If your business or organisation has a turnover greater than 3 million per year the significant changes that were made to the Australian Privacy Act on 12 March 2014 are likely to apply to your organisation. A compliance program should be implemented to ensure any personal information that is used or disclosed by the organisation is appropriately protected.

The reforms implemented 13 new Australian Privacy Principals, with substantial changes being made to the principles surrounding direct marketing and cross border disclosure of information.  Additional changes to the Act implement changes to the credit reporting regime that will be particularly relevant to insurers if they undertake online credit reference checks on insureds or other individuals.

A decision of the Industrial Court of NSW has reiterated the need for labour hire employers to take a proactive approach to ensuring the safety of workers when lent on assignment to host employers (Inspector McGrath v Edmen Recruitment Pty Ltd [2012] NSWIRComm 108).  

Click here to read Julia Brabant and Uma Kotecha's overview of the recent changes.

The Australian Government has released the draft new Franchising Code of Conduct for review (and yet more feedback).  The Minister for Small Business says the government wants to “promote growth in the sector, reduce red tape and make sure that all participants in the industry follow best practice principles”.  Does it do that?  Let’s look at the major changes:

Tim Trezise recently presented a paper at the Employment Law Essentials seminar at the New South Wales Law Society. The paper canvassed the growing issue of the standard of proof required to make defensible findings in workplace investigations. This has become a hot topic following a recent case that significantly broadened the scope of the level of proof required in such endeavours.

If your business collects, uses or discloses personal information, maintains a client or customer database or uses a cloud computer system, changes to the laws that commenced on 12 March 2014 are relevant to you.

Holman Webb Lawyers acted as the instructing solicitors for the respondent at trial and in the appeal.

In a recent case (470 St Kilda Road Pty Ltd v Robinson [2013] FCA 1420), the Federal Court ruled against an insurer that sought to rely on a professional services exclusion in a D&O Policy to deny indemnity.

The case provides useful guidance on the court’s approach in construing exclusion clauses and the meaning of ‘profession’ and ‘professional’.

FEBRUARY 2015 - UPDATE: “Please note that this case has been the subject of a successful appeal by Dr Dekker to the WA Supreme Court. Readers should review a report on this appeal in the February 2015 issue of the Holman Webb Law Bulletin”  

A recent finding of the State Administrative Tribunal of Western Australia has sparked debate amongst Australian doctors and brought into focus the wide scope of what might constitute “improper or infamous” conduct by a registered medical practitioner.

Late last year the NSW Government implemented its reform of directors' liability creating new offences of executive liability which took effect earlier this year. 

The Miscellaneous Acts Amendment (Directors' Liability) Act 2012, applies to all legislation which contains director and manager liability provisions in NSW (except Work Health and Safety), by reducing the number and severity of provisions which make directors and managers liable for the offences of the corporation.