Property

Very few other sectors of the Australian economy have grown at the rate of the property industry in the last few years. The industry has faced rationalisation of listed property trusts, and a ravenous demand for high-quality property assets from the institutions driven by a flow of capital into the funds management sector.

From specialised property legal services to those required in managing a workforce and a commercial business, Deacons knows the property industry inside out.

• Legal update: Margin scheme calm restored

  The Full Federal Court handed down a decision (Brady King Pty Ltd v Commissioner of Taxation [2008] FCAFC 118) on 26 June 2008 which, to the relief of property developers, restored the longstanding practice of the Australian Taxation Office on the application of the margin scheme.

  30 Jun 08 David Stavropoulos , Angela Zhang

• Newsletter: Footprint - June 2008

  This edition of Footprint features an article commenting on a recent High Court decision that makes a significant change to the rules of contract law in the area of repudiation; an account of the principal effects of new Victorian legislation governing communal living; notes by two of our Sydney lawyers on important developments in the area of retail leasing; and a comment on two recent NSW cases dealing with a key provision of that State’s main planning statute.

  30 May 08 Greg Mann, Craig Penn-Tonkin, Rebecca Hall, Lexia Wilson, Michael McKee , Anthony Jreige and Paul Ng

• Legal update: GST backflip on forfeited deposits

  The High Court has held that GST is payable by a vendor registered for GST on a forfeited deposit under a standard land contract that has been rescinded. The judgement overturns the contrary decision by the Full Federal Court.

  26 May 08 David Stavropoulos , Anna Wilson

• Legal update: Payment of Cash in Lieu of Public Open Space

  The decision recently handed down by Justice Templeman in the WA Supreme Court concerning the treatment of cash in lieu of public open space in respect of a very famous super lot in the Shire of Peppermint Grove has confirmed for us the advice that we have been providing to clients for the last two years with regard to how such valuations are to be made.

  22 May 08 Linda Rowley

• Legal update: Margin scheme goal posts move again

  Changes to the way the margin scheme operates on the sale of real property announced with the Federal Budget will cause problems for developers who are buying or have bought land under a GST-free or non-taxable supply.

  19 May 08 David Stavropoulos

• Legal update: Planning Reforms - the next instalment

  In our legal update in April 2008 we reviewed the exposure draft of the legislation. Following a three week period of consultation on the exposure draft, amendments have been made and draft Bills introduced into parliament.

  19 May 08 Felicity Rourke

• Environment and Planning article May 2008: Changed Again: How well do you understand IDAS Referrals? “Coastal Management Referrals”

  What I will be speaking about this evening is the topic of coastal management referrals. Like all other referrals the coastal management referrals are found in Schedule 2 of the Integrated Planning Regulation 1998.

  15 May 08 Michael Leong

• Newsletter: Legally Green - May 2008

  Welcome to the third edition of Deacon's quarterly environment and climate change newsletter and the first under our new name, Legally Green.

  13 May 08 Elisa de Wit , Andrew Bell, Heather Hutchinson, Rachael Webb and Jonathan Wilkinson

• Legal update: New .au Domain Name Transfer Policy from 1 June 2008

  In last month’s Legal Update on Upcoming Changes to .au Domain Name Transfer Policy we noted that the Australian domain name administrator (auDA) had approved an implementation plan for a new policy on the transfer on .au domain name licences. auDA has now confirmed that the new policy will take effect on 1 June 2008.

  18 Apr 08 Michael Park

• Legal update: New Guidance Note issued by the Takeovers Panel on equity derivatives

  On 11 April 2008, the Takeovers Panel (Panel) released Guidance Note 20 - Equity Derivatives (Guidance Note) outlining when, and in what circumstances, the use of equity derivatives may constitute unacceptable circumstances and require disclosure to the market.

  17 Apr 08 Robert Sultan, Shane Bilardi , Natalie Trezise