A physiotherapist who lodged an unfair dismissal application with the Fair Work Commission (FWC) has passed the first hurdle after the FWC found that he was an employee, not an independent contractor. The FWC’s judgment in Mark Mitchell v Uraidla Physio (U2017/625) [2017] FWC 2476 could have far-reaching implications for [...]
Horse Racing Regulations – Co-Ownership Agreement The horse racing industry has recently seen the commencement of a new set of regulations in respect of the rights and responsibilities of co-owners and trainers. Racing Australia’s new Trainer and Owner Reforms (‘TOR’), which commenced on the 1st August 2017, includes the introduction [...]
Did you know that Pointon Partners offers mediation as a cost effective dispute resolution service to enable your clients to get back to business? Mediation can be organised at any time – you don’t need to be involved in Court proceedings, you just need to agree with the other party [...]
In May 2016, the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) changed its policy on backdoor listings so that an entity’s securities will be suspended immediately from the announcement of a backdoor listing transaction. However, the ASX has now relaxed this policy change by allowing entities to avoid suspension until re-compliance if they [...]
The Treasurer has recently released exposure draft legislation (Treasury Laws Amendment (Housing Tax Integrity) Bill 2017) in relation to removal of the CGT main residence exemption for foreign residents. The changes are part of the Commonwealth Government’s ‘housing affordability’ reforms announced in the 2017-18 Budget. This will affect both Australian [...]
The Supreme Court of Victoria’s recent decision in IMCC Group (Australia) Pty Ltd v CB Cold Storage [2017] VSCA 178 has confirmed that a wide interpretation of ‘retail premises’ should be used for the purposes of the Retail Leases Act 2003 (Vic) (Act). This included a finding that ‘the ultimate [...]
As an intellectual property rights owner of, it is important that you are vigilant about protecting your intellectual property from infringement and maintaining the reputation and value of your brand and/or products. Counterfeit products which are imported in Australia can impact on and undermine the growth of a brand and its [...]
The Privacy Amendment (Notifiable Data Breaches) Act 2017 (Cth) (Act) amends the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act) to introduce mandatory data breach notification provisions for organisations, agencies and certain other entities that are regulated by the Privacy Act (entities).[1] “Mandatory data breach notification” commonly refers to a legal requirement [...]
Just over two months have passed since the Federal Government enacted the Treasury Laws Amendment (Enterprise Tax Plan) Act 2017 to reduce the corporate tax rate in Australia. The new company tax rate is 27.5% for the 2016-17 tax year for companies with aggregated annual turnover of less than $10m. [...]
The two recent resignations by male AFL executives who had affairs with lower ranked female employees has highlighted a complex yet growing issue for businesses in Australia and around the world. Whilst most employers and HR managers in Australia simply ignore the issue taking a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ approach, [...]
