Insights

Respect@work reforms required to be implemented by employers in 2023

On 12 December 2022, the Anti-Discrimination and Human Rights Legislation Amendment (Respect at Work) Act 2022 received royal assent. The Act implements the remaining seven recommendations for...

More
BlueScope and former GM held to have engaged in cartel conduct in steely battle with the ACCC

On 9 December 2022, O’Bryan J handed down judgement in Australian Competition and Consumer Commission v BlueScope Steel Limited (No 5) [2022] FCA 1475 (ACCC v BlueScope).

More
Joining the dots - internet defamation reform update

There were signs of life last week in the Stage 2 Part A Review of Model Defamation Provisions, concerning liability of internet intermediaries for third party content, in the shape of a communique...

More
Shot from the ground looking up at tall reflective buildings
Corporations Amendment (Litigation Funding) Regulations 2022

On 10 December 2022, the Corporations Amendment (Litigation Funding) Regulations 2022 (Cth) (Regulations) came into effect. In summary, the regulations bring the status of litigation funding...

More
December Australian Energy & Resources Market Update

Our update covers mining, oil and gas, electricity and renewable energy.

More
Price caps and mandatory codes of conduct to be imposed on the domestic gas market

On 9 December 2022, the Commonwealth Government released exposure drafts of its proposed Competition and Consumer Amendment (Gas Market) Bill 2022 (Cth) (Exposure Bill) and Competition and Consumer...

More
Launching our Insolvency & Restructuring Case Summaries for 2021-2022

We are delighted to launch the first edition of our Insolvency & Restructuring Case Summaries for 2021-2022, with over 45 case summaries highlighting the key takeaways and the practical...

More
Birds eye view of the ocean meeting the land with a dirt road in between
Major reforms on the horizon for Australia’s national environmental laws

Last week, the federal Government announced the most comprehensive set of proposed reforms to Australia’s national environmental laws since the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation...

More
Getting ready for the Secure Jobs, Better Pay Changes

The Government is moving quickly on its workplace and diversity reform agenda by introducing the Secure Jobs, Better Pay Bill 2022 (the Bill). The Bill, which significantly amends the Fair Work Act...

More
Environment & Climate Regulation 2023: Lexology GTDT

Partner William Oxby and Associate Jessica Day chapters in Environment 2023 and Climate Regulation 2023 in Lexology's Getting The Deal Through have recently been published.

More
A blur of people and traffic moving in front of an office space
Massive increase in financial penalties for breaches of competition and consumer laws

On November 10 2022, the maximum financial penalties for breaching Australia’s competition and consumer laws increased significantly - in some cases by five times the previous levels.

More
Lady Justice Statue
The Government passes legislation to overhaul the unfair contract terms regime

The Government has passed legislation amending the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) to strengthen the unfair contract term (UCT) regime.

More
What you need to know about Australia’s privacy reforms

In the wake of the recent Optus and Medibank data breaches, the Government has confirmed its commitment to privacy and data security reform by proposing tougher penalties for serious or repeated...

More
Once more unto the breach, dear licensees – ASIC identifies room for improvement in breach reporting

On 27 October 2022, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission released Report 740 Insights from the reportable situations regime: October 2021 to June 2022.

More
Launching our Reconciliation Action Plan

We have launched our Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP),  which is a structured roadmap of actions focussed on advancing reconciliation.

More
Court finds arrangements that include a trustee's income distribution decisions are Part IVA schemes

A single judge of the Federal Court has upheld a decision of the Commissioner of Taxation (Commissioner) to apply the general anti-avoidance rule, Part IVA, to arrangements that include the income...

More
The death of the employee share option? And a new complexity regarding the on-sale of shares

From 1 October, we expect to see significant changes in the way that companies offer equity to their Australian personnel. For many businesses, new rules in the Corporations Act significantly...

More
Scissors.
Defamation case dismissed in first application of the new serious harm test

Proceedings involving a one-to-one Facebook Messenger allegation of stolen scissors have been cut short by her Honour Judith Gibson DCJ in the first test of the serious harm element since it was...

More
A neon blue and transparent phone being held in a neon blue hand
Privacy and cyber security imperatives – reactions to and lessons from the Optus data breach

More
Natural gas burner
Commonwealth enters new Heads of Agreement to safeguard Australia’s east coast domestic gas market

In July 2017, the Commonwealth Government implemented the Australian Domestic Gas Security Mechanism (ADGSM) to ensure that there is a sufficient supply of natural gas to meet Australia’s domestic...

More
Barossa Project paused due to Federal Court setting aside NOPSEMA decision

On 21 September 2022, Justice Bromberg of the Federal Court handed down his decision in Tipakalippa v National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (No 2) [2022] FCA...

More
Gunning for it: Peak Indebtedness in the spotlight

In significant news for the insolvency industry, the High Court will hear the long-awaited Gunns Group preference claim appeal in Bryant & Ors v Badenoch Integrated Logging (A10/2022) on 18 October...

More
Dip pen on an angle touching a black surface with a black background
Examinees cannot “fish” in Babcock & Brown’s pond

On 18 August 2022 Justice Markovic of the Federal Court dismissed the application of a litigation funder and its director (the Applicants) for access to the confidential affidavit in support of...

More
Empty Boardroom
Jobs and Skills Summit – Key Proposed Outcomes

The Jobs and Skills Summit held in Canberra last week proposed a long list of reforms and other actions categorised as “immediate actions”, “areas for further work” and “complementary existing...

More