A court may, in its judicial discretion, order that a party to proceedings pay security for costs which may be incurred by their opponent(s). Costs in this sense refers to the legal costs incurred in litigating a dispute. Where a party fails to oblige an order for security for costs the proceedings will generally be stayed until that party’s compliance is forthcoming. These types of orders a generally granted where there are some prospects of a party failing to pay an order for costs at the conclusion of the litigation. [Read more…]
Litigation & Disputes
Business promotion online – liability for comments by others
21 October 2021 by
The recent High Court case of Australian New Channel Pty Ltd v Voller [2021] HCA 27 (Fairfax) found a business which published ‘posts’ on their Facebook page was liable for defamatory comments made by third parties to that post. Liability may be found irrespective of the publisher’s intent and the relevance of the comment to the original post. [Read more…]
Government surveillance bill passed by Parliament
30 September 2021 by
On 25 August 2021 Federal Parliament passed the Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2021 (Bill). The Bill modifies various acts, including the Surveillance Devices Act 2004 (Cth) (SDA) and the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth) (CA), to enhance the law enforcement powers of the Australian Federal Police and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission in respect of serious online crime.[1] The Bill introduces three (3) new warrants:
- data disruption warrants;
- network activity warrants; and
- account takeover warrants.
Can email trackers be submitted as evidence?
31 August 2021 by
Whether email trackers, read receipts and similar indicators that show an email has been received and, ostensibly, read can be submitted as evidence has not been substantially considered in standing jurisprudence. This article briefly considers whether, in light of existing case law, email trackers can be submitted as evidence. [Read more…]
QBCC Home Warranty Insurance claims – part 4
16 August 2021 by
This article is a continuation from the previous article done by Dundas Lawyers: Review of QBCC decisions – part 4 and the case that was outlined therein. Part 5 of the Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991 (Qld) (Act) establishes a statutory home warranty insurance scheme (QBCC Home Warranty Insurance Scheme), the purpose of which is in certain situations to provide basic assistance to consumers of residential construction work. But does coverage under the QBCC Home Warranty Insurance Scheme extend to prepayments made for residential construction work yet to be performed? [Read more…]
Costs in unfair dismissal applications – part 4
28 July 2021 by
Previous articles by Dundas Lawyers have looked at the difficulties confronted in obtaining a costs order against an unsuccessful party in an unfair dismissal application (Application). To recap, section 611(1) of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (FWA) holds that a party to an Application, be it the complainant employee or the respondent employer, must bear its own costs in relation to a matter before the Fair Work Commission (FWC). However, there are circumstances when the other side’s costs can be imposed on a party to an Application. This article outlines these circumstances. [Read more…]
Preliminary discovery in the Federal Court
14 June 2021 by
Preliminary discovery (Discovery) is available to potential applicants (Applicants) in the Federal Court for the purposes of determining whether there is a good cause of action against a prospective respondent (Respondent). It is not as a mechanism for full discovery. Discovery is done before the filing of any claim and occurs at the very start of litigious proceedings. [Read more…]
Tortious interference with contract – what must be proven?
1 June 2021 by
Unlawful interference with contractual relations (Interference) is a tort that allows damages to be claimed against a Defendant who has induced or procured a third party to breach their contractual obligations to the Plaintiff in the proceedings. In essence, a Defendant’s intention to induce or procure an entity to act or refrain from acting whilst being aware that such an action would result in said entity breach its contractual obligations to the Plaintiff gives rise to the Interference.[1] This article outlines the elements needed to be proven in order to establish an Interference. [Read more…]
What is the proposed ‘patent box’ tax incentive?
28 May 2021 by
The Federal Government has announced in its 2021-2022 budget the ‘patent box tax regime’ (Regime). The Regime is in effect a $206 million boost to Australian biotech and medtech innovators (Research Areas) via the implementation of a concessional corporate tax rate. [Read more…]
Are fiduciary duties owed by former directors?
19 May 2021 by
Company directors owe various duties to their company and its shareholders. For example, sections 180, 181, 182, 183 and 184 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)(Act) impose statutory duties to exercise care and diligence, maintain good faith and refrain from using their position or information to gain an advantage for themselves. However, the legislation, barring section 183, does not clearly express the extent to which these duties, as well as similar common law duties, continue to apply after a director has ceased being the director of a company. Addressing this shortfall, the Court in Advanced Fuels Technology Pty Ltd v Blythe & Ors [2018] VSC 286 (Advanced Fuels) found that whether or not these duties endure after the cessation of a directorship depends on the facts and circumstances of each case. [Read more…]
