Knowledge

In response to the commencement of legal proceedings, defendants are usually advised by their legal advisers that they can admit and pay the claim, or defend against the claim. However those are not always the only two options. In international commercial disputes, the question of whether the claim can legitimately be pursued by a foreign plaintiff in a local court, or whether it can be permanently stayed, should always be considered.

Three recent cases have intensified the attention of business and the public on the value of copyright and how it can be captured, or lost, in our increasingly interconnected electronic world. Hollywood, Telstra and that iconic Australian rock band Men At Work were all playing the copyright “game”. All lost: Hollywood’s movies were not protected from downloading by the public; Telstra’s telephone directories were found to be “authorless”; and a minor refrain in a Men At Work song might end up costing the band a lot of Vegemite.

The object of Canberra’s Territory Plan is to ensure that planning and development provide the people of the ACT with an attractive, safe and efficient environment in which to live, work and play. With growing demands on the fabric of the Territory, caused by increased population, changing demographics, reduced Commonwealth funding and higher land servicing costs, implementing that “credo” is now a serious job. After a short hiatus caused by the economic slowdown, Canberra’s investors and policy makers are in for a busy year. City planning, energy efficiency, transport, development costs, and retail and tenancy competition are all on the agenda.

Streamlining and expediting the movement of goods across international borders through simplified, transparent customs procedures is essential to boost trade and economic growth. This is called “trade facilitation”. WTO negotiations on trade facilitation began in July 2004, on the basis of the mandate set out in the so-called “July Package”.

Two events which took place in courts at opposite ends of the world in September of this year have accelerated the prospects for expensive “climate change litigation” against carbon-emitting companies and government regulators.

In an increasingly integrated world trading environment, globalisation and the threat of terrorism have brought security concerns to the fore. New regulations dealing with everything from container inspection requirements to “trading with the enemy” restrictions are increasingly common. They range from the imposition of sanctions (like export bans) to the regulation of exports and the handling of the product that is to be exported. Most of these regulations are well-intentioned. Some create trade “tilts” between countries, bringing opportunities for some and barriers for others. Strict compliance is essential, in all cases.

The Court of First Instance at Luxembourg has handed down a decision that will further liberalise the treatment of Chinese exporters accused of the practice of selling products at low prices to European customers (“dumping”).

Foreign investment stories have dominated media headlines in recent months. Australia-China business stakeholders will have noticed:

On 24 March 2009 the Assistant Treasurer, Chris Bowen, and the Home Affairs Minister, Bob Debus, jointly announced that the Government has requested the Productivity Commission, Australia’s highest level economic research and advisory body, to undertake an inquiry into the “effectiveness and impact” of Australia’s anti-dumping and countervailing system.

The two week post-election political stalemate in Canberra has ended with the announcement that the Greens will support the Labor Party’s Jon Stanhope as Chief Minister of the ACT. The Greens have decided not to take up any Ministerial portfolios. Instead the focus of the Greens has been on establishing an agreed Agenda for Parliamentary Reform and a Policy Programme with the Labor Party, representing their vision and their demands for the future governance of the ACT.