Finland (e.g. Rovaniemi Court of Appeal): determined that all cases must be completed within 12 months.

United Kingdom (e.g. Manchester): differentiation in case complexity: 80% of small claims must be disposed in 15 weeks; 85% of fast track cases must be disposed in 30 weeks and 85% multi-track must be disposed in 50 weeks.

Norway: 100% of all civil cases must be disposed in 6 months, and 100% of all criminal cases in three months.

Dana Cary, HOLTROP S.L.P. Transaction & Business Law

 Today I was perusing through Barrack Obama’s website and stumbled upon his State of the Union Address that discussed his “All of the Above” energy strategy. In short, the idea behind this strategy is to develop all possible forms of energy in order to reduce our dependency on foreign oil and make strides in the “go green” environmental movement. This energy strategy promotes the use of cleaner fuels in our vehicles, the development of wind energy and solar production, the construction of new nuclear power plants, and the research of cost effective clean coal technology, among other go green incentives. While Obama’s “All of the Above” Energy Strategy is quite comprehensive, it is just one component of his environmental blueprint for an “America Built to Last.” This blueprint, outlined in January 2012, is a blueprint for the future—a blueprint for an environmentally-friendly America with a growing economy, thriving on renewable and alternative energy sources. In this blueprint, Obama wants to focus on doubling down on clean energy while additionally harnessing every available source of American energy. He believes that the more we invest in clean energy, the better off America will be–especially in terms of the environment and economy. While there are many components of Obama’s blueprint, the first aspect of his plan is to make a new lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico to move forward in producing safe oil and gas development. The Obama administration estimates that, from this sale, approximately 38 million acres will become available which could result in the production of 1 billion barrels of oil and 4 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. Other components of this plan include reducing foreign dependence on oil by promoting the safe development of natural gas and encouraging greater use of natural gas in transportation. To promote safe development, new rules will be created that require the disclosure of the chemicals used in the fracking operations on public land. The administration will propose incentives for trucks and busses to run on natural gas, and will find new ways to convert and store natural gas. Nation-wide research competitions will be created to engage our most renowned scientists and engineers to discover new ways of harnessing natural gas. One of the biggest themes in Obama’s blueprint is his commitment to clean energy. Obama wants to expand our market for clean energy technologies, and has aspirations of doubling the share of electricity from clean energy sources by 2035. Targeted tax incentives will also be employed to promote clean energy manufacturing. Public lands will be made available to private investors in clean energy, and the Department of the Interior is already committed to issuing permits for 10 gigawatts of renewable generation capacity from new projects on our public lands by the end of 2012. I highly recommend you check out Obama’s blueprint for an “America Built to Last” because it’s incredibly comprehensive and outlines the concrete steps we need to take in order to make our goals achievable. Here’s the link: http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/blueprint_for_an_america_built_to_last.pdf

  Dana Cary, HOLTROP S.L.P. Transaction & Business Law  

As nonrenewable energy sources are depleting and becoming increasingly expensive, the European Union is taking strides toward adopting new, eco-friendly energy systems.  One particular industry the European Union wants to expand is its solar-thermal industry.
  
The European Union agrees that promoting solar thermal energy service companies (ST-ESCOs) would result in the growth of the solar industry.  By promoting solar heat services and expanding the solar market in Europe, the long term goal is that more energy would be available at cheaper costs with little environmental impact.

Unfortunately, little is known about the potential impact of ESCOs (and ST-ESCOs) on the European market and therefore consumers are hesitant to adopt this system.   In sum, ESCOs are energy service companies that function as project developers in developing and installing various projects designed to improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions.    ESCOs assume all responsibility and technical risk of the projects, and their compensation is directly linked to the costs related to the amount of energy they save.

However, the initial high investment costs, coupled with the lack confidence in the reliability, resilience, and durability of these systems, have made the promotion of ESCOs a daunting task.  Electricity and energy prices are also still relatively cheap, which adds to this challenge.

Therefore, the question to ask is whether adopting this system is worth it in the long run.  Proponents of this system state that ST-ESCOs could substantially increase the use of solar energy, lower energy prices down the line, and contribute to the worldwide go-green movement.    

The widespread promotion of ST-ESCOS would additionally provide many direct benefits to consumers.  If all goes as planned, there would be guarantees for the solar yield and limits for energy costs with no investment risk for the consumer.  Since the ST-ESCO is responsible for the operation of the thermal energy plant, the consumer also wouldn’t need to worry about upkeep or maintenance costs.  

Strategies for promoting ST-ESCOS include advertising the benefits of solar thermal energy to increase its demand while simultaneously removing the barriers that are inhibiting its growth.  Numerous steps have already been taken in terms of promoting solar energy, as the European Renewable Energy Council made a 2005 proposal to promote renewable heating and cooling for a European directive—25% of the EU heating and cooling supply by renewables in 2020.  Additionally, some member states have been making the push toward using renewable solar energy through various subsidy and action programs. 

