There have been a number of recent developments within the workplace relations arena, specifically:

• National Minimum Wage Decision
• Increase to Civil Penalties under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth)
• Amendments to the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW) increasing penalties and prohibiting indemnification of such penalties
• Changes to powers of WHSQ Inspectors under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (QLD)
   

The latest development in the ever-changing world of 'Loss of use' claims has seen the NSW Court of Appeal hand down their respective decisions in Lee v Strelnicks; Souaid v Nahas; Cassim v Nguyen; Rixon v Arsalan [2020] NSWCA 115. 

Key takeaways:

• Recent changes to the Patents Act 1990 (Cth) and the Designs Act 2003 (Cth) give Commonwealth, state and territory governments the power to exploit patent and design rights in an emergency.
• These Acts also permit the Commonwealth, state and territory governments to exploit rights outside an emergency, though the process is more onerous.
• The Copyright Act 1968 (Cth) permits Commonwealth and state governments to use private works with immunity, in an emergency or otherwise.
• While "the Crown" is referenced within each Act, the power is generally available to the Commonwealth, state and territory governments and anyone they authorise.
• All three Acts provide for some form of compensation, though in some circumstances it may be impossible to reach a firm conclusion on what is fair and reasonable.

Is your company ready to pivot in the event of a crisis?

In the latest episode of Legal Lockdown, Adriana Giometti speaks with Karina Rodríguez Díaz, Crisis Management Underwriting Manager, Australasia at HDI Global Specialty SE, to discuss how organisations within a wide range of industries have managed to pivot their businesses in order to adapt to changes brought about by the COVID-19 crisis.

The Franchising Code of Conduct ('the code') contains a number of important protections for franchisees. 

One particularly important, yet often overlooked protection is the requirement that franchisees receive advanced notice of the franchisor's intentions when the franchise agreement is coming to an end.  Will the Franchisor consider an extension, or renewal - or do they intend for the relationship to end? 

Virtual Courts – a hindrance to justice, or the way of the future?

In Episode 8 of Legal Lockdown, Adriana Giometti joins General Insurance Special Counsel Sarah Wheeler for a look at how Australia’s courts have navigated the recent lockdowns through the use of online hearings.

Holman Webb is delighted to announce ten promotions across our Sydney and Melbourne offices. 

SKY NEWS property expert and CEO of Your Empire, Chris Gray, joins Adriana Giometti to share his thoughts on the real estate landscape in light of COVID-19.

BEYOND BLUE Workplace Engagement Manager, Michael O'Hanlon, joins Adriana Giometti to discuss both the effect that COVID-19 has had on the Australian workforce, and what Beyond Blue is doing to help.

At the beginning of May, the Federal Treasurer issued a determination which modifies the operation of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) with respect to company meetings and the execution of documents by companies.

In order to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on Australian companies, the Corporations (Coronavirus Economic Response) Determination (No. 1) 2020 ('the Determination') came into effect on 6 May 2020, and applies on a temporary basis until 6 November 2020.