00:00:00 -0700Danowsky & Partners is representing Troms Kraft AS in an action for damages in the amount of SEK 1.7 billion against the former auditor of its Swedish subsidiary Kraft & Kultur AB. Troms Kraft AS is the parent company in a Norwegian group of energy companies. The group operates in Sweden through Kraft & Kultur which provides electricity to private and public customers in Sweden. The action was filed on 29 January 2013 in the District Court of Stockholm. In November of 2011, it was discovered that the official accounts of Kraft & Kultur had been incorrect for several years. As a consequence, Troms Kraft AS has been obligated to contribute additional capital to Kraft & Kultur in the amount of approximately SEK 2 billion. Troms Kraft alleges that the former auditor, during the audits for the years 2003 – 2010, has failed to note various significant errors and omissions in the accounts. The alleged errors and omissions are currently subject to a criminal investigation by the Swedish Economic Crime Authority. Troms Kraft AS claims that the former auditor has been negligent in the performance of her assignment by, among other things, disregarding various generally accepted accounting principles. The legal actions are directed against both the auditor and her employer Grant Thornton Sweden AB. Further information concerning Troms Kraft AS's claim against the auditor and Grant Thornton Sweden AB is available on Troms Kraft AS's web site http://www.tromskraft.no/om/presse/meldinger. Peter Danowsky, Esa Kymäläinen and Anna Smitt are representing Troms Kraft AS in the matter. http://www.danowsky.se/en/nyheter/troms_kraft_as_filing_a_sek_1.7_billion_claim_against_audit_firm_grant_thornton_sweden/103Tue, 29 Jan 13 00:00:00 -0800Danowsky & Partner has been named Law Firm of the Year among midsized law firms for the second consecutive year. The Law Firm of the Year award is given by the market research company Regi in cooperation with the Swedish Company Lawyers’ Association based on more than 1,500 replies in the largest survey of its kind among clients and in-house counsel. “We are extremely pleased to win this award, especially considering that it is the second year in a row” says Johan Lidbeck, MP. “It is a confirmation that our clients truly appreciate the commitment and unique competence of our co-workers.” http://www.danowsky.se/en/nyheter/danowsky_-amp-_partners_law_firm_of_the_year/99Thu, 15 Nov 12 00:00:00 -0800In two united cases the district court has imposed a SEK 500,000 conditional financial penalty on four defendants. The cases concern complicity in copyright infringement through the file sharing service The Pirate Bay (“TPB”). Four record companies and thirteen film companies (“the Companies”) brought an action before the court regarding imposition of a conditional financial penalty, according to paragraphs 53 and 53 b of the Copyright Act, on four defendants. The defendants were three persons, who in earlier criminal cases had been held liable for participating in running TPB, and a company which had provided internet connection to the file sharing service through a middleman. The district court established that in order for a conditional financial penalty to be imposable, users of TPB need to have made infringements in the Companies’ copyright to the works in question in the cases. Furthermore, it is required that each of the defendants has been complicit in some way. An additional requirement is that a conditional financial penalty is justified and proportional. The Companies were considered to have the right to litigate since they had the copyright to the works in question. In addition, the investigation presented by the Companies showed that copyright infringements had been committed at the time when the application for a summons was submitted as well as later. Regarding the complicity it is sufficient that it can be established in an objective meaning. Thus, intent or negligence is not required. The earlier criminal cases and additional documentary evidence were invoked in support of the complicity of the three natural persons. The district court considered all of them to have been complicit in the infringements. The company which had provided internet connection was also considered to have been complicit in the infringements. After being notified that infringements were being committed (among other things through a convicting criminal case) they had continued to provide internet connection. The district court concluded that the actions of the company should be considered as complicity in an objective meaning. The district court also considered the imposition of a conditional financial penalty to be justified and proportional. Counsels for the record companies were Peter Danowsky and Anna Smitt.http://www.danowsky.se/en/nyheter/conditional_financial_penalty_imposed_on_persons_behind_the_pirate_bay/96Mon, 05 Nov 12 00:00:00 -0800