Australia's modern slavery reporting regime was introduced one year ago, and 2020 will see the first set of modern slavery statements published by reporting entities. ...

The Australian Government has tabled the Crimes Amendment (Combatting Corporate Crime) Bill 2019 (the 2019 Bill) in the Senate, and the Attorney-General's Department has released Draft Guidance on the steps a body corporate can take to prevent an associate from bribing foreign public officials for public consultation (the Draft Guidance). Like the 2017 version of the Bill that lapsed earlier this year (the 2017 Bill), if passed, the 2019 Bill will strengthen Australia's foreign bribery laws, including by introducing a new corporate offence of failure to prevent bribery by an associate, and will introduce a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) scheme for resolving serious corporate criminal matters. Partner Rachel Nicolson, Senior Associate Andrew Wilcock and Associate Lewis Winter report on the key differences between the 2017 and 2019 Bills, and the content of the Draft Guidance. ...

The United Kingdom High Court (the Court) recently handed down its judgment in Amey Highways Ltd v West Sussex County Council, which considered the abandonment of a government procurement process following a breach of relevant procurement regulations by a public agency. For government departments and agencies in particular, this case clarifies when a public agency can abandon a procurement process and what remedies may be available to bidders in these circumstances. ...

A Deferred Prosecution Agreement in the United Kingdom which will see the Rolls-Royce company pay more than 500 million to settle charges of foreign bribery is the most significant UK DPA to date It is likely to influence the approach and expectations of the Australian Government and law enforcement ...

The new package of legislation overhauling Australias foreign investment laws the first major revision in 40 years commenced on 1 December 2015 While many features of the previous regime have been retained and sometimes re-named there are also a number of significant changes Partners Jeremy Low ...

The High Court decision in Paciocco v Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited, provides welcome clarity on the application of the 'penalties rule' implicating a broad range of sectors. ...

Class actions in Queensland are one step closer with the introduction of proposed new legislation into the Queensland Parliament Partner Michael Ilott Special Counsel Robyn Morrison and Senior Associate Suzie Fraser report ...

A recent New South Wales Court of Appeal decision concerned a guarantee purportedly signed by e-signature without the guarantors knowledge It is an interesting case-study though the decision is really about ostensible authority and ratification Senior Finance Counsel Diccon Loxton considers its ...

The Full Federal Court today handed down its decisions in two high-profile appeals in relation to ANZ and Flight Centre Both cases dealt with the issue of distribution arrangements and price fixing Partner Carolyn Oddie and Associate Theodore Souris look at the implications for business ...

Class actions are an established and important part of the Australian legal landscape In recent years Australia has become the most likely jurisdiction outside of the United States in which a corporation will face significant class action litigation This evolution has been facilitated by recent ...