In a decision that has potential implications for a raft of Federal Government programs the High Court held that legislation passed to authorise hundreds of government funding arrangements is invalid insofar as it relates to the national schools chaplaincy program The decision once again confirms ...

In a recent decision the Victorian Court of Appeal has held that parties to an arbitration agreement cannot avoid arbitration by seeking to bring the claim in a statutory tribunal Partner Nick Rudge and Lawyer James Waters report on a case that reinforces the trend of Australian courts to give ...

The Productivity Commissions draft report on its inquiry into Australias system of civil dispute resolution has now been released The comprehensive review focuses on ways to constrain costs and promote access to justice One of the areas the Productivity Commission is examining is Australias private ...

In a recent decision the Federal Court dismissed an application to set aside an arbitral award rendered in Australia on the basis that it breached the rules of natural justice In doing so the courts decision recognised the limited scope of the grounds upon which an award can be set aside under ...

A representative proceeding can only be commenced where seven or more group members have claims against the same person In proceedings with multiple respondents there has been conflicting authority as to whether each group member is required to have a claim against each respondent Last week in Cash ...

In this issue we look at an unsuccessful challenge to the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in the Federal Court of Australia recent changes to the arbitration rules of the Institute of Arbitrators and Mediators Australia the International Centre for Dispute Resolution and the London Court of ...

The Full Federal Court has held that a liquidator has no obligation to retain monies on account of tax until a notice of assessment has been issued While the decision is a win for taxpayers and creditors of insolvent entities it remains to be seen how the Commissioner of Taxation will respond ...

A recent decision of the High Court could intensify uncertainty about the legitimacy of resolving civil penalty proceedings by the regulator and the defendant approaching the court with an agreed penalty supported by an agreed statement of facts Partner Matthew McLennan and Lawyer Megan Sandler ...

In response to concerns about inconsistencies across various state-based jurisdictions and following a public consultation process the Standing Council on Law and Justice has released revised draft model legislation to reform Australias proportionate liability laws Partner Andrea Martignoni and ...

A recent Federal Court decision highlights the importance of managing the provision of information and documentation to third parties with caution in order to preserve legal professional privilege Partner Richard Harris and Senior Associate Elnaz Nikibin report on the case ...