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On Oct. 22, 2004, the President signed the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004 (AJCA), one of the most significant pieces of tax legislation in recent years. AJCA makes a number of major changes to the tax rules applicable to capital-intensive businesses in general and to the leasing industry in particular. AJCA's major provisions include: 1) limitations on tax-exempt leasing structures; 2) improvement to the rules relating to offshore aircraft leasing and incentives for domestic manufacturing and production activities; 3) the application of "bonus" depreciation to non-commercial aircraft and syndicated lease transactions; 4) increased "Section 179" expensing; and 5) limitations on the depreciation of sport utility vehicles.

A closely watched case now before the California Supreme Court will impact the way equipment lessors do business. In <i>Grafton Partners L.P. v. Superior Court,</i> 9 Cal.Rptr.3d 511 (2004), the California Court of Appeal held that predispute contractual jury waivers are unenforceable under the California Constitution. The case has been accepted for review by the California Supreme Court, and a decision is expected next year.

Last month, we discussed the fact that of the many hats worn by leasing attorneys, one is of the bankruptcy practitioner. It is a skill set that usually comes into play at the end of a transaction gone bad. This article continues outlining the case for ending this practice and having bankruptcy counsel get involved in lease deals from the outset.

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Highlights of the latest equipment leasing news from around the country.

Of the many hats worn by leasing attorneys, one is of the bankruptcy practitioner. It is a skill set that usually comes into play at the end of a transaction gone bad. This two-part series outlines the case for ending this practice and having bankruptcy counsel get involved in lease deals from the outset.

Ever since the Medici family of Florence popularized the use of written documents to facilitate trade between city states and nations in the 15th century, letters of credit and their progeny, bills of lading, warehouse receipts and similar instruments of title, have consisted of written documents. Commercially effective and reasonably efficient for hundreds of years, letters of credit and documents of title in tangible form have become increasingly outmoded because of economic and temporal constraints. A recent article in <i>The Wall Street Journal</i> estimated that at least 5% of the cost of all international trade transactions was attributable solely to the cost of documentation [Gabriel Kahn, "Financing Goes Just-in-Time," <i>The Wall Street Journal,</i> June 4, 2004, Section A, p. 10]. With the growth of international trade and the relocation of manufacturing from industrialized nations to countries with cheaper labor costs, international shipments have increased dramatically as cost-conscious businesses search for increased efficiency. The historic standard of a 2-week turnaround for a written letter of credit for a secured bill of lading transaction and the cost of associated paperwork have created a need for a cheaper, faster system. Not surprisingly, merchants have found opportunities to use the Internet and other electronic arrangements to help solve this problem. This article will describe some of the alternative electronic bill of lading arrangements that have arisen since the 1990s for shipping goods internationally and the impetus that their spread provided to a Uniform Commercial Code working group that responded by overhauling and updating Article 7 to make it more reflective of modern trade practice.

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This is the second article of a two-part series about managing the risks of doing business in Latin America. Last month's installment described Latin America as a region blessed with impressive worker productivity and natural resources, but also troubled by pockets of political and economic unrest. The article concluded that Latin America represents a fertile business frontier for equipment leasing and finance companies that are willing to manage risks proactively. It covered potential market entry risks and suggested strategies for reducing exposure. This month's article explores operational and exit-strategy risks to consider before expanding into Latin America. Risks are summarized in the Risk Map for Doing Business in Latin America (Table 1), published last month, which I developed based on experiences in the region. The map is intended as a checklist that outlines typical risks and management strategies. However, as every business is unique, companies should also attempt to identify additional risks and/or their own approaches.