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When a thumbs up emoji means accepting an offer
In a time where communication increasingly takes place through text messages and social media platforms, the legal recognition of non-traditional expressions, such as emojis, presents a potential evolution of the doctrine of acceptance in contract law. The 2023 Canadian decision by the Saskatchewan Court of King’s Bench (Court) in South West Terminal Ltd v Achter…
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What is an indemnity clause?
The word indemnity, in its’ legal context, is defined as “legal protection against liabilities arising from one’s actions.” An indemnity clause therefore, represents the contractual embodiment of this definition, serving as a formal mechanism which protects one party from the from the actions or inactions of another. In effect, it enables parties to allocate risk…
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What is the US Take It Down Act?
The Tools to Address Known Exploitation by Immobilizing Technological Deepfakes on Websites and Networks Act (Take It Down Act ) is a United States (US) federal law enacted on 19 May 2025. The Take It Down Act amends 47 U.S. Code § 223 (Code) of the Communications Act 1934 (US) (Communications Act) by establishing new…
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Introduction to the Trusts Bill 2025 (Qld)
On 1 May 2025, the Trusts Bill 2025 (Qld) (Bill) passed its final reading before the Queensland Parliament and, at the date of this article, awaits royal assent. When in force, the Bill will completely replace the current Trusts Act 1973 (Qld) (Act) to reflect the recommendations of the Queensland Law Reform Commission’s 2013 review of the…
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What are unrealised capital gains?
An unrealised capital gain refers to an increase in the value of an asset that has not yet been sold or disposed of. In Australia, capital gains are taxed on assets which have increased in value when they are sold and the gain is realised, however the proposed Treasury Laws Amendment (Better Targeted Superannuation Concessions)…
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Labor to abolish non-compete clauses from 2027
On 25 March 2025, the Albanese Labor government announced in its 2025-26 Budget (Budget), that it intended to abolish non-compete clauses in employment contracts for approximately three (3) million workers from 2027.
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Damages for misleading conduct by competitors under ACL
Section 236 of the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) entitles any person, including corporations – to claim compensation for loss or damage suffered from misleading or deceptive conduct. The High Court has developed numerous general principles for assessing loss or damage which we will discuss in this article.
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Federal parliament enacts cyber security legislation
On 25 November 2024, the Australian Parliament passed a suite of legislation, collectively referred to by the Australian Government as the Cyber Security Legislative Package 2024. The purported impetus for this legislation was a series of high-profile data breaches in 2022 and 2023.
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Updates to the Franchising Code of Conduct
The current Franchising Code of Conduct (Old Code) is scheduled to “sunset” (meaning it will automatically expire unless extended or replaced) on 1 April 2025, with the Competition and Consumer (Industry Codes–Franchising) Regulations 2024 (Cth) (New Regulations) coming into effect on the same date.
Commercial law
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