This session will explore a selection of the myriad complex and varied issues that can arise in the administration of deceased estates. Topics will include proof of death by fact, inference or presumption; rights of burial and associated disputes; issues of domicile and the validity of foreign wills; lost wills and the presumption of revocation by destruction; and recent amendments to the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) affecting changes to trustees. The presentation will focus on the law underpinning these difficult areas of practice, provide practical examples, and offer pointers to practitioners in assisting their clients to navigate the potential minefield of deceased estates.

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

Spec Acc Conf 2024 - Wills and Estates

This session will review case law and cover:  

• how a lease proposal or Heads of Agreement documents the proposed commercial terms for a lease as well as the process and timeframes for negotiating and finalising the lease documentation;
• when lease proposals bind the parties in the context of being generally framed as non-binding and “subject to contract”, with only certain provisions being expressed to be binding on the parties;
• how effective lease proposals are in preserving a party’s right to withdraw from a transaction;
• key terms, non-binding and binding provisions; and
• how to make a lease proposal “Subject to Contract”.

This session was recorded on 24 February 2023 as part of the NSW revenue law: One day intensive – live webinar.

Commissioner Smythe will give the keynote presentation, considering:

• the NSW State tax ecosystem in context – how do the pieces fit together?
• specific taxes and tax policy from the perspective of “why”?; and
• the 2022 changes to the Taxation Administration Act 1996 (NSW) and Duties Act 1997 (NSW), using examples to address the policy underpinnings and practical consequences of the amendments. 

Rehabilitation is a core element of any CTP claim, but does it always go according to plan? Is there a way of getting rehabilitation back on track if things go wrong? Our panellists are industry experts in CTP claims and rehabilitation and will be discussing what is and is not working in the NSW CTP scheme from a rehabilitation perspective. They will also discuss an alternative approach to rehabilitation and possible enhancements to the CTP scheme which could help bring the concept to life.

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

WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT

Join 2023 President of the Law Society, Cassandra Banks, who will moderate a diverse and expert panel on how the legal system affects children and how lawyers and the legal profession may best work with children.  Children are subject to civil and criminal laws that have been developed to address their welfare needs, community protection and contractual relationships. Children can be held responsible for a crime from the age of ten yet they may not be asked to contribute to care plans or to provide informed consent when entering contracts. Their conduct, their parental orders and their disputes must be negotiated by lawyers through dispute resolution or in court.

This session will look at how lawyers may work to better protect children and the positive actions they may take when working with children. The specific needs of indigenous children within our legal system will be discussed, including consequences of the crossover between care and criminalisation. More widely, the need for lawyers and legal systems to intervene earlier to prevent distress, injury and trauma and where NSW sits within an international approach to issues between children and the law. 

This panel discussion will focus on working with complex cases that involve workplace trauma injuries, including trauma experienced by first responders. It will cover the issues affecting accurate diagnosis, such as the contribution of preexisting conditions and client vulnerability. PTSD and complex PTSD and their manifestations will be explored in the context of diagnosis and compensation issues. The session will also consider the information required by an independent medical examiner, and the criteria for reliable medical assessments. The panel will highlight practices for: ensuring legal processes and medical assessments are trauma informed; managing permanent impairment issues and the permanent impairment threshold; and effectively identifying causation.

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

WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT

For property lawyers advising on strata matters, the legal landscape is complex. Current issues and obstacles include the tension between the rights of owners and of owner corporations, the protection of the contracting interests of both purchasers and developers, and the state government’s push for high-density development. This panel discussion will highlight several critical issues for clients, including liability for costs in disputes; the right to access information; and rights in disputes involving neighbours. For solicitors, the panel will explore issues such as managing conflicts of interest in regard to client representation, and managing communication with strata committees. Have the recent legislative changes cleared a path to sustainable home ownership under the strata regime? Hear the panel's insights on this.

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

Spec Acc Conf 2024 - Property

How is climate change affecting the practise of law for property lawyers? How do you manage the risk of climate change? What does due diligence mean for the lawyer when climate change effects – current or potential – are factors in the lease or sale of land? How does past or potential flooding or fire impact on disclosure, zoning certificates and the development of land? What are the opportunities arising from the transition to renewables for property lawyers? This session will discuss how climate change is already impacting the profession, and what the future might look like for property law. Hear from speakers with backgrounds in agricultural leasing, renewables, conveyancing and the application of Division 7 of Part 3 of the Conveyancing Act 1919 (NSW), the Reconstruction Authority, water licensing and allocations, and climate change policy.

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

Spec Acc Conf 2024 - Property

Legal professionals are fundamentally involved in assessing legal requirements necessary for an individual client's decision-making capacity and the ability to enter into transactions capable of being recognised at law. It is therefore critical for those professionals to understand those requirements and the effect that cognitive impairment has on decision making capacity. Our panellists will explore and discuss the effect of cognitive impairment in the context of decision making in different contexts. Testamentary and various inter vivos transactions will be explored, and elder abuse, vulnerabilities and complex family dynamics will be discussed. Recent cases and remedies will be examined. 

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

Spec Acc Conf 2024 - Wills and Estates

This session will highlight the importance of appropriate cultural support for children in family separation matters and explore the potential benefits of the recent changes to s60CC of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth). The panellists will discuss the jurisdictional crossover that exists between the family and the care jurisdictions, demonstrating how the former offers a better option for keeping children safe. They will also provide guidelines for best practice for Independent Children’s Lawyers acting in the family separation context, and point to the intersection between matters seen on the Specialist Indigenous List and many other matters in which Legal Aid acts – for children who are both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal.

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

Spec Acc Conf 2024 - Family

This session will cover the definition of trauma, the importance of recognising trauma in clients and the principles guiding trauma informed practice. Participants will hear from panellists from varied disciplines: a clinical psychologist, court officer, legal practitioner and a professional advisor with lived experience working with and writing about their work with trauma affected clients. The panel will discuss how to identify trauma in clients and how it impacts family law disputes. The discussion will cover management techniques in trauma informed practice and how to best assist trauma affected clients in a court setting. The panel will also discuss vicarious trauma and the importance of family lawyers and those working within the family system to beware of this risk and put in place self-care mechanisms and supports. There will be an opportunity to participate in a Q&A session at the end of the session.

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

Spec Acc Conf 2024 - Family

Representing clients in NCAT’s Guardianship Division can be challenging for legal practitioners unfamiliar with the Division’s inquisitorial procedures. The Division is required to exercise its jurisdiction to give paramount consideration to the welfare and interests of people with disabilities in a manner that encourages informality, flexibility and dispatch. The head of the Division, NCAT Deputy President Anne Britton will outline and discuss the procedures employed by the Division designed to achieve those requirements. Ms Britton will also explore how the statutory duty imposed on legal practitioners to cooperate with the Division and the Appeal Panel works in practice.

This session was recorded during the Specialist Accreditation Conference 2023.