OCTOBER 2008 EDITION ARCHIVE
Legal Updates
Recent Case Decision – Partial Breach of Contract under Mexican Law
This past July the First Chamber of Mexico’s Supreme Court issued a decision contradicting prior judicial decisions holding that when a creditor sues for partial or total breach of contract, such creditor may not simultaneously compel performance of the contract and payment of a contractual penalty clause, but must instead choose only one of the two remedies. The above was based on review of Article 88 of Mexico’s Commerce Code (Codigo de Comercio), which does not distinguish between... [Read More]Mexico’s Federal Government Announces Contest to Identify the Least Useful Government Procedure
On September 26, 2008 the rules for a Contest to identify the least useful government procedure were published in Mexico’s Official Journal of the Federation (Diario Oficial de la Federacion). At the request of President Felipe Calderon and the non-governmental organization Transparencia Mexicana, the contest seeks to determine and identify those federal, state and municipal governmental procedures that should be eliminated or revised in order to better serve the general public, all within... [Read More]Update on Elimination of Mexican Regulations (Normas) by the Federal Department of the Economy
As noted in issue 56 of the CCN Mexico Report, as part of the 2008 National Regulation Program, Mexico’s Department of the Economy has reviewed the potential elimination of close to 50% of currently existing Mexican Regulations (Normas), particularly those that could serve as a barrier to trade. Between August and today, the Department of the Economy has published around 26 notices on its procedural review cancelling more than 1,300 Mexican Regulations, effective this year. The National Regulation... [Read More]Business & Politics Outlook
300 Palabras - Mexico’s View of the U.S. Presidential Election
Opinion by Dr. Mario Melgar-Adalid The presidential election in the United States has captured public opinion in Mexico. The importance of the U.S. - Mexico relationship is clear, and presidential elections are a recurring theme in political, business, media, academic and public affairs in general. Notwithstanding this fact, the Mexican general public’s knowledge of candidates Barack Obama and John McCain is quite limited. Neither of the presidential candidates mentioned Mexico or Latin America... [Read More]First Effects of the World Financial Crisis Hit Mexico
During recent days the world financial crisis has begun to show effects in Mexico. Not only has the Mexican stock exchange index fallen, in step with markets in the United States, Europe and Asia, Mexico’s currency has experienced a considerable decrease in value. On October 8th, the exchange rate exceeded $14.00 pesos per dollar, which shows – albeit temporarily – a loss of more than 40% of the value of Mexico’s currency. In light of the current situation, the Mexican central... [Read More]Energy Reforms Lack Consensus
With the world economy appearing quite uncertain, Mexico’s political leaders remain unable to reach agreement on substantive points of the proposed energy reform, which has been pursued for almost two years by Mexico’s president. To gain a consensus on serious and substantial modernization of Petróleos Mexicanos (PEMEX), the largest publicly owned enterprise in Mexico, it is absolutely necessary to have common agreement on not only the pending technical questions, but also the... [Read More]Economic Indicators
Pesos/Dollar Exchange Rate
The quoted exchange rate as of October 9, 2008 was $12.12 pesos per dollar.Mexican Stock Exchange
The Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) closed on October 9, 2008 at 20,310.20 points.Interest Rates
On October 9, 2008, the Average Interbank Interest Rate (TIEE) for a 28-day period was at 8.66%.Mexico IP Info
IP Notes – Nullification of Trademark
Article 151 of Mexico’s Industrial Property Law (Ley de Propiedad Industrial) establishes five causes for which one may request nullification of a trademark, provided a party has standing to obtain a nullity decision. Of the five causes, two are related to trademarks granted in violation of the law, and trademarks obtained by agents, representatives and distributors of a foreign trademark owner. Such causes may be filed at any time, which is to say there is no time limit for filing a nullity... [Read More]