While continued progress has been made in terms of promoting the solar industry, removing the barriers has proved to be slightly more daunting. In short, it is imperative that consumers become aware of how solar heat services work.  Educating the population about solar thermal energy, as well as providing them with models, will help spread the word.   And because many consumers don’t know how to start with a ST-ESCOS project, it’s important that tools (such as a checklist for the procedure and model contracts) are provided to help support project initiation. Lastly, training needs to be provided to those that are responsible for operating and maintaining ESCOs so these energy plants can be easily installed, maintained, and operated.

   Dana Cary, HOLTROP S.L.P. Transaction & Business Law  

The global movement toward refurbishing inefficient, polluted cities into “smart” cities has grown dramatically within the past decade. Simply put, a smart city is one that has six primary components—a smart economy, smart mobility, smart governance, smart living, smart people, and smart environment. In short, the smart city movement is striving to transform dirty, energy inefficient, economically unstable cities into fast moving, energy efficient, environmentally safe, metropolises.  And while the benefits of creating smart cities are endless, the final goal of creating a smart city is to lay the foundation for a more efficient and brighter future.

While smart cities have several components, one essential component is energy efficiency.   Striving to reduce a city´s overall energy consumption is a relatively straightforward goal, however it has proved to be one of the most daunting steps in the movement toward a greener future. Why? Because motivating people to save energy can be a long and arduous process.   

Today I stumbled upon a very interesting blog post that discusses various ways to motivate building occupants to reduce their energy consumption. These steps include educating building tenants before they move in about the importance of decreasing our energy use and the clarifying the impact this will have toward our future, among others.   

   Julie Claar, HOLTROP S.L.P. Transaction & Business Law  

Most wonder about the difference between the terms in the renewable energy segment, the most often confusion is the difference between “Cleantech” and “Greentech”. Both terms get thrown around to define energy efficient technology however only one of these terms truly applies to that. Greentech (or Green Technology) does refer to the actual services and products that are low energy consumption in our community however Cleantech (Clean Technology) refers to the financial investment in those processes. This encompasses clean energy, sustainable services and energy efficient products. Currently Cleantech is the third largest capital investment sector behind only IT and Biotech.

People are getting interested and aware of the environment and the troubles facing the planet we live on. If consumers, public policy, and business strategy all align with Green ideas, then consequently those are the investments people want to be making. Often these investments are not purchased primarily for environmental reason but it still offers significant benefits either way. Ultimately it´s more about revenue however clearly objectives vary by companies.

I will follow up this post with the newest CleanTech ideas as I come across them.

http://www.eai.in/reaction2012/cleantech-ideas/

  Dana Cary, HOLTROP S.L.P. Transaction & Business Law  

Need a little motivation?

The global movement toward renovating inefficient, polluted cities into ?smart? cities has grown dramatically within the past decade. Simply put, a smart city is one that has several dimensions?it is fast moving, energy efficient, environmentally safe, economically sound, and socially flourishing. While the benefits of creating smart cities are endless, the final goal of making our cities smarter is to decrease our carbon footprint and lay the foundation for a more efficient, successful and brighter future.

While there are many components to a smart city, the most essential component is energy efficiency. Striving to reduce a city´s overall energy consumption is a straightforward goal; however it has proved to be one of the most daunting steps in the movement toward a greener future. Why? Because people lack motivation. And the process of motivating people to save energy can often times be long, arduous, and seemingly impossible.

So how do we inspire people to get on board with this movement to reduce our energy consumption?  Today I stumbled upon a very interesting blog post that discusses several ways to motivate people to get involved in the battle to reduce energy consumption. Steps range from educating building tenants before they move in about the importance of saving energy to creating “energy competitions” where tenants compete to see who can consume the least amount of energy.   

If you´re looking to motivate your building tenants to “go green” or simply trying to reduce your electricity bill, check it out! Cheers.

  Dana Cary, HOLTROP S.L.P. Transaction & Business Law  

Smart choices near you!

Hello all! This is an awesome link I figured I would share.   If you plug in your city and state, it helps you identify ?green? initiatives close to home, ranging from restaurants, solar panel installers, to recycling centers.  Enjoy!

  Dana Cary, HOLTROP S.L.P. Transaction & Business Law  

Smart Cities = Smart Buildings

The wide-spread adoption of QR codes in advertising is one step among many businesses are taking to reduce paper waste.  For those of you that are unfamiliar with QR codes, they are the small black, two-dimensional matrix bar codes you see on billboards, brochures, magazines, business cards, store fronts, and other forms of advertising displays.   QR codes contain direct links to vast arrays of information about specific businesses, and are easily scanned with a smartphone. In short, these codes connect customers to businesses in a matter of seconds. They are an incredibly effective method of advertising and the best part? They come with zero waste.  

I became interested in QR codes when I came across a blog post that talked about the N building situated in Tokyo. Unlike most buildings that display a billboard with QR codes, this building´s entire outer façade is a QR code.   As customers drive by they scan the building and are immediately linked to the building´s website, which contains a vast array of information about the corporations inside and the products they sell.  Talk about a smart building!

