On 9 December 2020, the Australian Federal Parliament passed legislation about that the most significant reforms to the Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Act 1975 in nearly 50 years. The new laws commenced on 1 January 2021. A summary of the major changes are as follows: doing business in Australia is now easier because the temporary…
Summary Australia has some unique due diligence practices for M&A transactions which are different from the usual practices in China. The strength of certain national and state based laws together with robust government registries concerning corporations, security interests, real property and intellectual property allow an acquiring entity to have greater certainty when carrying out legal…
Summary The Australian Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) imposes numerous obligations on directors which can expose them to significant liabilities for a breach of their duties. Below is a high-level summary of duties of directors of Australian companies and consequence of breaching those duties. General Duties of Directors Duties of care and diligence – A director…
Summary Chinese investment in Australia in recent years has mainly focused on healthcare, food and agriculture, and advanced technology, in which sectors Chinese outbound investment are expressly encouraged by the Chinese government as opposed to real estate and entertainment. Following the launch of the ‘Healthy China 2030’ plan by President Xi Jinping in 2016, the…
Summary On 29 March 2020, the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) thresholds were temporarily reduced to $0. On 18 September 2020, the Treasury introduced a draft of proposed changes, including: The previous monetary screening thresholds are proposed to be reinstated Passive investment funds with multiple foreign government investors may not be considered as foreign government…
The COVID-19 outbreak has created uncertainty in all spheres of our daily lives. Such uncertainty is heightened when it comes to situations involving decisions on whether the children should self-isolate or whether the children should continue parenting arrangements, schooling or activities, especially where there are existing court orders in place. Whether you have parenting arrangements…
In addition to the concerns for our health, families and in our personal lives, COVID-19 has also created an atmosphere of uncertainty for many business owners. To manage and mitigate the business impact of COVID-19, you must be aware of your contractual rights and your legal obligations to make smart business decisions to minimise your…
Jair Lovata comes to see you with a look on his face that he has a secret to tell you. Intrigued, you lean in and say to Jair, “How you going Jair, what’s on your mind?” Jair goes on to tell you about his concerns that he has with his partner, how he feels that…
With COVID-19 virus spreading domestically and internationally, government restrictions on travel, restrictions on visitation rights to see the elderly in aged care facilities, school closures and people self-isolating at home, we have seen an increase in the need for people to take immediate steps to implement their own Wills, Enduring Power of Attorneys and Enduring…
Demi Baldwin and her former partner Paul Markle commenced their de-facto relationship 5 years ago. At the time, Demi asked her parents to assist with the purchase of a property as they had just received an inheritance. Demi’s parents, Clare and David agreed and gifted $250K to Demi to assist with the deposit on the…
