Climate change impacts have for many years been accepted as a relevant consideration in the assessment of planning and environmental applications in Australia. Until recently, the focus of consent authorities has been primarily on the direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of a project from owned and ...

The legislative regime for the generation of carbon credits from voluntary emissions reduction projects (otherwise known as 'carbon farming') in Australia was first established in 2014. ...

We said at the outset of this pandemic that financial advice will play an important role in supporting members who are considering whether to access their super early. Alive to that, ASIC recently released a series of measures to facilitate access to financial advice ...

Commissioner Hayne's comments in his final report, and the surge of community interest in super, have resulted in a renaissance of sorts for the 'best interests' obligation. ...

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has unveiled the much-anticipated new regulatory framework for foreign financial services providers that supply financial services to wholesale clients in Australia. foreign financial services providers ...

The newly introduced superannuation guarantee (SG) amnesty scheme provides a one-off amnesty to encourage employers to self-correct historical SG non-compliance. This is done by allowing employers to claim tax deductions for contributions made during the amnesty period, as well as waiving certain penalties and fees that may otherwise apply in relation to historical SG non-compliance. ...

As the COVID-19 pandemic creates turbulence in global financial markets and propels investors into a race for liquidity, we are beginning to see investment funds grappling with some of the issues they had confronted in 2007–2009 during the global financial crisis (the GFC). ...

Like all industries, the superannuation industry is facing some immense challenges in light of the rapidly developing COVID-19 pandemic. This Insight considers some of the more topical issues the industry is facing ...

The COVID Safe Harbour will provide useful immediate relief for companies and their directors, particularly those who need time to assess the company's position before developing a turnaround plan or pursuing an insolvency administration if that becomes necessary. ...

Proposed changes giving ASIC powers in relation to financial services industry codes of conduct means that obligations in these codes may become enforceable. This is interesting because the drafting in many of these codes tends to be broad, and, in some cases, goes far beyond the participants' exist ...