Increased competition and consumer law penalties now take effect
The maximum penalties for contraventions of competition law prohibitions in the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) and offence and civil penalty provisions in the Australian Consumer Law have now markedly increased following the Treasury Laws Amendment (More Competition, Better Prices) Act 2022 (Cth) having received the Royal Assent. Of particular note, the maximum penalty for […]
ReadmoreDate set for ‘unfair contract terms’ to be rendered unlawful: Time to act
Businesses now have less than 12 months to cease using unfair contract terms in their standard form consumer contracts and small business contracts, now that the Treasury Laws Amendment (More Competition, Better Prices) Act 2022 (Cth) has received the Royal Assent. Whereas unfair contract terms can presently be rendered void and unenforceable, the use of unfair […]
ReadmoreUnfair contract terms – Commonwealth government driving major reforms
On 28 September 2022 the Commonwealth government introduced to Parliament a bill that will, if passed, make major changes to the unfair contract terms regime in Australia. The bill is called the Treasury Laws Amendment (More Competition, Better Prices) Bill 2022. The unfair contract terms provisions in the Bill are virtually identical to the provisions […]
ReadmoreSignificant increases to Competition and Consumer Law penalties proposed
Last Friday afternoon, Treasury released exposure draft legislation proposing significant increases to the maximum penalties that apply to various contraventions of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) and the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) by companies and individuals. Interested parties will have to be quick with any comments on the proposed changes, because public consultation […]
ReadmoreEmbedded networks live on as Victorian reform for residential embedded networks slowly takes shape
New embedded networks in residential apartment buildings will be banned from January 2023 unless 100% of electricity is sourced from renewable energy, with at least 5% being sourced from on-site generation. Existing embedded networks in residential sites, including apartment buildings, retirement villages, social housing and residential/caravan parks, will transition to a new regulatory regime, moving through […]
ReadmoreDirect ‘.au’ domain names are coming. Threat or opportunity?
After being on the cards for several years, the administrator of the .au country code Top Level Domain (ccTLD), au Domain Administration Limited (auDA), has recently announced the launch of .au direct registrations in the ‘second level’ (e.g. gadens.au) effective from 24 March 2022. Separately, the Australian Government is currently reviewing the terms on which it […]
ReadmoreASIC provides ‘no action’ relief for conducting virtual meetings and delayed AGMs
After the Federal Government’s proposed legislation to extend the temporary relief for corporations to conduct virtual meetings stalled in the Parliament, we speculated in our recent update as to whether ASIC would issue a ‘no action’ position, electing not to take regulatory action against companies conducting virtual meetings despite requirements to do so in the […]
ReadmoreCOVID-19 | No extension to temporary reforms to permit electronic signing of company documents
In a blow for advocates of efficiency (both technological and practical), the temporary reforms under Corporations (Coronavirus Economic Response) Determination (No. 3) 2020 (Determination), which had permitted the conduct of virtual meetings, electronic execution of documents and split execution of documents under section 127 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (Act) expired on 21 March 2021. Unless, and until, a replacement relief […]
ReadmoreCOVID-19 | Electronic signing and virtual meetings: New temporary relief for companies a significant step on a longer journey
In a significant development for companies, the Treasurer has utilised his new power to modify the Corporations Act 2001, the Corporations Regulations 2001, the Insolvency Practice rules, and the Passport Rules so that, for a period of six months effective from 6 May 2020: entities can hold virtual meetings without the need for a physical location; […]
ReadmoreFairness in Franchising – Franchising Taskforce Releases Regulation Impact Statement
Following on from the Issues Paper issued by the Franchising Taskforce in August, the Franchising Taskforce released a Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) on 11 November, which will assist the Franchising Taskforce in making recommendations to Government regarding reforms to the franchising sector. The Taskforce and is inviting submissions by 6 December 2019. The Franchising Taskforce […]
ReadmoreLarge retailers may be given the green light to collectively purchase electricity
You may or may not have seen in the media that on 20 September 2019 the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) released a draft determination and interim authorisation giving members of the Large Format Retail Association (LFRA) a green light to begin the initial steps to collectively negotiate to purchase electricity. Members of the […]
ReadmoreEmbedded networks draft report released – major changes foreshadowed
As we noted last year, the Australian Energy Markets Commission (AEMC) had initiated a review of the regulatory framework for embedded networks after previously indicating that it did not regard the current regulatory regime as being fit for purpose. On 31 January, the AEMC released its draft report, proposing a “comprehensive reform package”. At this stage, […]
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