Monitoring of the Federal Legislation dated 12.05.2003

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 264 of May 7, 2003 on the Endorsement of Insurance Tariff Rates for Obligatory Insurance of Civil Responsibility of the Owners of Transport Vehicles, Their Structure and Procedure of Application by Insurers When Determining the Insurance Premium

Specifies the basic insurance tariff rates fixed in percent of the insured amount or in roubles. Also specifies insurance tariff coefficients depending on:
- territory of prevailing use of the transport vehicle;
- presence of absence of insurance payments in insured cases occurring through the fault of the insurer (owner of the transport vehicle) during the previously available contracts of obligatory insurance;
- driver age and history;
- number of persons allowed to drive the vehicle;
- engine power of the car, taxi (including the fixed-route ones);
- period of use of the transport vehicle;
- insured period.
Tariff rates are entered into force from July 1, 2003.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 263 of May 7, 2003 on the Endorsement of the Rules of Obligatory Insurance of Civil Responsibility of Owners of Transport Vehicles

Defines the typical terms of conclusion of the contract of obligatory insurance of civil responsibility of owners of transport vehicles. Obligatory insurance does not apply to civil responsibility of owners of transport vehicles with the maximum design speed less than 20 km/h, or not permitted to participate in traffic because of the technical characteristics, or owned by the Armed Force of the Russian Federation (except for the buses, cars and trailers for them), or registered in foreign states.
The object of obligatory insurance is property interests pertaining to the risk of civil responsibility of the owner of the transport vehicle in obligations emerging because of the incurred damage to the life, health or property of the victims when the transport vehicle is used on the territory of the Russian Federation. The Decision lists the facts implying civil responsibility, however, not included in insured cases. Such cases include, in particular, moral damage, or the duty to reimburse the lost profit, or environmental pollution, or damage to the life and health of employees executing their labour duties, if this damage is to be reimbursed in compliance with a law on respective type of insurance.
The insurer may demand from the insuring company a written estimate of insurance premium to be paid out. Such estimate must be presented within 3 working days from the day of receiving of the appropriate written application of the insurer.
Insurance premium is paid out in cash or according to cashless procedure. The Decision lists the documents presented to the insuring company to conclude the contract. The given list is an exhaustive one. The document confirming the fact of obligatory insurance is the policy of obligatory insurance of uniform form on the whole territory of the Russian Federation being a strict reporting document.
Together with the insurance policy, the insurer gets free of charge the list of the representatives of the insurign company in the subjects of the Russian Federation, special, state-approved plate and 2 blank forms of the notification of an accident.
The Decision regulates in detail the actions of the persons when an insured case occurs.
The Rules are entered into force from July 1, 2003.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 262 of May 7, 2003 on the Endorsement of the Rules of Reimbursement to the Proprietors of Land Plots, Land Users, Landowners and Landholders of the Damage Incurred through Withholding or Temporary Occupancy of the Land Plots, Restriction of the Rights of Proprietors of the Land Plots, Land Users, Landowners and Landholders or Impaired Quality of Lands through Activities of Other Parties

The loses incurred on the proprietor through the withholding of the land plot for state or municipal needs are included in the payment for the withheld land plot (buy-out price), procedure of determination of which being regulated in the civil legislation.
Reimbursement of the losses is effected from the resources of appropriate budgets or by beneficiaries withholding the land plots or restricting the rights for them, as well as by the parties whose activities caused the need to institute protection, sanitary zones and implies restriction of the rights of proprietors of the land plots, land users, land owners and holders or impaired quality of lands.
Amount of incurred losses is determined through an agreement between the parties and is calculated according to the methodology recommendations endorsed by the Federal Service of the Land Cadastre of Russia in coordination with the Ministry of Economic Development and the Ministry of Property Relations. Determination of the amount of losses takes account of the losses suffered by the land holders because of the early termination of their obligations to third parties, including the lost profit, rent paid out under the lease contract for the period after the withholding of the land plot, as well as the cost of the right of the land plot lease contract in cases of tenders.

Order of the Russian Patent Agency No. 57 of April 22, 2003 on the Procedure of Reinstatement of the Patent of the Russian Federation for an Invention, Useful Model, Industrial Prototype

Defines the rules of reinstatement of the patent of the Russian Federation for an invention, useful model, industrial prototype terminated because of the failure to pay in due time the patent fee to maintain the patent. The request to reinstate the patent is submitted to the federal body of executive power in charge of intellectual property within three years from the date of expiry of the patent fee, however, before expiry of the life time of the patent fixed in the patent law.
Registered in the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation on May 6, 2003. Reg. No. 4506.

