Go to topA Roman attending the Colosseum 2,000 years ago could be forgiven for thinking that the Roman Empire would last forever. And so to, 2,000 years before the Roman Empire, a tributary visiting the fabled Palace of Sargon may have believed that the Assyrian Empire would last forever. For all of us, our views and expectations… Read more
Year: 2020
The Institutional Impact of COVID: The National Cabinet and COAG
Hon Christopher Pyne, Chair, Pyne & Partners It remains to be seen what the announcement by Prime Minister Scott Morrison, that the Covid 19 Pandemic National Cabinet process and apparatus will replace the Council of Australian Governments structure, will mean in practice. COAG has been in place since the early days of the Keating Government.… Read more
Proposed shake-up of Australia’s foreign investment regime
On 5 June 2020 the Federal Treasurer announced proposed reforms to Australia’s foreign investment regime to come into effect from 1 January 2021. The reforms are targeted at ensuring greater compliance with foreign investment approval conditions while also expanding the Treasurer’s powers with respect to “sensitive national security businesses”. The proposed reforms follow the temporary… Read more
Associate Promotions
Kain Lawyers are pleased to announce the promotion of Scott Hunt, Megan Lowe and Shaun Scott to Associate. Their promotions are a reflection of not only their legal skill but also their leadership in upholding the values of Kain Lawyers. Congratulations!
Show me the money! How secure is your interest over cash in a borrower’s bank account?
‘Cash is King’ right? Well yes, mostly! Cash is a ‘circulating asset’ If you’re lending money and taking security over the proceeds in a bank account you may find that cash isn’t the best asset to take security over, unless you’re certain that you’ve perfected the security, have absolute control of that cash and an… Read more
New Anti-Phoenixing Laws
The term ‘phoenix activity’ is used to refer to both legitimate business rescue attempts and the use of insolvency processes to avoid the payment of creditors. In an attempt to combat damaging phoenix activity, which is estimated to cost the Australian economy up to $5.13 billion each year[1], in February the Treasury Laws Amendment (Combating… Read more
A little learning is a dang’rous thing
‘A little learning is a dang’rous thing’ So wrote the great English poet Alexander Pope, in 1711. And more than 400 years later I shall prove him still to be correct – as I address a topic of which I have only a passing knowledge! Credit markets In this series, we have looked… Read more
The Financial Impact of COVID: Expert Comments from Con Michalakis
Con Michalakis Chief Investment Officer, Statewide Super The COVID-19 pandemic is the deepest, non-credit based, global economic crisis to hit the economy since the oil crisis in the 70s. We will no doubt debate the policy response for years to come, but we should note we are still living it and it’s too early to… Read more
COVID-19: Virtual general meetings temporarily permitted
In our recent article ‘COVID-19: Impacts for general meetings’, we covered the developments in late March 2020 regarding the holding of general meetings during the COVID-19 health emergency. Further key developments occurred on 5 May 2020, when the Treasurer issued the Corporations (Coronavirus Economic Response) Determination (No.1) 2020 (the ‘Determination’), temporarily allowing companies to hold… Read more
Merger Clearance in Uncertain Times
The ACCC are currently investigating the acquisition of a 19.9% stake in charter airline Alliance by Qantas in February 2019. Some fourteen months later, and in the context of a very different set of market circumstances, Qantas is having to respond to an enforcement investigation as a result of not seeking merger clearance prior to… Read more