Covid-19 : Am I Compelled to Perform My Obligations Under an Agreement Now That Coronavirus Has Shut the World Down?
The government has introduced sweeping restrictions on social behaviours which are having devastating economic effects on businesses which rely on gatherings (or even the previously fundamental right of a person to leave home for reasons other than shopping for...
Running a Business and Insolvency Risk in the Time of Coronavirus
The Coronavirus has imposed immense pressure on businesses in many sectors, which places stress on the directors and business operators. On 22 March 2020, the Australian Government announced that it would temporarily relax insolvency laws and directors’ obligations,...
Do You Need a Labour Hire Licence?
The Labour Hire Licensing Act 2018 came into operation on 29 October 2019. The legislation followed media publicity about questionable practices of some labour hire providers. The most publicised examples were fruit and vegetable pickers and process line workers in...
Absentee Owner Surcharge
It is almost the time of the year that if you are an absentee owner in 2019, you need to log onto the Absentee Owner Notification Portal between 2 January 2020 - 15 January 2020 to notify the State Revenue Office. Absentee Owner Land Tax Surcharge was introduced by...
Why Do We Need Terms and Conditions of Trade?
Many of our clients who are suppliers of goods and services operate under formal written terms and conditions of trade. Prudent clients usually have their terms and conditions periodically reviewed to ensure they provide the best available protection. For example, in...
Retail Leasing Ministerial Determination
It is not uncommon for a commercial landlord to desire to have a lease fall outside the operation of the Retail Leases Act 2003 (Vic) (RLA), thereby enabling the landlord to claim land tax and lease preparation legal costs as an outgoing from the tenant. What...
Victorian Retail Landlords – Remember Your Notice Obligations
Landlords of premises regulated by the Retail Leases Act 2003 (Vic) (RLA) should diarise the various dates needed for them to comply with their notice obligations under Sections 28 and 64 of the RLA, especially if they wish to avoid unintentionally extending the term...
Entrepreneur Visa
The Australian Department of Immigration & Border Protection (DIBP) is making changes to the visa system as part of the National Innovation and Science Agenda. It is intended that these changes will help Australia attract and retain the best and brightest...
Retail Leasing
Landlords should avoid delays in providing executed Lease document to tenants Section 22 of the Retail Leases Act 2003 (Vic) (RLA) provides: Within 28 days (or such other period as is agreed in writing between the landlord and the tenant) after being given a copy of...
Renewing Victorian Retail Leases
Where a tenant has an option for a further term granted to it under the terms of a lease (or a subsequent deed varying the lease), in the majority of cases for standard commercial (non-retail) leases it is the tenant that takes the first step in exercising the option....
ASIC Warns About Scam Emails
On 17 January 2017, ASIC issued a Media Release warning its customers to be vigilant of a scam involving emails to customers purporting to be issued by ASIC. The media release reports that ASIC “is aware of some customers having received emails containing attachments...
Crowd-sourced Equity Funding Arrives in Australia
In March 2017, the Corporations Amendments (Crowd-sourced Funding) Bill 2016 passed the Senate with the resulting Act to take effect in late September this year. Without a doubt, this is a significant piece of legislation as it will provide certain Australian...
PPSR – Audit and Amend Your Apparent Credit Risk Profile
The Personal Properties Securities Register (PPSR) established under the Personal Properties Securities Act 2009 (Cth) (PPSA) records security interests held by creditors over certain personal property of debtors. A consequence of registration of security interests...
3 Faq’s From Victorian Retail Leasing Tenants
The following are typical of the FAQs we receive from tenants: I have been given a Letter of Offer to lease retail premises by the landlord’s real estate agent. What should I do now? conducting physical due diligence of the building structure and the landlord’s...