In Show 087 – Monthly Legal Updater originally broadcast on Facebook Live on Friday 4 May 2018 we explore this interesting topic.
Show Notes
It’s time once again for our Monthly Legal Updater. The law is constantly changing in Australia and around the world. We want to make sure you know about how those changes are going to affect your and your business.
Cryptocurrency regulations
Digital currencies like Bitcoin have been a hot topic for several years now. The incredible growth of these markets have caught regulators around the world flat-footed. The Australian government is trying to catch up. In April 2018 they introduced new rules to clarify their legality. There has been a lot of concerns that crypto could be used to launder money for drug cartels or terrorist groups. The new rules say that users of digital currencies will have to register with Austrac and report any income derived from them.
Bankruptcy changes
A bill currently before the Australian Parliament will change the insolvency rules across the country. Australia’s bankruptcy laws are among the harshest in the world. Currently the bankruptcy discharge period is three years. The new rule would change that to just 12 months. The reason for the change is to encourage more entrepreneurial activity in the country and to reduce the stigma associated with insolvency.
UK changes
Starting in April 2018 the UK government began levying a tax of up to £5000 per vehicle. The goal is to reduce pollution associated with cars. The government has also introduced new laws aimed at curbing illegal immigration. Any employer caught employing an illegal worker will be banned from claiming employment allowances for one year.
Workplace licensing laws
The Queensland Government has changed the rules around the labour hire industry. The goal is to reduce exploitation in that industry. Any labour hire business must now register with the government. The business must provide reports every six months and there are strong penalties for breaching the rules.
ACCC and ASIC Updates
The Federal court has ordered Ford to pay a $10 million dollar fine for “unconscionable conduct”. The fine relates to the sale of vehicles with faulty transmissions in Australia. Complaints made to the company were ignored and resulted in this case being brought against the company.
ASIC also won a major judgement against Malouf Group, a credit repair firm based on the Gold Coast. The company was found to have lied to customers about the state of their credit rating.
ASIC meanwhile has released a new small business strategy. The goal of the strategy is to promote and protect small businesses in the country.
More about this Show
We started Business Legal Lifecycle to create a simple way for you to understand complex legal terms. Most importantly we want to help you to develop a plan to take your business successfully into the future. There’s a startling statistic the underscores the importance of developing a solid plan. The majority of business owners are just seven months away from losing everything. A single aspect of your business that is not set-up correctly can shut down your whole operation very quickly. Legal advice is not cheap and even when you can afford it there is often a divide between lawyers and their clients. We want to close that gap once and for all. We want to put legal knowledge and tools into your hand to prevent the worst from happening to you.
Twice a week we are going to deliver those tools right to your home or office with Business Legal Lifecycle TV. We’ll start the week with Fast Fix Monday, a short 5-10 minute video that will tackle a single issue that businesses have to deal with. Then on Wednesday’s our main show will feature with more fulsome discussions and interviews all delivered in a straightforward and easy to understand format.
