Top 10 Headlines from All Regions The United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark (Copenhagen Conference), comprising the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP 15) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and fifth Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (COP/MOP 5), in conjunction with sessions of the UNFCCC and Kyoto Protocol ad hoc working groups. On December 23, 2008, President Bush signed the Worker, Retiree,and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 (H.R. 7327) (the "WRERAct"), which provides that owners and beneficiaries ofIRAs and other defined contribution plans who are required to takerequired minimum distributions ("RMDs") from their plans in tax year 2009, will generally be able to leave their money in their plans (hopefully to grow) without suffering anypenalty for failure to withdraw. The normal rules still apply for 2008. On January 21, 2010, the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (the "DOJ") announced that it had brought suit against pork processors Smithfield Foods, Inc. ("Smithfield") and Premium Standard Farms, LLC ("PSF") alleging that the parties‟ conduct during the statutory pre-merger waiting period violated the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (the "HSR Act"). Microsoft and the European commission have ended 10 years of fighting with an agreement over Microsoft's alleged bundling of its Internet Explorer browser software with its Windows operating system. This Perspective takes a short look back at tax developments in the U.S. and Canada in 2009 and offers a longer look forward to 2010 for possible developments affecting the U.S. and Canadian taxation of international companies and investors. Yesterday the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission (FCIC or the Commission), the bipartisan 10- member panel established by Congress to examine the causes of the financial crisis and the events surrounding the September 2008 financial market meltdown, announced the dates for its first public hearing, to take place at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, January 13 and Thursday, January 14, 2010 in Room 1100 of the Longworth House Office Building, in Washington,D.C. The US Department of Justice (the "DoJ") announced this week the clearance of the merger between Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc and Live Nation Inc, subject to certain remedies. It is requiring that Ticketmaster license its ticketing software, divest ticketing assets and subject itself to certain behavioural conditions We predict that 2010 will be remembered as a comeback year with significant M&A activity. While 2009 was a slow year in the M&A space, in 2010 the pickup in M&A activity will be considerable. Effective January 1, 2010, the federal estate tax and generation-skipping transfer tax have been repealed, and basis adjustments applicable to a decedent’s assets have been sharply curtailed. The federal gift tax, however, remains in effect, albeit at a lower rate (35% vs. 45%), and with the existing lifetime exemption ($1,000,000). The US Congress did not enact an extension of the estate tax before December 31, 2009. Accordingly, there is now a one-year repeal of the estate tax for 2010, subject to future Congressional action that might reinstate the tax at any time. | 
