Whether or not to more broadly adopt a user-pays model for road infrastructure is a contentious debate within Australia A number of industry participants and bodies have shown leadership in framing and enriching the debate while others have sought to politicise or inflame the core issues Partner ...

The Senate has this week referred a broad-ranging inquiry into foreign bribery to the Senate Economic References Committee The terms of the reference provide for a substantial review of Australias foreign bribery laws and enforcement regime with a particular focus on corporate culture issues and ...

The Supreme Court of Queensland recently considered whether liquidated damages in a standard form construction contract were a penalty In a decision that traversed long-held doctrines on penalties and recent developments in emAndrewsem and Paciocco the court ruled that the obligation to pay ...

The New South Wales Government has released its new Integrated Mining Policy for consultation It clarifies the development application requirements for major mining projects and aims to streamline the assessment process Partner Bill McCredie and Senior Associates Naomi Bergman and Michael Zissis ...

The Australian Government has released its alpha Digital Service Standard which establishes criteria that all Australian digital government services must meet to ensure they are simpler faster and easier to use ...

Theres an assumption that everyone is on social media these days even when theyre at work - and they probably are Many startups embrace social media but as an employer you will need to understand and manage the risks that come with the use of social media in the workplace ...

Treasury today released what appears to be an extract from an Exposure Draft Bill that will remove the equal representation rules in the Superannuation Industry Supervision Act 1993 Cth and require at least a third of the directors of superannuation trustee boards to be independent If passed the ...

The Queensland Parliament has passed legislation introducing a stamp duty concession for transfers of interests in exploration authorities under eligible farm-in agreements ...

This week the Victorian Planning Minister kickstarted a review into the Heritage Act 1995 Vic by launching a discussion paper outlining Heritage Victorias suggestions for reform Developers and heritage-listed property owners should consider the proposed changes to prepare for a public consultation ...

A potential game changer that sought to test the boundaries of the class action regime has been averted after the Federal Court refused to make a common fund order in the shareholder class action against Allco Finance The court has however questioned whether legislative reform is required to deal ...