Business Law International (BLI)

About Business Law International

Published by the IBA’s Legal Practice Division, Business Law International covers the latest developments in all areas of business law across the globe, from M&A to employment, competition to tax, offering rigorous comparative analysis of how the law affects business in different jurisdictions and across borders.

Business Law International is edited by Peter Alexiadis, visiting professor at King’s College London. Peter is assisted by an editorial board of experts in international business law. Business Law International reaches approximately 16,000 leading practitioners around the world.

Articles aim to reflect and analyse current developments in all area of business law. You can find out more by reading our guidelines for contributors. If you would like to contribute to Business Law International, please email the Managing Editor at editor@int-bar.org.

If you are not a member of the IBA, you can find out more about how to join here.

Members of the Legal Practice Division receive Business Law International as part of their membership. PDF-only subscriptions are also available to non-members. Please email editor@int-bar.org to order.

ISSN 1467 632X
Pricing: £119 per issue
£322 per year, three issues per year
Five per cent agency discount available on annual subscription

Latest Issue - Volume 27 Number 1, January 2026

Challenges Lawyers Face as the EU’s Capital Markets Union Gains Momentum - Christoph Moser

The European Union’s Capital Markets Union (CMU), now complemented by the Savings and Investments Union (SIU), has entered a critical phase. After years of incremental progress and setbacks, including Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic, the project has gained renewed political momentum. Yet deep-rooted obstacles remain, including legal fragmentation across 27 jurisdictions, cultural differences in savings behaviour and competing national interests.

For lawyers, the CMU represents far more than a regulatory project. It creates both compliance challenges and strategic advisory opportunities across multiple practice areas, from capital markets and banking to tax, insolvency and sustainable finance. As the EU attempts to mobilise an estimated €750–800bn annually in private capital by 2030, legal advisers will play a pivotal role in navigating this evolving landscape.

This article examines the CMU’s evolution, analyses why integration has stalled and explores what the new SIU initiative means for legal practice.

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Women Leading Compliance: Strategic Governance and Ethical Leadership in Sanctions Risk Management - Polina Maksimova

Sanctions enforcement has transformed corporate compliance from a technical back-office task into a cornerstone of modern governance. As boards confront the expanding the reach of European Union, United Kingdom and United States sanctions regimes, compliance has become inseparable from strategic decision-making and ethical leadership.

This article examines how women in senior compliance positions are reshaping the governance landscape of multinational companies. It argues that gender-inclusive leadership, grounded in ethical reasoning and practical oversight, reinforces organisational integrity, improves board accountability and strengthens resilience in high-risk regulatory environments. The discussion integrates recent enforcement trends, comparative governance standards and real-world case studies that illustrate how inclusive cultures translate ethical values into daily management. Particular attention is paid to the dual expectations placed on female compliance professionals, to combine authority with empathy, and how this dynamic influences both the perception and effectiveness of compliance oversight.

The article introduces the concept of ethical governance by design, meaning that gender diversity and ethical reflection are built into corporate structures from the start rather than added later as symbolic commitments. By comparing EU, UK and US governance frameworks, the analysis shows that diversity is not simply an environmental, social and governance (ESG) aspiration but a structural component of long-term corporate legitimacy. In conclusion, the article positions women’s leadership in compliance as an essential force behind transparent, accountable and future-orientated governance in an era of complex sanctions and rising ethical scrutiny.

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Major Changes in the 2025 Revision of China’s Anti-Unfair Competition Law - Francis Yang and Zhang Chuanlei

In 2025, China’s Anti-Unfair Competition Law underwent a third amendment to address emerging challenges arising from the digital economy and evolving business models. The process of revision took three years and the revised legislation officially came into effect on 15 October 2025.

The 2025 revision introduces eight new articles and amends 16 existing articles. It clarifies the law on existing unfair competition practices, such as acts of confusion, and introduces new types of unfair competition practices, such as illegal data acquisition, involution-style competition and the abuse of advantageous positions in the market, into the regulatory scope. The revision aims to address emerging issues in the digital economy, tackling problematic practices, including data scraping, algorithmic discrimination and ‘involutionary’ competition. It also aims to strengthen fair competition, maintain market order and promote the healthy development of the digital economy. This article reviews the amended legislation.

