This time last year, we published an article querying whether the Federal Court decision in Guardian AIT Pty Ltd ATF Australian Investment Trust v FCT [2021] FCA 1619 (First Instance Decision) would ignite an administrative and judicial quest for clarity on the interpretation of section 100A of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 (ITAA 1936).

After industry pushback against the disproportionate application of the non-arm’s length income (NALI) and non-arm’s length expenses (NALE) rules, Treasury has a released a discussion paper to modify the application of the NALI/NALE rules.

The High Court of Australia has dismissed the special leave application by the taxpayer, Vicinity Funds Re Ltd (Taxpayer) to appeal from a decision of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Victoria (Court of Appeal).   

In an interesting development, the ATO has released a warning in relation to SMSFs entering into gift and loan back arrangements.

We congratulate Shenelle Teunissen on her promotion to Special Counsel. Shenelle has been an important cog in a very busy team. Shenelle works across all facets of commercial property development and retail and commercial leasing.

On 23 November 2022, the Australian Tax Office (ATO) released Taxation Ruling TR 2022/3, finalising its views on personal services income (PSI) and personal services businesses (PSB).

The Supreme Court of Victoria has imposed record penalties against a labour hire provider and its director / secretary for contraventions ‘striking at the heart’ of the purposes of the Labour Hire Licensing Act 2018 (Vic).

Recent decisions of the Victorian Supreme Court have confirmed that the consequences for trustees are potentially disastrous if trust documentation is mislaid and cannot be located.

The definitions of spouse, domestic and de facto partner are not consistent across all areas of law.  It may be that in the absence of marriage, a person finds it difficult to evidence that they are:

The Federal Court has provided guidance regarding the approval of settlement agreements and settlement distribution schemes in the employment context in the recent case of Bradshaw v BSA Limited (No 2).

The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (Tribunal) found an employer to be vicariously liable for the unlawful sexual harassment of an employee. The employer was ordered to pay $150,000.

In the recent Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (Tribunal) decision in Lavender Rain Pty Ltd v Commissioner of State Revenue (Review and Regulation) [2022] VCAT 1264 (Lavender Rain) the primary production land tax exemption for urban zoned land was denied on the basis that the land owning company operated a number of businesses, including the entering into a property development agreement.

In Part 1 of our Super Guarantee article series, we discussed the background to the super guarantee regime and an overview of how the regime operates. In Part 2, we looked at who will be covered by the super guarantee regime, and in Part 3 we specifically looked at when this will include certain contractors.

The Fair Work Commission (FWC) recently held that a general protections application submitted seven minutes late warranted an extension of time because of exceptional circumstances.

The High Court in Bosanac v Commissioner of Taxation [2022] HCA 34 culminated a protracted debate on whether to apply the presumption of resulting trust or presumption of advancement in the context of a matrimonial home.

It is common for employers to face conflicting versions of events when investigating sexual harassment complaints. When dealing with such instances, employers are required to assess the reliability and credibility of the evidence to make findings on the balance of probabilities.

As discussed under Part 2 of this super guarantee article series, under the super guarantee system, super contributions must be made on behalf of “employees” as that term is defined under the Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Act 1992 (SG Act).

Sladen Legal has been recognised as a Third Tier Leading Tax Law Firm – Victoria, 2022 in the recently released Doyles Guide Victoria, 2022. Doyles Guide is a comprehensive and independent directory which showcases Australia’s best firms and lawyers.

Discretionary trusts are common structures for family businesses. How do we effectively transition these structures to the next generation?