LexBlog (LexBlog Australia)

On April 19, 2024, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) amended the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to enhance technological innovation and support the goals of the AUKUS trilateral security partnership. The interim final rule makes six primary export control policy changes that effectively provide Australia and the UK nearly the same...

The Australian government is considering the standardisation of the definitions in insurance policies sold to the public particularly of natural hazards such as ‘fire’, ‘storm’, and ‘stormwater and rainwater run-off’. The criteria for standardisation is whether the terms used are causing consumer confusion. Does the term relate to a significant area of coverage in the...

Callan v Medical Board of Australia [2024] NSWSC 336 (link to Caselaw). With thanks to Ada Lim for drawing the decision in this matter to my attention. The following is drawn from the headnote provided by the Court. Background The plaintiffs seek judicial review of a decision of the Medical Board of Australia to issue...

As ESG-related litigation has developed, one definitive trend has been the emergence of litigation involving allegations of “greenwashing” – that is, claims alleging that companies overstated their ESG credentials in order to win business, attract customers, or score virtue points. To date, the greenwashing claims have emerged primarily in the U.S. and Europe. Now, Australia...

Approaches to food safety inspections are similar between five countries but personal preferences could be responsible for some of the differences, according to a study. Research identified how environmental health practitioners (EHPs) from Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Ireland perform food safety inspections. Data was collected via an online survey...

There is a need for a specific food safety regulatory framework for donated food in Australia, according to researchers. Current national food safety laws and policies regulate businesses, but do not apply to donations. The study, published in the journal Food Policy, involved visually identifying and assessing the safety and quality of donations at an...

The Food Safety Information Council has warned people in Australia against picking and eating wild mushrooms. The charity raised several issues around picking mushrooms for consumption after recent wet weather in the country. Cathy Moir, chair of the Food Safety Information Council, said foraging for wild food is becoming popular, and is promoted by influencers...

2024 appears to be a year of change in the Australian Intellectual Property realm, with the adoption by IP Australia of the Madrid Goods and Services List and the introduction of the Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Regulator Performance) Act 2023. Adoption of the Madrid Goods and Services List In January 2024 IP Australia announced that...

International Women’s Day for 2024 has the important theme of Count Her In: Invest in Women. The UN talks about the importance of empowering women and investing in women in a range of ways. This includes accelerating women’s economic empowerment by recognising that when women entrepreneurs are successful, this can lead to more benefits. The...

As I recently reported, Australian patent filings in 2023 fell slightly, by 2.4%, over the previous year.  This implies, of course, that patent attorneys filing applications on behalf of domestic and foreign clients should, overall, also have experienced a similar decline new filings.  But, of course, individual firms fared differently in the competition for this...

In our previous post celebrating the firm’s decade in Australia, our partners shared their insights into the most significant changes in employment and safety law that have affected leading employers. This post further explores our partners’ perspectives on the major changes and trends that they anticipate will have a major impact on Australian businesses in...

By Rachel Bernasconi, Paul Cutrone, Marissa Dreher, Ben Dudley, Chris Gardner, Erin Hawthorne, Justine Giuliani, Sarah Goodhew, Philippa Noakes, Darren Perry, Penny Stevens, Henry Skene and Michael Tamvakologos Seyfarth just celebrated ten years of service to leading employers in Australia. To mark the occasion, we invited some of our partners to share insights on the evolution of employment,...

In our latest insight we look back at the key restructuring cases and events from last year in the United States, Asia-Pacific, and Australia and consider the outlook in 2024 for restructuring transactions as a whole.   This insight provides an overview of the US banking crisis involving Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, the...

By Rachel Bernasconi, Paul Cutrone, Marissa Dreher, Ben Dudley, Chris Gardner, Erin Hawthorne, Justine Giuliani, Sarah Goodhew, Philippa Noakes, Darren Perry, Penny Stevens, Henry Skene and Michael Tamvakologos Seyfarth just celebrated ten years of service to leading employers in Australia. To mark the occasion, we invited some of our partners to share insights on the evolution of employment,...

Seyfarth just celebrated ten years of service to leading employers in Australia. To mark the occasion, we invited some of our partners to share insights on the evolution of employment, industrial relations and workplace safety in Australia over the past ten years. What have been the biggest changes in employment law, industrial relations and workplace...

