Join barrister Vikram Misra as he examines the functions and form of caveats. Topics discussed will include drafting caveats effectively, duties of a “subscriber” under the NSW Participation Rules for Electronic Conveyancing, caveatable interests in property law and compensation under section 74P of the Real Property Act 1900 (NSW). The session will also cover common mistakes and misconceptions regarding caveats, and tips when briefing counsel on urgent caveat applications.

This session was recorded during the Specialist Accreditation Conference 2023.

Intellectual property rights are an important and often valuable class of intangible assets used within businesses. The issues which arise in relation to intellectual property rights in the context of mergers and acquisitions can be complex, and the consequences can be dire when valuable intellectual property rights are not properly assigned to the buyer in a sale. This session will cover complex IP issues in the context of business sales including ownership and licensing issues, as well as contemporary issues which have arisen with the increased use of artificial intelligence within businesses.

This session was recorded during the Specialist Accreditation Conference 2023.

PPSR; Personal Property Securities Register; discharge of interests

What makes a property matter complex? In this session we will review the many and varied ways in which a property matter might be considered complex, recent case law in complex matters, the role of the solicitor in managing complex property settlements, and practical issues and resource management in complex matters.

This session was recorded during the Specialist Accreditation Conference 2023.

DISTRESSING CONTENT 

Viewers are advised that this course may contain details that some may find distressing. Please review the course description and use your discretion before proceeding. 

If you are in distress, the Solicitor Outreach Service (1800 592 296) and Lifeline (13 11 14) offer 24/7 counselling support. If you are concerned for your safety or that of someone else, please contact the Police or call 000 for emergency assistance. 

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.

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.

This session focuses on two scenarios of general application in succession law. The first is 'inheritance impatience' in the form of an inter vivos misappropriation by an adult child. The second is 'inheritance insecurity' on the part of the biological children of the first partner in an elderly blended family to die. How can succession and property law be utilised to reduce the spectre of family provision claims disturbing testamentary wishes?

This session was recorded during the Specialist Accreditation Conference 2023.

DISTRESSING CONTENT 

Viewers are advised that this course may contain details that some may find distressing. Please review the course description and use your discretion before proceeding. 

If you are in distress, the Solicitor Outreach Service (1800 592 296) and Lifeline (13 11 14) offer 24/7 counselling support. If you are concerned for your safety or that of someone else, please contact the Police or call 000 for emergency assistance. 

Elder abuse; family provision; testamentary trusts

This session will cover:

• owner’s right to terminate a residential construction contract in the context of builder delay and an analysis of some case examples;
• what to be aware of when advising on termination;
• practical guidance on relevant evidence required by the Court;
• drafting Builder’s caveats to avoid statutory non-compliance;
• security of payment in NSW in the context of owner occupier construction contracts.

This session was recorded on 19 March 2024 as part of the Property law: One day intensive - live webinar.

Litigating with abandon: the obstacles to obtaining a declaration that an easement has been abandoned, Sydney Jacobs, Barrister, 13 Wentworth Chambers 

In this session on easements, Sydney Jacobs will discuss:  

• Navigating section 89 of the Conveyancing Act 1919 (power of the Court to declare easement abandoned or to modify) and related section 49 of the Real Property Act (Power of the Registrar -General) 
• When to use one pathway other than the other ? What are the rights to appeal such decisions? 
• What is the general judicial attitude to claims that an easement has been abandoned? 
• The presumption in the above legislation that an easement is abandoned if no use for 20 years e.g. What type of conduct constitutes “use“? 
• Recent cases by reference to sketches: Castle v Achdjian [2022] NSWSC ; Sheppard v Smith [2021] NSWSC 1207 and on appeal to the NSWCA in 2022. 
• The effect of Gan v Xie [2023 NSWCA to “gist” evidence as opposed to “direct speech” evidence in these types of matters.

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”.