Insurance and risk management services for the better practice of law

Changes to stamp duty and the introduction of an annual property tax on commercial and industrial land under the Commercial and Industrial Property Tax Reform Act commenced 1 July 2024. Practitioners acting in matters involving commercial or industrial land in Victoria need to be aware of the full extent of these significant reforms.

Here we provide some additional answers to specific questions we have received from practitioners. We recommend practitioners use this information to gain a full understanding of the reforms and their practical application.

The Commercial and Industrial Property Tax Reform Bill (the Bill) was introduced into the Victorian Parliament on 20 March 2024. The reforms are expected to pass into law in early May before commencing on 1 July 2024.

Matthew Cridland, Partner at K&L Gates, has provided a comprehensive overview as a guide to the reforms and CIPT tax, and key risk management tips for practitioners acting in these matters.

Non-engagement communications are essential for clarifying the relationship between lawyers and their potential clients, as well as preventing misunderstandings that could lead to disputes, ethical dilemmas, and could give rise to a claim.

They are a crucial yet often overlooked aspect of legal practice management that can help manage client expectations and ensure that both parties have a clear understanding of their professional relationship—or lack thereof.

Our article covers the essential elements of non-engagement communications and provides tips on how to make them effective.

LPLC regularly sees claims where solicitors have lodged caveats without having the proper grounds to do so.

Before lodging a caveat, practitioners should always ensure they carefully consider, and have evidence of, the interest in the estate or land being claimed.

This LPLC LIJ article by guest author, barrister Philip Barton, provides some guidance for practitioners when lodging caveats to ensure they have a proper basis, and discusses common examples of unsustainable caveats where courts have found the caveator to have no interest in the relevant land. The article also provides risk management tips to avoid mistakes.

Historic institutional child sexual abuse litigation has surged in the past 12 months and is complex and demanding work for legal practitioners.

It’s crucial that practitioners stay on top of this rapidly changing landscape, and that those who are not familiar with this area of practice, or don’t have the resources to manage it in the manner required, avoid dabbling and risking a potential claim.

For those practising in this area, the Supreme Court has recently issued a new Institutional Liability List Case Management and Listing Update with new case management procedures to better manage the very large number of new proceedings now being filed in this List.

Our article provides a summary of the changes and risk management tips to help practitioners comply with the new procedures.

The Victorian Government has introduced the State Tax Amendment Bill 2024 which, amongst other taxation changes, will (if passed) broaden the holiday home exemption to allow shareholders of companies, as well as certain beneficiaries of trusts and relatives of those shareholders and beneficiaries, to satisfy the exemption for a property owned by a company or trust.

This alert outlines the changes and the criteria associated with the holiday home exemption.