Al Muderis v Nine Network Australia Pty Limited (No 2) [2024] FCA 136 (link to Federal Court) This is an interlocutory application brought by the respondents seeking orders to set aside two subpoenas issued by the applicant (Dr Al Muderis) to persons said to be confidential sources of Charlotte Grieve, a journalist who is a respondent in this case. In addition, the respondents objected to the...

On February 1, 2024, the G7+ Coalition (consisting of the G7, the European Union, and Australia) published an Oil Price Cap (OPC) Compliance and Enforcement Alert (the “Alert”), identifying notable OPC evasion methods and recommending various methods to reduce the risk of evasion and its negative impacts.  The OPC was enacted in December 2022 in...

In 2023 the total number of standard patent applications filed in Australia remained above 30,000 for the third year running, despite a 2.4% drop in filings. This follows a decline of nearly 0.5% in the previous year. However, whereas the decline in new applications in 2022 was due to fewer filings by Australian residents (with...

According to a study, an outbreak of ciguatera poisoning from contaminated fish affected 19 people on a ship in Australia. The food poisoning outbreak was reported to the Central Queensland Public Health Unit in December 2021. A bulk carrier sailing from Higashiharima, Japan, to Gladstone, Australia, reported an incident of sudden illness, with 19 of...

A study has shown increased detection of mild E. coli infections and revised lab testing practices in Australia which may lead to changes in public health response. In Queensland, 31 of 96 Shiga toxin‒producing E. coli (STEC) cases during 2020 to 2022 were reported by a specialty pathology laboratory for alternative health practitioners. In Australia, laboratory-confirmed STEC,...

Safety risk assessments are becoming a preferred regulatory tool around the world. Online safety laws in Australia, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and the United States will require a range of providers to evaluate the safety and user-generated content risks associated with their online services. While the specific assessment requirements vary across jurisdictions, the common thread...

Seyfarth is pleased to announce the promotion of Marissa Dreher to the position of partner with the firm. The appointment of Marissa brings the total partner promotions from within the team to five since the Australian offices of Seyfarth opened in Australia in 2013, in addition to a number of lateral partner hires. The appointment...

From the Big Mac v Big Jack to the KFC v HFC – 2023 was the year of the burger. In Australia, the burger debate was first brought to our attention in 2020 following a marketing campaign by Hungry Jack’s Pty Ltd (Hungry Jack’s) for its limited-edition Big Jack burger. Hungry Jack’s (better known as...

This is a venomous Eastern Brown Snake, native to Australia. Stay away. Tennis star Dominic Thiem knew what to watch for in his match this past weekend in Brisbane. It was on-court hazard he couldn’t ignore. Play was interrupted when a “really poisonous snake” slithered onto the court near the ballkids. The intruder, an Eastern...

In this latest episode of our EMEA regulatory insights series colleagues from Australia, Hong Kong, and Singapore provide their thoughts and insights on what 2024 holds from a financial services regulatory perspective. The podcast can be found here.

Reimers v Medical Board of Australia [2023] NSWCATOD 192 (Link to Caselaw). Dr Reimers, a former anaesthetist, has a long history of conduct decisions dating back to 2003 when he was found guilty of professional misconduct and his name was removed from the Register of Medical Practitioners. The Tribunal also ordered that any application for...

An Australian survey of patulin in apple juice and other apple products has found the concentration in most items was low. In 2020, ​​​​​several apple juice products were recalled because of high patulin levels. In response, Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) and other government, state, and territory health authorities ran a survey to determine if the...

IP Australia has published a draft of its four-yearly Cost Recovery Implementation Statement (CRIS), which outlines proposed fee changes that would take effect from October 2024.  It is also taking the opportunity to review the hearing costs that may be awarded for Patents, Trade Marks and Designs.  Feedback on the proposals may be provided via...

We are pleased to share with you The Global Employer – Global Immigration & Mobility Quarterly Update, a collection of key updates from Australia, China, Hong Kong, Italy, Philippines, South Africa, United Kingdom, United States and Vietnam. Click here to view.

The National Safety and Quality Cosmetic Surgery Standards (Cosmetic Surgery Standards) aim to protect the public from harm and improve the quality of cosmetic surgery in Australia. The Cosmetic Surgery Standards were launched on 14 December 2023 and are available online here. The Cosmetic Surgery Standards are comprised of seven individual standards. The Clinical Governance...