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Material Adverse Change Clauses in M&A: The Risks of USMCA Renegotiation and Tariff Uncertainty - Alberto Córdoba and Eugenio Chinchillas

In an increasingly volatile global trade landscape, the stability of cross-border M&A is frequently challenged by geopolitical shifts and economic uncertainties. This article examines the critical role of material adverse change (MAC) clauses in mitigating deal risk, particularly within the dynamic North American trade framework shaped by the renegotiation of the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) and ongoing tariff uncertainties. It analyses how US and Mexican courts interpret these pivotal contractual provisions, offering practical guidance for M&A practitioners navigating this complex environment.

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The Peruvian Regulation on Artificial Intelligence: An Emerging System Aligned with International Standards - José Govea

This article analyses the recently approved Peruvian Regulation on Artificial Intelligence (AI), the first comprehensive AI framework in Latin America, in light of European Union Regulation 2024/1689. The article compares both frameworks in four key dimensions: (1) purposes and guiding principles; (2) relevant actors; (3) risk classification; and (4) obligations for providers and deployers. Unlike the EU Regulation, which establishes detailed technical standards, enforcement mechanisms and a sanctioning regime, the Peruvian Regulation introduces a low-burden model that promotes awareness. The article concludes with an explanation that this flexibility, though reflective of an emerging system, provides a favourable environment for early AI ventures and international investors.

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Case comment: What is the Relevant Jurisdiction for Cross-Border Healthcare Provided via Telemedicine? Court of Justice of the European Union Case C-115/24 UJ v Österreichische Zahnärztekammer (Supreme Court Austria) - Alison Choy Flannigan and Wolfgang Babeck

This article analyses the recent judgment in Case C-115/24 UJ v Österreichische Zahnärztekammer, which addresses the complex issue of jurisdiction in cross-border healthcare delivered via telemedicine within the European Union. Case C115/24 of the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) concerns questions about which national law applies to crossborder telemedicine services within the EU. The case before the CJEU submitted by the Austrian Supreme Court considered whether telemedicine services should be governed by the laws of the Member State where the provider is established or where the patient resides. The CJEU clarified that telemedicine services are subject to the legislation of the provider’s Member State, provided the service is delivered exclusively via information and communication technologies without simultaneous physical presence. The ruling further distinguished between telemedicine and in-person care, holding that local law applies to physical healthcare delivered in the patient’s country. This article highlights the implications for telehealth providers, who must ensure compliance with relevant national and EU laws when offering cross-border services.

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Previous issues

Business Law International Podcasts

Assessing the UK’s Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act

In this, the first Business Law International (BLI) podcast, Melissa Stock, Member of the BLI Editorial Board and a barrister at Millennium Chambers in London, invites a panel of experts to analyse the UK’s Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act, which became law in October 2023. The panel discuss the background to the legislation and its implications, including in respect of failure to prevent obligations and corporate liability.

Joining Melissa are:

Tim Harris, Podcast Officer for the IBA Anti-Corruption Committee and counsel at Cohen & Gresser in London, whose practice focuses on white collar criminal defence, including internal and regulatory investigations, regulatory enforcement, and financial crime compliance;
Alex Swan, Website Officer on the IBA Business Crime Committee and of counsel in the London White Collar Defence & Investigations practice at Greenberg Traurig; and
Shaul Brazil, Conference Coordinator on the IBA Criminal Law Committee and a partner at BCL in London, specialising in business crime and regulatory enforcement.

(Editor’s notes: This podcast was recorded in mid-December 2023. The podcast makes reference to the case brought by the SFO against former Barclays executives in 2019. All of those charged in the case pleaded not guilty.)

How to order the journal

Member of the Legal Practice Division receive Business Law International as part of their membership. PDF-only subscriptions are also available to non-members. Please email editor@int-bar.org to order.

ISSN 1467 632X
Pricing: £119 per issue
£322 per year, three issues per year
Five per cent agency discount available on annual subscription

Books for review

Please send details of books for review to editor@int-bar.org.

Guidelines for authors

Prospective authors should read the Guidelines for Authors and IBA Style Guide documents before submitting their paper for review.

Copyright and Disclaimer

Copyright: The IBA holds copyright in all articles, newsletters and papers published by them. If you wish to reproduce or distribute any IBA publication or any part of an IBA publication, permission must be requested in writing from the Managing Editor at editor@int-bar.org, and due acknowledgment given.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in journals, newsletters and papers are those of the contributors, and not necessarily those of the International Bar Association

International Bar Association is incorporated as a Not-for-Profit Corporation under the laws of the State of New York in the United States of America and is registered with the Department of State of the State of New York with registration number 071114000655 - and the liability of its members is limited. Its registered address in New York is c/o Capitol Services Inc, 1218 Central Avenue, Suite 100, Albany, New York 12205.

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