When most people think of self managed superannuation funds (SMSFs) they mostly think of a vehicle to provide retirement benefits and their concessional tax treatment. In contrast, the asset protection benefit provided by SMSFs is often not considered.

After being in limbo for a number of years, the bill to introduce the super guarantee amnesty has now passed both houses of parliament and awaits Royal Assent.

Sladen Legal is delighted to announce that Principal, Phil Broderick has been recognised by the SMSF Association by being presented with the SMSF Specialist Advisor (SSA) Top Achiever 2019 Award.

The clampdown by revenue authorities on investigating medical, dental, optometry and other allied clinics is anticipated to continue, with the High Court refusing to grant special leave to appeal the Victorian Court of Appeal’s decision in the Optical Superstore case.

The ATO has released a draft legislative instrument and explanatory statement that would permit a holding trustee/bare trustee to borrow under a limited recourse borrowing arrangement (LRBA).

The recent AAT decision of The Trustee for the Whitby Trust and Commissioner of Taxation
[2019] AATA 5637 signifies the dire tax implications of family trusts failing to observe documentary formalities.

The rules for testing whether a trust can utilise a prior year tax loss are complex.

This article provides tips and traps around accessing land transfer duty exemptions for the transfer of Victorian real estate from a trust to a beneficiary.

Funding buy-sell agreements via insurance policies is a favoured option. Advisers should consider the merits of holding these policies via trust structures.

Careful consideration of the identity of the appointor of a trust, and the scope of their powers, is essential in succession planning.

Regulation 13.22C unit trusts are an important structuring option for self-managed superannuation fund investments. However, is the administrative burden worth it?

While consistent with recent ATO views, TD 2019/D6 and TD 2019/D7 provide minimal clarification on the taxation of Australian discretionary trusts distributing capital gains to foreign beneficiaries.

Writers and journalists who are looking to reproduce or adapt existing content in their own work should read up on the risks of using copyright-protected content without permission.

The State Revenue Office (SRO) have announced that its current “practical approach” in relation to whether trustees of discretionary trusts trigger the foreign duty surcharge will cease from 1 March 2020.

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (Tribunal) has determined, in opposition to the Commissioner of Federal Taxation (Commissioner), that a luxury car dealer was entitled to decreasing Luxury Car Tax (LCT) and Goods and Services Tax (GST) input credits on the acquisition of a luxury vehicle.

When in a dispute with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), attention needs to be given on how to respond to, and engage with, the ATO during a review or audit.

As outlined in our previous article, the State Revenue Further Amendment Bill 2019 (NSW) was introduced to NSW Legislative Assembly on Tuesday 22 October 2019, and proposed to make changes to New South Wales land tax and duty legislation.

The Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission (Commission) has issued a timely reminder that a lengthy period of service is not a “get out of jail free card” for an employee when challenging the fairness of their dismissal in BlueScope Steel Ltd v Habak [2019] FWCFB 5702.

The Federal Court in FCT v Eichmann [2019] FCA 2155 (Eichmann) held that land used for storage was not an active asset for purposes of the small business capital gains tax (CGT) concessions in Division 152 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (ITAA 1997).

It has become popular for employers to pay an annualised salary to award-covered employees.