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Is your Heads of Agreement certain enough to be enforceable? business business agreements heads of agreement lease Nov 07, 2019

A Heads of Agreement (also known as a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or Letter of Intent (LOI)) is a document outlining the proposed agreement between the parties to it. There are a number of commercial situations where a Heads of Agreement will be commonly prepared between the parties –...

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Off the Plan Contract Reforms conveyancing off-the-plan property purchasing property selling property Oct 30, 2019

New laws are expected to come into force on 1 December 2019 when the Conveyancing Legislation (Amendment) Act 2018 and Conveyancing (Sale of Land) Amendment Regulation 2019 commence.

These impose further disclosure requirements on vendors selling off the plan properties and...

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Warranty against defects for services australian consumer law business warranty Oct 25, 2019

As of June 2019 the Australian Consumer Law (‘ACL’) has additional requirements for those businesses who provide a Warranty Against Defects for services (‘WAD’) in the provision of either:

  • Services; or
  • Goods with services.

What is a...

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Can a bikini style name infringe a Trade Mark? business intellectual property trade marks Oct 18, 2019

Can a bikini-style name infringe a trademark? This is an issue which the Federal Court of Australia addressed in a 2019 decision involving Pinnacle Runway.

The parties

  • Pinnacle Runway Pty Ltd (“Pinnacle”) designs, manufactures, supplies and sells women’s clothing in Australia...
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Choosing your Executor estate planning estates executor duties wills Oct 15, 2019

Choosing who you want to administer your Will once you have passed is an important decision. Whoever you choose will be responsible for managing your estate and all the assets and liabilities contained therein. The role of executor is that of a fiduciary (i.e. a position of trust),...

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Just because you do, doesn't mean you can! easements property property law supreme court Oct 09, 2019

Just because you’ve always done it doesn’t mean you’re actually allowed to.

When talking property, you would think that ownership and the right to access land would be clear cut, but quite often that’s not the case.

Who owns the laneway that cuts between your house and the...

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When the same slogan is used by different businesses business intellectual property supreme court trade marks Oct 03, 2019

The Supreme Court has struck out a claim made by Ms Annika Karlsson in which she alleged that Griffith University had breached her trademark registration of the slogan “Know more. Do more.” The Court’s decision can be read here.

Registering the trademark – by both...

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The significance of pre-contract negotiations business contract law debt recovery oral contracts startup business supreme court Jul 10, 2019

The difficulties associated with a partly oral and partly written contract were considered by the Supreme Court in an April 2019 decision involving the Fields Group, a security company based on the Central Coast with approximately 120 security guards, and the much larger Wilson Security, with...

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The Court's power to create an Easement - and the requirement not to be "foolish, irrational or unreasonable" in the process easements litigation property property law Jun 19, 2019

A 2018 decision by the Supreme Court of New South Wales reinforces the fact that if there is an obvious encroachment on your property over a number of years, it cannot later be denied that an existing use exists.

The matter of Rawson v Studholme [2018] NSWSC 1764 dealt with a right of way that...

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Restraints of trade in contracts of employment business employment law restraint of trade May 07, 2019

Restraints of Trade, often included in contracts of employment, are a valuable tool for employers to ensure that their commercial and competitive interests are preserved after the employee/employer relationship ends. However, it is important if you intend to include a restraint, that it be...

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Dissolving a business partnership in the absence of a partnership agreement business business agreements partnership agreements May 06, 2019

The Supreme Court made orders in 2017 regarding the winding up of a partnership that operated a real estate agency.  The two former partners agreed upon the existence and duration of their partnership, and upon a need for partnership accounts to be taken under the supervision of the Court,...

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The importance of following proper processes for making a Statutory Declaration business estates litigation notary public property statutory declaration May 02, 2019

As lawyers and Justices of the Peace, we are often asked to witness signatures on important documents such as Statutory Declarations.  As authorised witnesses, we must ensure that we comply with the witnessing requirements as set out in the Oaths Act for a number of reasons, otherwise we...

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