This videocast was originally captured during the Specialist Accreditation conference 2021 - Employment & Industrial Law stream. 

Around 2.1 million people with disability in Australia are of working age.  This session looks at the following topics around disability and employment:

• What do the numbers tell us?
• Segregated employment
• Disability discrimination issues – areas of unlawful conduct; reasonable adjustments; inherent requirements
• Intersection of WHS laws and disability discrimination

Any practitioner that regularly deals with security interests knows that the regime prescribed by the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth) is highly complex. As lawyers we are responsible for ensuring registrations are valid and effective. The session will cover critical concepts necessary for giving stakeholders certainty about their security interests, examine how the Courts have recently dealt with particularly complex issues, and identify what lessons lawyers should learn from those matters.

This session was recorded during the Specialist Accreditation Conference 2023.

PPSR; Personal Property Securities Register; discharge of interests

Where do all those special conditions come from? Why are they needed and what do they mean? The interaction of GST with property transactions continues to be a source of tension. Questions abound regarding the operation of the margin scheme, what activities constitute the carrying on of an enterprise and the vexed issues arising from the need to distinguish between commercial residential premises and residential premises.  This practical session will look at drafting issues in the light of the GST provisions as well as recent decisions in this evolving area of the law.

This session was recorded during the Specialist Accreditation Conference 2023.

In this session, Catherine Hallgath will be looking at the recent amendments made to the Duties Act 1997 (NSW), more specifically the charging of duty on a change in beneficial ownership of dutiable property in respect of leases and lease transactions. The session will consider what kinds of leasing transactions fall within the duties net, particularly what types of arrangements could trigger the requirement to pay duty in respect of surrenders and terminations of leases.

This session was recorded during the Specialist Accreditation Conference 2023.

Easements and other rights of access are commercially valuable rights which allow the use and development of land for commercial purposes. This paper discusses contentious issues that arise in this area of property law.

Join Monica Ross-Maranik for a session examining elder abuse claims. This presentation will cover topics including considerations for interlocutory relief, possible sources of evidence, the necessity to plead alternate relief, possible defences, and recent cases. 

This session was recorded as part of the Specialist Accreditation Conference 2024.

Spec Acc Conf 2024 - Wills and Estates

Electronic execution of documents

This session will cover: 

• Electronic execution of deeds and agreements by persons and companies 
• Electronic execution processes and clauses 
• Practical issues for property practitioners

Practitioners should inform themselves of Rule 6.1 of the Legal Profession Uniform Continuing Professional Development (Solicitors) Rules 2015 which sets out the requirements for the four (4) mandatory CPD areas for NSW legal practitioners – (a) ethics and professional responsibility; (b) practice management and business skills; (c) professional skills; and (d) substantive law. It is the responsibility of each legal practitioner to self-assess as to whether a particular educational activity extends their knowledge and skills in areas that are relevant to their practice needs or professional development.

Employee Share Schemes (ESS) can be important business tools for retaining and attracting talent, particularly where a business has cash constraints (such as a start-up). However, the tax implications relating to ESS can be complex. A myriad of ESS arrangements is possible.  An appropriate ESS arrangement can depend on the commercial objectives and stage of life of the business.  In this session, we will consider ESS from a tax perspective, including: what is an ESS, common ESS arrangements, common tax considerations and practical examples. 

This session was recorded as part of the Specialist Accreditation Conference 2024. 

Whether an individual is an employee or contractor is a key commercial matter, as it can give rise to tax and legal implications for a business. Failure by a business to correctly characterise a worker can result in underpayment of worker entitlements (such as PAYG and superannuation), not meeting payroll tax obligations and create risk of an employment claim. This session will provide: (i) an overview of the current tax and legal landscape following the recent High Court and Federal Court decisions in Jamsek v ZG Operations [2022] HCA 2 and the Fair Work Commission’s decision in Deliveroo Australia Pty Ltd v Diego Franco [2022] FWCFB 156; (ii) review activity of the ATO and Revenue NSW in light of these decisions; (iii) income tax, superannuation and payroll tax obligations for businesses that engage contractors; (iv) nuances in the employee and contractor tests for income tax, superannuation and payroll tax; and (v) importance of a written contract and whether this provides a complete solution.

This session was recorded during the Specialist Accreditation Conference 2023.

Recorded on 17 August 2023

King Tan, Consulting Principal, Keypoint Law
Elizabeth Burnheim, Consulting Principal, Keypoint Law

This session will provide you with important legal developments in the world of employment. The presentation will alert you to the relevant labour law issues to be aware of in 2023.  

This session will examine some of the recent developments in employment law including:

• Changes to casual employment
• The introduction of the right to disconnect
• The pay secrecy prohibition
• Limitations on fixed term contracts
• Criminalising wage theft
• Expansion of domestic and family violence protections in employment

This session was recorded on Friday, 11 October 2024 as part of the Rural and Private Practice stream at the Annual Conference 2024.

Michael Byrnes, Partner, Employment, Workplace Relations and WHS – Swaab Member of the Law Society of NSW Employment Law Committee
Carly Stebbing, Partner and Head of Employment Law - Longton Legal Member of the Law Society of NSW Employment Law Committee
Kymberlei Goodacre, President, Clarence River & Coffs Harbour Regional Law Society (Moderator)