Whistleblowers play an important role in exposing illegal conduct and unethical practice in private organisations but are subject to potential reprisals as a result. The Federal Government has recently released an exposure draft of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Whistleblowers) Bill 2017. The purpose of this...
In response to the criticisms of the restrictions imposed by the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015, (‘The Act’) the NSW Government has introduced the Fair Trading Amendment (Short-term Rental Accommodation) Bill 2018 (‘the Bill’). Its purpose is to amend the Act to allow the by-laws...
Passing Off and Misleading or Deceptive Conduct On Line – Old dog, new tricks. (Presented to Law Society CLE Seminar on 8 March 2016) Introduction. Misleading and deceptive conduct in the course of trade is as old as commerce itself. But new technologies open up new opportunities...
Rights Owners Strike Back? Preliminary Discovery post Dallas Buyers Club Published by Lexis Nexis Internet Law Bulletin 18/2015 and Australian Intellectual Property Law Bulletin 28/2015 By Grant Hansen In 2012 the ISP iiNet achieved a notable victory in the High Court in Roadshow Films Pty Ltd v iiNet Ltd (2012)...
(Published in Law Society Journal of NSW September 2014. Revised version published in Australian Commercial Law Tracker October 2014) Grant Hansen In the seminal case on damages for software infringement, Autodesk v Cheung (1990) 171 IPR 69Justice Wilcox observed that: one matter which is, in my opinion, relevant, is the difficulty...
Directors and Managers liability for copyright infringement over the internet. (Published in Internet Law Bulletin vol.18 No. 2, 2015) Grant Hansen A person who has under his control the means by which an infringement of copyright may be committed – such as a photocopying machine – and who...
(Published in Keeping Good Companies August 2013) Grant Hansen The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) recently published a discussion paper1, which recommends the introduction of a US style fair use defence to the existing law of copyright. That defence would replace the existing highly specific fair dealing...
(Published in Lexis Nexis Risk Management 2014 Volume 24 No 6) Cloud computing is already a big part of our lives; though, often, we don’t realise we are using it. Partly, no doubt, that is the intention. The name itself encourages fuzzy thinking and its users...
Off the Plan Contracts An Off the Plan contract is a contract where the Vendor is usually a property developer and sells to the Purchaser a property which has not yet been built. In some cases the property will not be completed for 2 or...
Background The commencement of the changes to the Swimming Pools Act 1992 (NSW) (“the Act’”) which have been evolving since 2012 finally commenced on 29th April 2016. These changes have a significant impact on Vendors and Purchasers of properties with swimming pools and spa pools. Are you selling a property with...