Continuing Professional Development – 31 March 2020 | Legal ethical dilemmas in commercial and corporate transactions
Below you will find the recording from our recent Continuing Professional Development morning, hosted via webinar on Tuesday, 31 March 2020. If you have any queries regarding the session topic, or related issues, please do not hesitate to get in touch with the presenters or our wider team. Legal ethical dilemmas in commercial and corporate […]
ReadmoreCOVID-19 | Emergency measures for tenancy laws in NSW
The economic pressure on tenants and landlords during the COVID-19 pandemic is increasing resulting in the mandated closure of a large number of businesses under the Public Health Act 2010 (NSW) and rise in unemployment. On 26 March 2020 the COVID-19 Legislation Amendment (Emergency Measures) Bill 2020 (Bill) was passed in New South Wales Parliament. […]
ReadmoreCOVID-19 | COVID-19 and rent reviews: rent reductions in a recession?
Economic impact of COVID-19 On 11 March 2020, the World Health Organisation formally declared the outbreak of COVID-19 as a global pandemic. To varying degrees around the globe, countries have enforced travel bans and closures of non-essential public gatherings. Unsurprisingly, the declaration of the pandemic prompted global panic, with grave political and economic ramifications. Small […]
ReadmoreThe importance of owner’s consent
Where the applicant for a development application is not the owner of the land to which the application applies, the application is required to be supported by the written consent of the owner of the land to the application applies in a range of circumstances. The need for, and consequences of, not providing owner’s consent […]
ReadmoreChanging development approvals – don’t take the Court’s discretion for granted
The lack of unit sales associated with a development to be constructed in accordance with a development permit for 20 multiple dwelling units and a shopping complex (Development Approval), forced a Sunshine Coast developer to reconsider its options for the delivery of its project. To address financing and project delivery issues, the developer sought to amend […]
ReadmoreNew koala protections for South East Queensland
Koala populations have been in long-term decline in South East Queensland with estimates that koala numbers have decreased by 50-80 percent in key habitat areas over the last 20 years. To address this situation, the Queensland Government released the draft Koala Conservation Strategy (KCS) in December 2019 and has followed this up with a range […]
ReadmoreThe approvals climate is changing
In proceedings[1] brought by environmental groups, councils and the Mayor of London, the English Court of Appeal has ruled unlawful a decision, to allow the expansion of Heathrow Airport by the construction of a third runway, because it did not take the United Kingdom government’s policy and commitments on climate change into account. Background For many […]
ReadmoreDiscretionary Trusts to be automatically deemed foreign trusts – Victoria and NSW
The Victorian State Revenue Office (SRO) has come out with an announcement that from 1 March 2020 it will no longer apply its practical approach in determining whether a discretionary trust is a foreign trust for stamp duty purposes. From 1 March 2020, any discretionary trust that does not specifically exclude foreign beneficiaries will automatically […]
ReadmoreCouncil pays the price for taking enforcement action against the wrong party
Background Gold Coast City Council (Council) issued an enforcement notice to the owner of a lot in a community title scheme (CTS). The lot adjoins a buffer area, which is common property of the CTS (the Buffer Area), and borders Saltwater Creek in Helensvale. Pursuant to the community management statement for the CTS, the lot […]
ReadmoreYou’re Out of Time … Start Again
In Supreme Renovators Pty Ltd v Logan City Council [2019] QPEC 63 the applicant attempted to convince the Planning and Environment Court (Court) that there were “sufficient grounds” to extend the timeframe for filing an appeal out of time. The applicant missed its appeal period by approximately two months and one week. The applicant sought two […]
ReadmoreClarification of Exemptions for Vegetation Clearing for Bushfire Management Activities
The previous arrangement surrounding clearing vegetation for bushfire management activities was confusing. The Planning (Spit Master Plan and Other Matters) Amendment Regulation 2019 (Qld) which commenced on 6 December 2019, is an attempt to clear up some of this confusion as to the exemptions for vegetation clearing for bushfire management activities. The amendment A new […]
ReadmoreBan on High-Rise Development at The Spit
The Spit Master Plan in 2019 was adopted by the Queensland Government in 2019 after an extensive 18 month planning and consultation period, which attracted more than 23,000 pieces of feedback.[1] The Spit Master Plan is a non-statutory document until introduced into the Gold Coast City Plan 2016, a process likely to take some time. […]
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