561-570 of 590 results
Australia's Modern Slavery Act – one year on
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. ...
Take Two: anti-bribery reforms revived and long-awaited draft regulatory guidance released
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Corporate Crime) Bill 2019 (the 2019 Bill) in the Senate, and the Attorney-General's Department has released Draft Guidance on the steps a body corporate can take to prevent an associate from bribing foreign public officials for public consultation (the Draft Guidance).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and Associate Lewis Winter report on the key differences between the 2017 and 2019 Bills, and the content of the Draft Guidance. ...
Round 2: Financial Advice
In her summary my colleague, Michelle Levy, said her initial reaction was that the recommendations in the Final Report were modest but, on a second reading, some would set a cat among the pigeons. ...
Round 3: Lending Practices to Small and Medium Enterprises
Throughout the Royal Commission, Commissioner Hayne grappled with the difficulties of striking an appropriate balance between ensuring that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have access to credit, and imposing standards on the provision of that credit to protect SME borrowers and third-party guara ...
Round 4: Experiences with financial services entities in regional and remote communities
During the agricultural round of hearings, and in his Interim Report, the Commissioner asked if there should be special rules for farmers to address the particular challenges of the sector, and if so, who should bear the added cost? ...
Round 5: Superannuation
Perhaps the biggest issue dealt with in the superannuation hearings is how various forms of conflicts create perverse incentives for trustees to not comply with their duties. ...
Sidestepping arbitration clauses - a potentially explosive business!
The Supreme Court of Western Australia has rejected a wide-ranging attack by a contracting party preferring litigation to arbitration on the operation of an arbitration clause Partner Andrew Maher reports ...
Can listed companies continue to claim tax deductions for contributions to employee share trusts?
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 ...
Civil penalties: are negotiated outcomes still negotiable?
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 ...
The Federal Court on information to third parties, legal professional privilege and waiver
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 ...