Corporate law/ legal matters

While the workplace may have moved, employer obligations around cyber security, privacy laws and WHS continue. Services such as Zoom, Skype and Microsoft Teams have been adopted by some…

On 26 March 2020 the Coronavirus Economic Response Package Omnibus Act 2020 came into effect. Under this legislation, the threshold at which a statutory demand can be issued is increased from…

The statutory definition of officer is easy to recite but not always easy to apply. High Court in King averts moral hazard by adopting an expansive view of who is a company officer. King bridges…

Carefully consider all your contracts to ascertain your right to suspend performance of affected obligations or otherwise exit contracts that are impossible to perform. Appropriate governance and a…

Clawback and malus clauses are types of contractual provisions that allow a company to reduce or recover remuneration from an employee. Clawback and malus provisions came to prominence following…

Around the world, laws are changing to recognise the shift in corporate approaches to stakeholder interests. In this changing context, Australian corporate law should adopt Benefit Company, an…

What is the influence of law on culture? Directors and senior executives must put in a serious effort to understand the culture of their organisation. Legislative change to the financial services…

For all corporate crimes committed after 12 March 2019, the maximum jail sentence for a contravention of the Corporations Act was tripled to 15 years imprisonment. Similarly, the civil penalties…

Officer found guilty, released on appeal. Officer charged to stand trial. Officer sentenced to 18 months imprisonment.

This article* considers the question of applicable law to corporations. It shows that the conceptual transformation within the applicable law doctrine resembles related changes within the corporate…

There has been a recent shift toward more class actions relating to general commercial disputes. Class actions have several procedural differences to individually brought proceedings. The approach…

New whistleblowing laws will commence on 1 July 2019. Under the changes to the Corporations Act there will be a broader range of whistleblower conduct which can be reported and receive…

A Parliamentary inquiry has recommended numerous changes to the Franchising Code of Conduct. The recommendations are designed to lift standards of behaviour across the industry and to rebuild…

The ALRC report makes 24 recommendations directed at changes to the federal class actions regime and the regulation and charging models of litigation funders and lawyers involved in bringing class…

Although not defined in legislation, illegal phoenix activity involves the deliberate stripping and transferring of assets and funds from one company to another company to avoid paying…

To what extent is the shareholder primacy norm still relevant in Australian company law in 2019? Recent case law recognises that the interests of shareholders are distinct from the interests of the…

A bill recently passed by Parliament may affect the lawfulness of your existing intellectual property (IP) contracts by extending competition law prohibitions to those contracts If your IP…

Having a contract risk assessment process in place can help ensure that organisations take a proactive and preventative approach as opposed to one that is reactive and reparative. Once a risk…

The Commonwealth Modern Slavery Act 2018 commenced on 1 January 2019 and the NSW legislation is awaiting proclamation before commencement. Reporting entities will be required to submit an annual…