The Federal Government’s Treasury
Legislation Amendment (Small Business and Unfair Contract Terms) Bill 2015 was
tabled in Parliament in 24 June 2015. If passed in its current form the Bill
will afford “small businesses” protection against unfair contract terms in “small
business contracts” in a manner similar to the protections consumers currently
have against unfair contract terms in consumer contracts under the Australian
Consumer Law (see clause 23 of schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010
(Cth)). Amongst other...
Sunday, 26 July 2015
Due Diligence – A Tenant’s Perspective
When assisting tenants in the
negotiation of a new lease for commercial or retail premises we strongly urge
tenants to arrange a physical inspection of the premises by a qualified
inspector before entering into the Lease.
The inspection should cover the building
structure including power and plumbing systems, air conditioning and other
installations. The resolution of problems identified in the inspection report
can then be negotiated with the landlord and form part of the written terms of
the Lease.
In some instances...
Revised Franchising Code of Conduct
It has now been 6 months since the
introduction of the new Franchising Code of Conduct.
As franchisors should now be aware, the
majority of the changes to the Code affect franchisors, such as:
* the inclusion
of new rules regarding the management and use of marketing funds;
* limitations
on restraining franchisees’ business activities at the end of the franchise;
*
limitations on imposing significant capital expenditure requirements on
franchisees; and
* a new penalty...
Thursday, 23 July 2015
Buying real estate? Do your research first
Buying real estate? Do your
research first
When considering
the purchase of residential or commercial property, it’s critical you do your
market research so you don’t pay too much. We often suggest to prospective purchasers to
subscribe to a property market research service, such as CoreLogic RP Data (www.corelogic.com.au) or Australian Property
Monitors (www.apm.com.au) on a month to
month basis, for a fee.
Knowing the
market is important when bidding at an auction or making an offer to purchase
in a private sale...
Recent Wills Act Amendment Introducing International Wills
The recent amendment to the Wills Act now incorporated International
Wills into Victorian law.
Those who have assets in multiple
countries may consider the amendment to be a welcome change.
Essentially, if a will is prepared
in accordance with the formal requirements of the UNIDROIT Wills Convention,
then it will be taken to have satisfied all formal requirements of a will in a
jurisdiction that adopted the Convention.
Jurisdictions adopted the Convention
include Belgium, Canada (not all provinces),...
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