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Section 9 of Western Australia’s very antiquated Property Law Act 1969 (the “Act”), among other things, deals with formalities of executing any deeds in Western Australia (e.g. a Confidentiality Deed, Deed of Assignment of Lease, Deed of Variation of Trust etc). Generally, but not always, a deed may similar but different to a contractual… Continue reading Proper execution of Deeds under Western Australian law (hint: it’s why “WA” also stands for “Wait Awhile”…)...
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Asset Protection: Testamentary trusts can help safeguard inherited assets from risks like bankruptcy, mental incapacity or divorce. Tax Advantages: They often allow for legitimate income splitting and reduced tax rates on distributions to minors. Flexibility in Distributions: Trustees have discretion to manage income and capital distributions based on beneficiaries’ needs, providing adaptability over time, while… Continue reading Key Benefits of Testamentary Trusts in Estate Planning...
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Learn how debt forgiveness and unpaid present entitlements (UPEs) from family trusts affect Wills, estate planning, executors, and beneficiaries....
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Our Tom Meagher recently present to the Strata Community Association (WA) on a range of practical, current commercial & employment law issues that may impact Strata manager business-owners📖. We covered the following varying topics: ✔️Employees vs Contractors – What are the Key Differences and Why they Matter. ✔️Employee | Contractor: Tests and Guiding Principles. ✔️Sham… Continue reading Employment Law seminars to business owners of the Strata Community Association...
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Tom Meagher’s recent interview, published in Business News in relation to the Federal Government’s proposed changes to non-compete clauses/restraints of trade in Employment Agreements. The Albanese government’s pledge to end non-compete clauses for low- and middle-income workers will place Australia in line with similar moves internationally. Treasurer Jim Chalmers revealed the news in the 2025… Continue reading Business News interview on proposed changes to employment non-competes and restraints of trade...
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Rather than recycle trite topics like: “What is a Will”, “Why Testamentary Trusts are awesome”, “How do I protect my assets from my disliked son/daughter-in-law” etc etc, this article covers the lesser-known yet still important areas of ‘portions and ademption’ ⚖️ i.e. lifetime gifting (which is different again to the ‘presumption of advancement’ and actual,… Continue reading Estate Planning considerations: ‘Portions and Ademption’...
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Legal Insights on Data in Digital Transformation Recently our director Tom Meagher presented another topical seminar on the legal complexities and commercial considerations of ‘Data in Business’ for Digital Transformation Perth (in collaboration with the Australian Transformation & Turnaround Association (AusTTA))- together with the other guest speakers: Jackie O’Dowd, WA State President of the AusTTA… Continue reading ‘Data in Digital Transformation’ event...
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Todd Hutchison Published in Global Legal Management Book Balfour Meagher’s team member Todd Hutchison has been featured in the Globe Business and Law publication “Next Stage Legal Project Management”. This UK publication is helping future-proof matter management through the efficiency of legal project management, as taught by our law firm. His chapter “Effective Leadership for… Continue reading Balfour Meagher Gets Published in Global Law Book...
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Todd Hutchison Leads Global Masterclass on Legal Project Management Balfour Meagher educator Todd Hutchison finished the MarcusEvans international online conference “Legal Excellence: Future of Law” leading a full day masterclass on Legal Project Management. He spoke on the more effective methods to plan and executive legal matters, team performance and legal pricing models with lawyers… Continue reading International Conference on Legal Excellence: Future of Law...
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Understanding Unconscious Bias in the Legal and Investigative Professions By Todd Hutchison, Marais Dekker and Oliver Schoeman. Being ‘bias’ refers to having a tendency, inclination or prejudice either in favour for or against something, someone, some group or some organisation. Areas of bias can lead to unlawful discrimination based on alignment to race, gender or… Continue reading Unconscious Bias: A Reality for Judges, Forensic Investigators and Lawyers...
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Commercial Law with Tom Meagher on the Moroney Podcast Podcast (<- click here) Mitch Moroney of Moroney & Associates, Business Accountants welcomes Tom Meagher in this episode, Tom is a commercial lawyer based in Perth with over 30 years of experience. As Executive Director of Balfour Meagher, Tom assists small businesses with optimizing opportunities, avoiding… Continue reading Tom joins Mitch Moroney’s podcast to discuss “what falls under the umbrella of commercial law?”...
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There is a very common, reoccurring urban (actually commercial) myth that, if ever a client receives bank documents* for signing, they either: are ‘advised’ (by a non-lawyer…), or somehow, completely misguidedly, believes, they only need such to be “witnessed by a lawyer.” Sidenote: they almost-always are at the last minute and ‘urgent’ too. What’s often involved… Continue reading You don’t need a lawyer, if you “just need bank guarantee documents witnessed”!...
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For the purposes of trying to simplify the world of IT and how it analogously relates to your business, I’ve put together some basic domestic->technology metaphors to try to explain how your IT systems and security is like your own home. Now before all the various IT experts have conniptions and say: “that’s not accurate”,… Continue reading “Why your Business’ IT Systems and Security is like your Home.”...
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In this ‘sPEAKing Pharmacy’ podcast, John Thornett of Peak Strategies and Tom Meagher of Balfour Meagher discuss “the initial pre-purchase processes for a pharmacy and what first-time buyers should consider before signing on the dotted line.” ...
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We can’t say enough great things about the Balfour Meagher website. A modern, full-screen background with a clear message captures visitors’ attention. Their call-to-action and contact details are apparent on every page and they host a wealth of useful information and functions on their website. “Balfour Meagher were a pleasure to work with throughout the entire process!… Continue reading Balfour Meagher awarded one of the Best Law Firm Websites...
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Very commonly individuals personally-borrow money and then loan that money on to their new entity to say: buy a business, acquire equity, help provide a loan for working capital to help privately fund their business etc. However I still find it very rare that (despite their being a ‘bank’ for their business entity and usually… Continue reading Finance Security Tip: ‘On Loans’ by a Party to their Related Entity....
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In light of the recent ‘hacking’ of a conveyancer’s IT system and payee details (no it wasn’t a failure by the PEXA system see – PEXA says platform remains secure), here’s some suggested, relatively-easy additional security steps your business could take when intending to make any such payments or transfers. As you may appreciate that, with… Continue reading Quick Practical Tip for Increasing Security with Payments to Clients and Third Parties...
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We didn’t think we needed to publish this but as we’ve have been contacted by so many clients and other parties this week, now we thought we’d share a summary of some practical information and guidance around the GDPRs and the privacy laws. Note: this is not legal advice, as obviously you need to know… Continue reading Privacy Policies and complying with the new General Data Protection Regulations (GDPRs)....
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Over the many years of advising clients, business partners and presenting at various seminars in relation to business licenses, setting-up a new business or buying a business, one service that very few people (including lawyers!) are aware of is an excellent online service provided by the federal government’s Department of Industry, Innovation and Science, known as the… Continue reading Why ‘ABLIS’ is helpful for Start-up Businesses, Business Owners and Buyers...
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