Opinion
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National industrial manslaughter legislation would save lives
17th Oct 2019Jasmina Mackovic repeats calls for a national approach to industrial manslaughter laws following the recent tragic death of a worker in Sydney’s Port Botany, pointing to the lack of consistency across jurisdictions and the NSW government's unwillingness to introduce its industrial manslaughter laws in NSW.
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NSW prison population and the new sentencing laws – an update
10th Oct 2019Mark Warren looks at the impact of the new sentencing regime in NSW, introduced in 2018, on the types of sentences being imposed in NSW. While all the data is not yet in, there appears to be a trend towards community-based sentencing, such as Intensive Correction Orders, and away from short-term prison sentences.
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Are there dual entitlements to annual leave and weekly workers compensation payments?
3rd Oct 2019Ashleigh Kemp reminds practitioners about the need to carefully review the annual leave entitlements of clients on weekly workers' compensation payments following the Full Federal Court decision in Anglican Care v NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association [2015] FCAFC 81. She also provides some practical tips about calculating these, and considers other ways in which the dual entitlement can affect clients.
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Driverless dangers are here – and we need to be ready
26th Sep 2019Katie Minogue calls for national reform of existing motor accident injury insurance schemes to ensure that road users are adequately covered if they are injured by vehicles utilising ‘autonomous features’ such as adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane-keeping assist and road-departure mitigation.
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Superannuation and TPD insurance: Ensure your clients don’t lose thousands of dollars in tax
19th Sep 2019Andrew Reynolds provides practical tips for personal injury lawyers practising in the areas of superannuation and TPD on how they can prevent their clients from making potentially costly decisions and help them to maximise their benefit.
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Legal and welfare checks should be extended to save Aboriginal lives in custody
12th Sep 2019Professor Thalia Anthony argues that to prevent deaths in custody, a custody notification service must be properly funded and available to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in custody, including those who are detained in protective custody or following a paperless arrest.
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How social media affects compensation claims
5th Sep 2019Stephen Firth provides some valuable insights into the 'dos and don'ts' of social media use by clients in compensation cases.
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Costs order and the impecunious unsuccessful party
29th Aug 2019Dipal Prasad and Romaine Abraham discuss a recent High Court case which considered whether the impecuniosity of the unsuccessful party justifies the successful party bearing its own costs.
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Fines for South Australian driving offences jump by up to 500%
22nd Aug 2019Danielle Harris discusses the drastic increases in fines for driving offences in South Australia and questions whether the impetus for these changes is to raise revenue to address the budgetary dilemma currently facing the South Australian Government.
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Investigation reports and litigation privilege in motor vehicle accidents: Douglas v Morgan [2019] SASCFC 76
15th Aug 2019Natasha Budimski outlines the recent Supreme Court of SA decision Douglas v Morgan & Ors. This case directly challenged the ability of CTP insurers to assert legal professional privilege over investigation reports obtained early on in a motor vehicle accident claim, and ultimately make determinations on liability based on those reports.
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The next asbestos? Could Monsanto’s weedkiller Roundup cause cancer?
8th Aug 2019Tim Downie explores the growing litigation surrounding the effects of the weedkiller Roundup.
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Does ‘Never to be Released’ mean ‘life’?
1st Aug 2019Tom Percy QC explores six questions arising from the sentencing of Anthony Harvey, the first person in WA ordered by a judge never to be eligible for parole.
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Appearing before the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) – What you may need to know
25th Jul 2019Information and issues to consider when preparing to face an Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) investigation in SA.
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Drivers lose out in insurance shake-up
18th Jul 2019The SA State Government’s recent rejection of a number of recommendations made by a parliamentary review into SA’s compulsory third party (CTP) scheme is bad news for injured motorists.
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Aboriginal group launches defamation case against Channel 7
11th Jul 2019Peter O’Brien represents a group of clients from the NT community of Yirrkala, who are suing Channel 7 in the Federal Court following a segment that was broadcast on Sunrise Breakfast. In June, Channel 7 attempted that argue that the community members’ Statement of Claim should be struck out.
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The high cost of preventable farm accidents
4th Jul 2019Justin Stack details some recent cases involving preventable farm accidents and emphasises the importance of farm owners and workers understanding their workplace safety rights and obligations.
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How to help your client without financial capacity
27th Jun 2019Jane Campbell discusses the recent ACT Supreme Court case of Williams v Hoang [2019] ACTSC 144 and provides top tips for plaintiff lawyers who are seeking to recover the cost of funds management.
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A free press and freedom of speech are fragile rights
13th Jun 2019Greg Barns reflects on last week's police raids of the homes and workplaces of journalists and what this could mean for freedom of speech and freedom of the media.
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Justice reinvestment: Key to reducing Indigenous incarceration
6th Jun 2019Professor Tom Calma AO makes the case for justice reinvestment: a community-led, data-driven and place-based alternative to incarceration.
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NSW notional estate provisions – helpful for some victims of financial elder abuse
30th May 2019Danielle Little advocates for Queensland and other Australian states to follow New South Wales in allowing family provision applications in wills and estate matters.
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