  Dana Cary, HOLTROP S.L.P. Transaction & Business Law  

Smart city: Hitachi, Japan

Whether you´ve noticed or not, change is happening all around us due to urbanization.  People´s values are shifting—the consumer attitude of wanting to excessively own superficial materials is slowly fading into a less restrictive attitude of wanting to have less and do more.    The environment is also changing, and the issue of global warming is a perfect example of this.   These two seemingly unrelated dimensions of life—our societal values and the environment—are very dynamic and interdependent.   When one changes, so does the other.

With this change comes an enormous pressure for our cities to become smarter.    And one of the leading cities in this smart movement is Hitachi, Japan. 

Hitachi´s vision in becoming a smart city is simple yet profound.  Unlike most smart cities that prioritize going green and saving the environment over all other aspects of life, Hitachi´s emphasis is on balancing “going green” with living an affluent, efficient, and enjoyable urban lifestyle.   

One of the central aspects of Hitachi´s vision is that of open communication, connectedness, and information flow.   Residential homes will have control panels that control everything from kitchen appliances, to outdoor sprinklers, to electronic devices such as TV´s and computers.   Offices will be connected with homes; schools will be connected with entertainment venues.   The city of Hitachi will be free-flowing and revolutionary, constantly developing with the influx of new, easily accessible, innovative information. 

But what´s it like living in such an advanced, almost alien, lifestyle?  Will the world be filled with flying cars, time machines, and ice cream that never melts?  Not quite! Check out this informative and comical link that portrays a typical day for a family living in a smart city.  

   Dana Cary, HOLTROP S.L.P. Transaction & Business Law 

California Paving the Way Toward a Greener Future

One of the leading states in the movement toward creating smart cities is California. Recently the California Energy Commission has created guidelines to heighten their environmental standards for residential and commercial buildings in attempts to reduce their carbon footprint, increase their energy efficiency, and pave their way to a greener future.  By demanding better building codes, the goal is to save consumers money on utility bills, increase comfort in homes, and reduce Co2 emissions.

The California Energy Commission has created a list of stipulations for building codes that will take effect in January 2014.   For residential buildings, these stipulations include creating high performance windows that improve lighting without the gain of excess heat, installing whole house fans to cool homes which will reduce the need for air conditioning, and setting up insulated hot water pipes which will decrease the time it takes water to reach the home, among other stipulations. The measures taken for nonresidential buildings are similar, and include installing high performance windows, mounting solar ready roofs to give businesses the option of adding solar photovoltaic panels in the future, and advancing the building´s lighting controls to reduce electricity levels.

These new standards are estimated to increase the cost of constructing a home by $2,290 but are expected to return more than $6,200 in energy savings over the course of 30 years.   Additionally, these improvements will drastically increase building industry jobs as well as reduce the monthly heating, cooling, and electricity bills for consumers.  While an initially expensive ordeal, it is clear that going green reaps massive economic benefits down the line.

   Julie Claar, HOLTROP S.L.P. Transaction & Business Law 

Masdar City

This city is located in Abu Dhabi, is 6 square kilometers, and will cost around US$20 billion but will be the first of its kind, a zero carbon, zero waste city powered by only renewable energy. It was thought to be the trial for the self sustaining cities we will eventually need once all our resources are up. It will be the home to 40,000 residents and the workplace to potentially 60,000 commuters. The master plan details six main goals.

The first is to orient the city grid to minimize the heat permeated into the walls and maximize the cool breezes at night. Second is to integrate the community so that work, entertainment, and home are in such close proximity to one another that you won´t need transportation (there are no cars allowed, but public transportation is provided within city limits), It is a very pedestrian focused place and has several urban areas to enjoy the fresh air. They will not have any buildings that are taller than five stories and want to maximize the quality of the inhabitants´ lives and work with the lowest possible environmental footprint.

They have an area they call the Economic Zone which has specified policies unique to this city. These would include 0% on import tariffs, no currency restrictions, 100% foreign ownership, 0% taxes on both companies and individuals and many more. They also stress that the companies and organizations that will be allowed to work here are only companies that are as committed to the environment as they are. To apply to move your business there, it is a 7 day application process and you must be present in the city during that entire time.

Currently the only area that is finished is the University that specializes in sustainability. In the 2010-2011 school year, the University housed 153 students from 32 different countries. The project was meant to be completed in 2015 however when the economic crisis hit, there were a lack of funds. They also grossly underestimated the cost of the project and the time needed. After 6 years of construction, the 1st phase out of 7 should be completed in 2013. Unanticipated difficulty with the renewable energy was a setback as well. The hope is to have this remarkable city up and running by 2025. A spokesperson commented that they are not to be worried about a timeframe, they are just concerned with the quality of the result.

This link is a rendering of what the city is supposed to look like at completion.

You can also go to this link and see pictures of the finished campus under “Explore Masdar City” and then “Built Environment”.

Vulnerability of US and European electricity supply to climate change

An interesting article, identifying a “rebounce” problem of climate change to power generation that requires cooling.