The High Court recently handed down two decisions that mark a significant shift in how employment and independent contractor relationships are determined. Essentially, the High Court has held that the terms of the written contract will determine whether a person is an...
The ATO has recently confirmed the recommencement of debt recovery actions with the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, and it appears that enforcement action by the ATO will ramp up significantly in 2022. Director Penalty Notices (DPNs) act as a mechanism for debt...
After an 18 month trial period the NSW Parliament has now made the temporary provisions which allowed for the remote witnessing of important legal documents such as wills, statutory declarations and affidavits, permanent. The decision to make these measures permanent...
Disputes concerning the availability of exclusion clauses to deny liability for COVID-19 related insurance claims continue to be litigated before the Courts. As lockdowns and closure orders take an increasingly heavy economic toll on businesses, policy holders...
Key Takeaways Whether employers can mandate vaccinations against COVID-19 for employees depends on the unique circumstances surrounding each workplace and whether it is lawful and reasonable. The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) has set out guidance for employers to...
New legislation allows the continuation of electronic execution of company documents There is some welcome news for companies executing documents whilst lockdown persists. The Treasury Laws Amendment (2021 Measures No. 1) Act 2021 (Cth) came into operation on and from...
Annual Property Tax as an Alternative to Stamp Duty in NSW Last year, NSW announced important taxation changes by outlining a proposal to transition from the up-front payment of stamp duty to an annual property tax. The proposal is contained in the NSW State...
Significant changes regarding resignations of company directors come into effect today. Last year, amendments to the Corporations Act were made by the Treasury Laws Amendment (Combatting Illegal Phoenixing) Act 2020 (Cth) ("Act") to combat the rise of phoenix...
Land tax threshold exemptions available for unit trusts In NSW, a fixed trust is eligible for land tax threshold exemptions if it satisfies the definition of "fixed trust" under the Land Tax Management Act 1956 ( Act), so that the beneficiaries of the trust are...
Currently, due to the pandemic, there are a number of restrictions in place that make it impractical or undesirable for lenders to recover outstanding debts. These protections will expire in September 2020, which will place additional pressure on borrowers to meet...
Introduction Many businesses are in the process of assessing how sustainable continued operations will be after the COVID-19 pandemic ends. With temporary protections under the Corporations Act, such as changes to the insolvency rules, coming to an end on 25 September...
Privacy concerns have plagued the introduction of the COVIDSafe app (App). In response, strict privacy protections for users of the App have now been enshrined in law via The Privacy Amendment (Public Health Contract Information) Act 2020 (the Act) which introduces...