Using technology to hold meetings and sign
and send documents
The Law Council of Australia provided a submission to the Treasury in response to the exposure draft legislation, the Treasury Laws Amendment (Measures for Consultation) Bill 2021: Use of technology for meetings and related amendments (Exposure Draft).
The Exposure Draft proposes amendments to the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) to make permanent the temporary measures put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic relating to electronic execution of company documents and meeting notifications. Similar changes are proposed in Schedule 1 of the Treasury Law Amendment (2021 Measures No. 1) Bill 2021 (Cth). Read the submission here.
Law Council calls for more clarity about proposed family violence regimes
While the Law Council of Australia strongly supports the intent of the Family Law Amendment (Federal Family Violence Orders) Bill 2021, there are several issues within the legislation that need clarification. Read more.
Statement to the Special Rapporteur on Myanmar
On 6 July 2021, Law Council President, Dr Jacoba Brasch QC, presented an oral statement in the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Myanmar during the 47th UN Human Rights Council. The statement condemned the intimidation, harassment, arbitrary arrest and incommunicado detention of lawyers by Myanmar’s military since the coup d’état. Read the full statement here.
Applications now open - John Koowarta Scholarship
The 2022 round for the John Koowarta Reconciliation Law Scholarship is now open. The scholarship is available to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students enrolled in an approved course of study that is a prerequisite to admission as a legal practitioner in any Australian jurisdiction at or through an Australian tertiary institution.
Applications close COB, 3 September 2021. For further information about the scholarship or to apply, visit the Law Council website.
Transparency of proxy advice
The Business Law Section's Corporations Committee provided a submission the Treasury in response to the consultation in relation to Greater Transparency of Proxy Advice. Read the submission here.
Tom Yuncken Australian Young Construction Lawyer Award
Nominations for the Business Law Section's Tom Yuncken Australian Young Construction Lawyer Award are still open. Nominations close Thursday, 29 July 2021. For more information about the award, visit the Law Council website.
Call for nominations - Australian Young Lawyer Awards
The 2021 round for the Australian Young Lawyer Awards is now open. Nominations close COB, 13 August 2021.
For information on the Awards, including nomination criteria please see the 2021 Australian Young Lawyer Awards Guide. Download a nomination form here.
LCA Submissions
Recently published Law Council Submissions.
- Family Law Amendment (Federal Family Violence Orders) Bill 2021, Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee.
- National Register of Enduring Powers of Attorney, Attorney-General’s Department.
- Improving the visibility of superannuation in family law proceedings, The Treasury.
- Australian National Contact Point Peer Review 2021, The Treasury.
Section Submissions
Recently published Section Submissions.
- Transparency of proxy advice, The Treasury, (Business Law Section).
- Practical Compliance Guideline PCG 2021/D4 - Draft Practical Compliance Guideline – Intangible Arrangements, Australian Taxation Office, (Business Law Section).
Inquiries and consultations
As of 16 July 2021.
- Model Operating Requirements Version 7 Consultation Draft, Australian Registrars' National Electronic Conveyancing Council (ARNECC).
Strengthening Australia’s cyber security regulations and incentives, Department of Home Affairs.
A New Decision-Making Framework for Property Matters in Family Law, Attorney-General's Department.
Right to Repair, Productivity Commission.
Inquiry into the use of the term good faith in civil penalty and criminal offence provisions in Commonwealth legislation, Attorney-General's Department.
Implementing the successor plan to the National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children 2009-2020, Department of Social Services.
Developing the next National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children, Department of Social Services.
Social Services Legislation Amendment (Consistent Waiting Periods for New Migrants) Bill 2021, Senate Standing Committees on Community Affairs.
Patent Box, The Treasury.
CP 345 Litigation funding schemes: Guidance and relief, Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
Review into Division 105A of the Criminal Code, Independent National Security Legislation Monitor.
Malaysia-Australia Free Trade Agreement, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
(Supplementary) Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2020, Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security
(Supplementary) Review into the operation of section 22 of the NSI Act as it applies in the 'Alan Johns' matter, Independent National Security Legislation Monitor, Grant Donaldson SC.
Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability, Royal Commission.
Review of the Legislative Framework for Corporations and Financial Services Regulation, Australian Law Reform Commission.
News and Media
Media releases/statements:
Key media articles:
- A-G's strategy guidelines first step on path to making coercive control a crime, The Australian, 10 July 2021.
- DV Bill 'not enough' to protect women, West Australian, 15 July 2021.
- Clarity needed with family violence regimes, Lawyers Weekly, 15 July 2021.
- Justice system victim of the virus, The Australian, 17 July 2021.
Events
August 2021
- 3 August 2021 - Chief Justices Past and Present: Dispute Resolution Lecture Series - Lecture One
Host: International Law Section
Format: Online via Zoom
Time: 5.00PM - 6.10PM
- 10 August 2021 - 2021 Mahla Pearlman Oration
Host: Legal Practice Section and the Environment and Planning Law Association of New South Wales
Location: Federal Court of Australia, Sydney
Time: 5.00PM - 7.00PM
September 2021
- 7 September 2021 - Chief Justices Past and Present: Dispute Resolution Lecture Series - Lecture Two
Host: International Law Section
Format: Online via Zoom
Time: 5.00PM - 6.10PM
