GL Insights
The support person: advocate, colleague or silent witness?
We are commonly asked about boundaries when an employee brings a support person with them to a performance management, termination or redundancy meeting. The general rule is that, if the meeting will lead to a termination of employment, the employee is able to bring a support person along. It’s not a requirement; rather it’s an …
Read more
Working with Vulnerable People in the ACT
If you are involved in an industry that works with children, working with children checks have been standard practice in most Australian jurisdictions with the exception of the ACT and Tasmania. In November 2012 the ACT finally caught up with its State and Territory counterparts and introduced legislation to make background checks compulsory for any …
Read more
The Decision in Morrow v Tattsbet Limited
On 4 July 2014 the Federal Circuit Court handed down a useful judgement about betting agency TAB dismissing one of its operators. The decision clarifies how the courts will determine whether an independent contractor is an employee, and reveals an interesting analysis of the sorts of conduct which might be sufficient in amounting to a …
Read more
Full Bench says dismissal unfair where Director left toddler unsupervised
The Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission overturned a decision of Commissioner Bissett where she said the termination of a child care centre Director was not unreasonable or unfair where they left a toddler unsupervised. The Full Bench found that Commissioner Bissett incorrectly interpreted the Education and Care Services National Law Act 2010 (VIC) …
Read more
Dying to be part of the digital age
Estate planning law is one of the oldest areas of the law and is one area that plays on people’s minds more as they grow older. Following the acquisition or sale of assets, a person should review and possibly update their will to reflect the change in assets and to ensure that their estate is …
Read more
Required Documents in an ACT Contract for Sale
On 28 February 2014, Justice Refshauge of the ACT Supreme Court handed down his decision in Acton Investments (ACT) Pty Limited and Momac 2 Pty Limited v Frank Batticcotto, Luigi Batticcotto and Sarina Batticcotto [2014] ACTSC 31 (“the Acton case”). The case determined the consequences of not attaching a document (“Required Document”) specified in the …
Read more
Does somebody owe you money?
Consider using the following steps: Send a friendly payment reminder to the customer Once the payment is overdue, make contact with the customer via phone email or mail to remind them that payment is overdue. The customer may have forgotten or unknowingly had technical issues in making the payment. Most of the time your reminder …
Read more
New bullying jurisdiction faces interesting challenge
The new anti-bullying jurisdiction was introduced to the Fair Work Commission on 1 January 2014. This means that employees may bring bullying complaints to the Fair Work Commission. Employers then respond, and the Commission then ‘deals’ with the complaint. This is likely to be in the form of a conference before a Commissioner, but may …
Read more
Defamation and Social Media
What is defamation? Defamation can occur when a person writes something about another person or business that lowers the reputation of that person or business in the public’s eyes. Defamation can arise from direct comments about a person or a business, or from indirect comments, such as imputations. A recent case in New South Wales …
Read more
Purchasing an Off-the-Plan Property
The interest in “off-the-plan” properties is ever increasing and is becoming more popular for buyers. An off-the-plan purchase is one where the Buyer enters into a contract to purchase a property that has not yet been constructed. Due to the prolonged settlement period for an off-the-plan purchase it is imperative for buyers and sellers to …
Read more