Latest publications
A Review of Women at Work in 2018
With 2018 coming to a close, an opportunity exists to reflect on the social, legal and political issues that defined the year. The year of 2018 sits between the 2017 outpouring of #metoo stories, and the pending federal election of 2019. For that reason, 2018 has been both empowering and difficult…
‘Tis the season: a word about gifts in your family law property settlement
It’s the time of year where most of us are busily engaged in buying last-minute gifts for our friends and loved ones, looking for that perfect gift. For some of us, that will involve very generous gifts to our family members, perhaps of money for a house deposit, a car, a lovely piece of…
Informal Property Settlements: When will the Court decline to make Property Settlement Orders?
The recent appeals decision in the matter of Horrigan & Jennings [2018] FAMCAFC206 has highlighted the willingness of the Court to decline to make property settlement Orders, where it is not just and equitable to do so. In this somewhat unusual matter, the parties were in a de facto relationship from 1987, with…
Modern Award changes 2018 / 2019- Implications for employers
Employers face the constant challenge of trying to keep up with the pace of change to the industrial relations landscape. 2019 will prove to be no exception. Following the Fair Work Commission (FWC) four-yearly review of Modern Awards, there have been a wide range of changes to some key Modern Awards, including…
The Role of Expert Evidence in Family Law
If you are separated and looking to obtain a final property settlement, the very first step you will be required to take is to identify the matrimonial asset pool. This involves identifying each of your respective assets, liabilities, financial resources and superannuation interest in order to ascertain the net assets that…
But What Does It Mean? Interpreting Binding Financial Agreements
Parties generally enter into Binding Financial Agreements at the beginning of a relationship, to protect the assets they bring into the relationship, and to govern how assets acquired after the commencement of the relationship are to be divided, in the event the relationship breaks down. While these Agreements are supposed to make…
You say tomato, I say tomahto: The battle of the forms and building contracts
Introduction In the recent decision of Stepanoski v Aslan [2018] NSWSC 1160, the New South Wales Court of Appeal had to grapple with whether: (a) the parties involved were bound by the first building contract that they signed; or (b) whether the subsequent contract, which was signed by the parties later and backdated…
Death and family law property proceedings
If you and your former partner are unable to agree to the terms of a property settlement, one of you will have to apply to the court for property settlement orders. Litigating family law proceedings can be a lengthy exercise, but what happens if proceedings have been commenced and then a party to…
Cross all t’s, dot all i’s: Personal guarantees gone wrong
Introduction There are occasions, especially for small to medium size enterprises, where the company’s director or directors have to provide a personal guarantee in order to obtain finance and/or goods and services on credit. A personal guarantee empowers the lender or supplier to make the guarantor pay, on demand, all or part…
Appeals: a useful lesson
The decision of PND Civil Group Pty Ltd v Bastow Civil Constructions Pty Ltd [2017] NSWCA 159 highlights the difficulty of raising new issues on appeal, in so far as a party will (generally) be bound by the way in which it conducted its case at first instance. The facts Bastow Civil Constructions…