On 18 February 2021, social media company Facebook made the decision to prohibit the publishing and sharing of links (Links) from Australian media companies (News Companies) on the site. This ban came into effect almost immediately after the Treasury Laws Amendment (News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code) Bill 2021 (Cth) (Media Bargaining Code) passed the House of Representatives. The ban has roadblocked News Companies from 9 News to the Bureau of Meteorology and even the beloved satirical news provider, The Betoota Advocate. This article analyses the proposals of the Media Bargaining Code and what the legal effect of non-compliance may be. [Read more…]
Search Results for: EU
What is the springboard doctrine?
27 January 2021 by
The ‘springboard’ doctrine refers to the benefit that is derived because of misuse of confidential information by a defendant that enables them to ‘springboard’ a new product or service to market more rapidly than if they had used their own mind. A breach can be a contractual or equitable in nature and can also involve other causes of action such as breaches of director’s duties. [Read more…]
Deal fatigue in business transactions
19 January 2021 by
Deal fatigue is very common in commercial transactions in Australia because of the complexity of the law and the sheer volume of documentation that’s often required. An unfortunate consequence can be that benefit of entering into the deal in the first place can be watered down to the extent that the deal becomes unpalatable. This article will discuss the symptoms of deal fatigue and offer some tips on avoiding it. [Read more…]
Warning – Facebook trolls ordered to pay $150k damages
24 December 2020 by
In the recent unreported case of Moy v Isaac & Smith, featured in an article published by the Courier Mail on 15 November 2020, two online trolls were ordered to pay $150,000 to a wedding planner after creating a number of defamatory Facebook posts about her business. [Read more…]
Directions to rectify defective domestic building work – part 2
24 November 2020 by
Under the Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991 (Act) the Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC) is empowered to issue to a builder a notice to rectify defective domestic building work. [Read more…]
Proposed amendments to use of orphan works
16 October 2020 by
On 13 August 2020, Paul Fletcher MP, Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety and the Arts, announced amendments to the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth) (Act). The amendments follow two (2) years of stakeholder consultation, and finalise the Government’s response to the Productivity Commission’s 2016 Intellectual Property Arrangements Report. The reforms focus on the use of “orphan works”, with an aim to provide a framework for copyright that is fit for the digital age. [Read more…]
Dark fibre agreements for telcos
19 August 2020 by
Dark fibre refers to access to ‘unlit’ (unused) telecommunications fibre. Generally, large telecommunications carriers and government utilities (Supplier) have dark fibre networks laid out that can be available to carriage service providers (CSP’s) to access to scale up their network. Below we set out key elements of dark fibre and corresponding issues in telecommunications service agreements between CSP’s and their business end users (End User). [Read more…]
What is a software licence agreement?
22 July 2020 by
A software licence agreement (Software Licence Agreement) is a contract where one party (Licensor) grants to another party (Licensee) the right to use the defined software. It is often used by software developers (Developers) so that they can build and own a core application, customise it for particular clients and provide them with a licence to use the core. In many cases this licence has been the start of a substantial business enterprise. The term Software Licence Agreement can apply to both installed software as well as cloud based applications. That said cloud based Apps are commonly referred to as “Software as a service contracts” or SaaS Contracts because they involve the right to access and use a software application as opposed to a right to reproduce the code. [Read more…]
What happens if you betray a Scotsman?
9 February 2020 by
Fans of the movie 1995 movie “Braveheart” starring Mel Gibson would be aware of the savage brutality of the ‘Guardian of the Realm’, Sir William Wallace in seeking vengeance from his oppressors and those who ‘broke their promise‘ to support him in battle. [Read more…]
IT Lawyers and TMT
Dundas Lawyers is a multi award winning technology, media and telecommunications law (TM&T) law firm established in 2011 with offices in Brisbane and the Gold Coast with clients throughout Australia and internationally. We’ve been recognised in the prestigious Doyles Guide in the TM&T category in 2015 and 2017 and have actual experience prior to law running software development projects and senior IT Management roles. 
We advise software developers and buyers of software development services throughout Australia on all aspects of information technology law. We are also unique in that not only can we draft and implement all of your IT contracts, we will represent your company in Court. This combination of domain level experience and both advisory and litigious experience is rare in the IT law arena. We’ve also got over a decade experience.
Not only do we know the law relating to IT, but our Principal, Malcolm Burrows has over a decade of experience in running IT related businesses prior to being called to the law. Our Principal is one of the few lawyer in the country that can lay claim to a successful dot com startup prior to becoming a lawyer. What this all means is that you’ll have to spend less time explaining what it is that you are trying to do, and we will be able to spend more time explaining how you can do it!
Recent IT Law projects include:
- Representing a buyer of software development services against a software developer regarding a failed agile software development project;
- Negotiating the terms of a technology contract with a bank on behalf of a group of software developers;
- Represented e-commerce provider in a copyright infringement matter in the Federal Court of Australia involving a successful application for interlocutory relief on an urgent basis;
- Representing various buyers of software development services;
- Representing software developer in Supreme Court of Queensland regarding breach of directors duties and copyright infringement;
- Drafting software as a service agreements for various software developers that have created cloud versions of their installed software;
- Representing an investor in a technology company in the Supreme Court of Queensland regarding alleged breaches of directors duties;
Recent IT law videos
Notifiable Data Breach Scheme commenced 23 Feb 2018
What is a data breach response plan?
IT contracts
Our legal services in this area include (but are by no means limited to) drafting, negotiating and settling the following sorts of legal contracts:
- Software support agreements;
- End user licence agreements (EULA);
- Software development agreements:
- Agile methodology; and
- Waterfall methodology; and
- combinations of the two.
- Software installation, supply, and support agreements;
- Software license agreements for IPhone and Android;
- Systems access agreements;
- Online Sale of Goods and Services Agreements;
- Marketplace Platform Terms and Conditions.
Recent articles by Dundas Lawyers
- ACCC releases enforcement priorities for 2023/2024
- Copyright, code libraries and ownership
- EU General Data Protection Regulations, compliance guide
- What is a data breach response plan?
- How to compare software developers based on methodology by Eban Escott, Working Mouse
- Who owns the code?
- Has my software been copied – the legal test
- Legal issues for data loss
- A new guide for dealing with data breaches
- Reverse engineering of software – what are the legal boundaries?
Need more information?
Please contact us for a confidential, no obligation, discussion about your needs in this area.
For an obligation free conversation on how Dundas Lawyers can assist you with your IT contracts or a litigous matter please, contact:
Malcolm Burrows B.Bus.,MBA.,LL.B.,LL.M.,MQLS.
Legal Practice Director
Telephone: (07) 3221 0013
Mobile 0419 726 535
@ITCorporatelaw
