GL Insights
Culture and Corporate Governance
It would be remiss of us to not mention the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry, which has consumed much of media and news reports recently. Culture was the predominant theme of the Commission, and indeed its finding. Corporate culture, however, is probably the theme of the decade. An …
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ACTPLA loses bid to revoke development approval
The ACT Planning and Land Authority has lost a case in the ACT Supreme Court where the Applicant, Capital Recycling Solutions, sought an order that a decision to revoke planning approval was void ab initio – or for most of us that aren’t familiar with Latin – had at no time legal validity. This is …
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ACNC Governance Standard 4 – Suitability of Responsible Persons
A “Responsible Person” is a person that is responsible for governing a charity, for example a member of the board or committee or trustee of a charity. The Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) has high expectations on Responsible Persons and ACNC Governance Standard 4 is premised on the expectation that Responsible Persons governing a charity are …
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Sport Integrity Australia – A New and Unified Approach to Tackling Threats to Australian Sport
The Federal Government has recently established a national sports integrity commission to act as a single platform for coordinating Australia’s response to sport integrity threats across all jurisdictions. Doping, match-fixing and corruption will be targeted by the soon-to-be-formed Sport Integrity Australia. The commissions will also provide policy and program support to smaller and emerging sports. …
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Safer Internet Day 2019
Griffin Legal is a proud supporter of Safe Internet Day. From cyberbullying to social networking, each year Safer Internet Day aims to raise awareness of emerging online issues and chooses a topic reflecting current concerns. This year the focus is raising awareness to help ensure that our children and young people can explore the internet …
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Secure Local Jobs Code – Code Certificates
The Secure Local Jobs Code commenced on 15 January 2019. The Code applies to those in construction, cleaning, security and traffic management services undertaking or seeking to undertake territory-funded work. Any ACT Government contractor must hold a valid Secure Local Jobs Code Certificate: at the time they submit a response to an RFQ, RFP, work …
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Flexible Working Arrangements – Changes Commencing 1 December 2018
If you employ staff under Modern Awards you should read this article as there are important changes coming into effect on 1 December 2018 as a result of the Fair Work Commission’s decision on the review of family-friendly work arrangements in Modern Awards. The decision finalises the model term to be included all in Modern …
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Health Sector Data Breach Review– Leading the Pack in Data Breach Reports
The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) has been producing quarterly statistics of data breach reports since the Mandatory Data Breach Reporting regime came into force in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act) on 22 February 2018. The latest report published on 30 October 2018 shows the continuation of a worrying trend for …
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A Domain by Any Other Name: Protecting Your Domain from Casual Hijackers
For most businesses its website and email systems are its life blood. These can both be compromised if you lose control of your domain name, the “x.com.au” or “y.net.au”. Recently Scott Morrison provided an example that this can happen to anyone, even a well-resourced digital media team. During the Wentworth byelection they lost control of …
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10 Days for Complaints Under the New Government Procurement (Judicial Review) ACT 2018
In mid-2017 we wrote about the proposed Government Procurement (Judicial Review) Bill 2017. It was finally passed in October 2018 with the key elements of the proposed bill remaining unchanged. Timing The Act is due to come into effect on 20 April 2019 or an earlier date by proclamation. It covers breaches that take place …
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