Regulation of the Central Bank of Russia No. 218-P of March 19, 2003 on the Procedure and Criteria of Assessment of the Financial Standing of the Legal Entities Having Founded (Participating in) Credit Organisations

The Regulation applies to all legal entities except for the credit organisations, budget-supported institutions and independent entrepreneurs without the forming of the legal entity.
The Regulation introduces the procedure and criteria of assessment of the financial standing of the legal entities having founded (participating in) credit organisations, as well as trustees of stocks (shares) of the credit organisation.
The assessment is carried out to determine the sufficiency with the buyer of own resources to pay for the shares (stocks) and find out its satisfactory financial standing to decide on the legality of the forming of the registered capital of the credit organisation, give preliminary consent to buy more than 20% of the shares (stocks) of the credit organisation, as well as to register the newly created credit organisation.
The procedure of purchase of shares (stocks) by minority participants is made significantly simpler. The purchase of shares (stocks) comprising less than 0.5% of the registered capital of the operating credit organisation is permitted without control procedures, except for the major deals (more than Rbl 600,000).
The Regulation defines the notion of the "satisfactory financial standing" of the buyer of shares (stocks) of the credit organisation. The financial standing of the buyer is recognised as satisfactory in cases of absence of signs of significant financial difficulties confirmed with financial (or other ) indicators affecting his ability to execute the adopted obligations.
The statement of the financial standing may be prepared by the buyer himself, credit organisation, audit organisation (independent auditor) attracted by the buyer for this purpose or another person (advisor). The credit organisation now does not have to check the legality of the payment for the registered capital by the buyers of shares (stocks) comprising less than 5% of the registered capital. Now, opportunities to fulfil this function is vested in the credit organisation. If the credit organisation does not want to carry out the check independently, it must present all necessary documents for the mentioned category of buyers to the territorial institution of the Bank of Russia.
Insufficiency of own resources and unsatisfactory financial standing of the buyer determined as a result of the assessment of the financial standing of the buyer are specified as the reasons to refuse the purchase of shares (stocks) of the credit organisation.
The Regulation is entered into force 10 days after the day of its official publication in the Herald of the Bank of Russia.
Registered in the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation on May 5, 2003. Reg. No. 4498.

Order of the Russian Patent Agency No. 55 of April 22, 2003 on the Procedure of Prolongation of the Life Time of the Patent of the Russian Federation for an Invention Pertaining to a Medicine, Pesticide or Agricultural Chemical Agent

Defines the rules of prolongation of the life time of the patent of the Russian Federation for an invention pertaining to a medicine, pesticide and agricultural chemical agent. The life time of the paten is prolonged by the federal body of executive power in charge of the intellectual property at the request of the holder of the patent for the time calculated from the date of submission of the application for the invention to the date of getting of the first such permission for use less five years. In this case, the time of prolongation of the patent for the invention may not be greater than five years.
The Order provides the form of the request for the prolongation of the patent to be submitted within the life time of the patent before expiry of six moths from the date of getting of the first permission to use the product or the date of issue of the patent depending on which of the two expires later.
Registered in the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation on May 5, 2003. Reg. No. 4491.

Direction of the Central Bank of Russia No. 1270-U of April 14, 2003 on the Published Reports of Credit Organisations and Bank/Consolidated Groups

Sets forth the new procedure of drawing up, publication and submission by credit organisations, parent credit organisations of bank/consolidated groups of information on their activities.
The annual report (annual consolidated report) must be published within 10 working days after the annual general meeting of stock-holders (participants). The annual report and the annual consolidated report are published simultaneously in the same periodical. If the reports are published in different periodicals, the publication must contain a reference to the name of the periodical where the other report is published and the date of issue of the publication.
The items of the balance report are provided as of the end of the reporting period, not as of the reporting or the previous date as before.
The Direction specifies the form to be used to publish information on the sufficiency of the capital, reserve to cover doubtful loans and other assets.
The Direction is entered into force 10 days after the day of its official publication in the Herald of the Bank of Russia.
Registered in the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation on May 5, 2003. Reg. No. 4488.