WHO IS A DIRECTOR? Section 9 of the Corporations Act 2001 provides that the definition of a director also includes a person who is not validly elected as a director if: They act in the position of a director (often referred to as a de facto director). A de facto...
Annual Land Valuation Notices
NEW NOTICES ISSUED The Valuer-General through the Department of Natural Resources & Mines (“DNRM”) issued Annual Land Valuation Notices (“Notice”) on 2 March 2016 for various local government areas including Brisbane City Council, Gold Coast City Council, and...
Strata Schemes Maintenance Obligations v Warranties
MAINTENANCE & WARRANTIES Most lot owners within strata schemes have a general awareness of the fact that statutory and contractual warranties apply to various aspects of the building, plant and equipment contained in their scheme. However, as the adage goes; the...
A Culture of Compliance
Businesses have an obligation to comply with numerous pieces of legislation, and this can certainly prove challenging. But the importance of putting in place a proper process for requiring and monitoring compliance cannot be underestimated. CURRENT FOCUS In 2015, the...
Employers Liable for Employee Discrimination: Tips to Minimise Risk
IN THIS ISSUE: A recent decision of the Northern Territory Anti Discrimination Commission serves as a timely reminder to ensure company policies are in place, and that staff are adequately aware of, and trained in, those policies A failure to ensure staff are trained...
Shareholders’ Rights to Inspect the Books of the Company
SHAREHOLDER PROTECTION Shareholders do not generally have the right to intervene in the management of the company or to have their views considered in relation to the conduct of the company’s business. However, they do have the right to vote at general meetings and...
Caution Contractors: Time bars can pack-a-punch!
Time has become an increasingly common theme in construction disputes in Australia. At some stage, most participants in the construction industry will encounter a dispute about a time limit. Judges of the Queensland Courts are giving clear warnings to be wary of time...
Project Bank Accounts: Protection for all?
With growing uncertainty in the economic environment both in Australia and globally, regulators of the building and construction industry are focusing on introducing further measures to protect retention monies and generally the flow of money down the supply chain....
CGT Withholding on real estate transactions
Recent legislative amendments are designed to ensure foreign residents are liable to pay tax on capital gains on certain real estate transactions. The amendments impose a 10% tax withholding requirement on Australian real property valued at over $2 million that is...
(Don’t Be) Shocked by the New!
As published in CK Momentum Issue 9 (Click here to download) Heard of 3D printing? Sure you have! They’re those whiz bang machines that build little models which you see at your kids’ school’s open day to prove how tech savvy the school is. But did you know there is...
Anteo Diagnostics
As published in CK Momentum Issue 9 (Click here to download) John Toigo and Kate Gardner in our Corporate Team, recently acted as the Australian lawyers for Anteo Diagnostics Limited (ASX:ADO), an Australian listed biotech company, in its acquisition of 100% of...
Developers’ Seminar
As published in CK Momentum Issue 9 (Click here to download) In January, we conducted the first of our Developers’ Seminars at our Sydney premises. Ian McKnight, Consultant in our Property & Projects team, spoke about how the new strata laws will impact on...