The Federal Government today introduced a Bill into Parliament to implement its proposed amendments to the Future of Financial Advice legislation There are some significant differences between the Bill as introduced and the earlier exposure draft version released in January The proposed reforms are ...

The PRC Government is reforming its corporate regulatory approval processes at an unprecedented rate The changes are aimed at facilitating private sector investment including foreign direct investment in order to move towards a more market-driven economy Over the past four months new regulations ...

A new regime that streamlines the environmental approvals process for petroleum activities in Commonwealth waters will place a greater responsibility on the titleholder of a tenement rather than the operator Partner Chris Schulz and Senior Associate Eve Lynch provide an overview of the changes ...

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 ...

A recent draft tax ruling may make it more difficult for employers to claim tax deductions for contributions made to employee remuneration trusts However the ruling is expected to have limited practical application to listed companies making non-refundable contributions to traditional employee share ...

The difficulty of registering a colour mark or word mark denoting a colour that include issues of market place recognition was highlighted by a recent set of appeals revolving around the use of the word Yellow in a tussle between various business directory goods and service providers Partner Sarah ...

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 ...

A one stop shop for Commonwealth and state environmental approvals in Queensland and New South Wales is a step closer with the release of draft Approval Bilateral Agreements If implemented as planned Queensland and New South Wales will each become responsible for assessing and approving projects for ...

A policy background paper on media control and ownership released by the federal Department of Communications aims to restart the discussion on media law reform The paper does not draw conclusions or make recommendations but adopts a deregulatory tone Partner Ian McGill Senior Associate Matt Vitins ...

A key risk faced by self-funded retirees is the possibility that their superannuation savings will not last as long as they will While lifetime pensions and annuities issued by life companies can assist in addressing this risk there has traditionally been a relatively low uptake of these products by ...