Drink Driving and Police Licence Suspension Powers
David Gawthorne is a Solicitor at Mullane & Lindsay in Newcastle and specialises in Family, Relationship and Matrimonial Law
Whenever someone is caught driving with a blood alcohol level in the mid-range (0.080 to 0.149) or higher, NSW Police have the power to suspend the driver’s licence on the spot until the drink driving charge is dealt with by a Magistrate. They usually use this power. Though there are some cases in which the Magistrate finds that the offence occurred without convicting the driver, in the usual case the driver is convicted and disqualified from holding a driver licence for at least 6 months… often longer. Read the rest of this entry »
Payslip Reporting of Superannuation Benefits
Mark Sullivan is a Director at Mullane & Lindsay in Newcastle and specialises in Family, Relationship and Matrimonial Law
Changes to the Superannuation laws and practice affects all of our clients, but usually in the areas of employment law, business management, Elder law, wills and estates and of course Family law where superannuation entitlements represent a major asset and financial resource that might need to be adjusted on a relationship breakdown. Read the rest of this entry »
Power of Attorney – Two or More Attorneys
Robert Lindsay is a Director at Mullane & Lindsay in Newcastle and leads our Commercial & Property Law team.
Often, a person creating a Power of Attorney (“the grantor”) decides to appoint two or more people to be his or her Attorneys. If so, the grantor must decide whether the Attorneys will be appointed jointly, jointly and severally or severally. Read the rest of this entry »
Mortgage Default And Claims For Possession
Tony Cavanagh is a Director at Mullane & Lindsay in Newcastle and is one of LawCover’s panel solicitors.
As most people understand, if they borrow money on the security of a mortgage, but do not repay the loan, the lender may try to take possession of the security property to satisfy the debt. Generally, lenders must notify an intention to do so. A recent case of Monas v Perpetual Trustees Victoria Limited deals with whether, in relation to a loan subject to the Consumer Credit (NSW) Code, a lender must give notice of default to a borrower in specific terms and, whether, if it does not, the default notice is invalid. Read the rest of this entry »
Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Amendment Bill 2011
Mark Sullivan is a Director at Mullane & Lindsay in Newcastle and specialises in Family, Relationship and Matrimonial Law
On 2 November 2011, the Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Amendment Bill 2011 was introduced to Parliament. The Bill will increase the Superannuation Guarantee (SG) from 9% to 12%. Read the rest of this entry »
Treasury – New Online Form to Find Lost Super
Mark Sullivan is a Director at Mullane & Lindsay in Newcastle and specialises in Family, Relationship and Matrimonial Law
On 23 September 2011, Treasury announced that a new electronic form will be introduced to make it easier to connect account holders with 5.8 million lost super accounts worth more than $18.8 billion. The new form will help streamline the process which currently requires fund members to post certified copies of their ID to their fund once they have located the lost super. Read the rest of this entry »
Changes to NSW demerit points scheme commencing 31 January 2010
By Ashleigh John
Ashleigh John is a Solicitor at Mullane & Lindsay in Newcastle and specialises in our Family, Relationship and Matrimonial Law Team
In December 2010 NSW Parliament enacted changes to the Road Transport (Driver Licensing) Act 1998 to update the current demerit point scheme in New South Wales. The changes will come into force on 31 January 2010. Read the rest of this entry »
Accommodation Bonds in Nursing Homes
By Sally Davies
Sally Davies is a Solicitor at Mullane & Lindsay in Newcastle and specialises in our Commercial, Property & Estates Law Team
When a resident of an aged care facility dies, the facility must refund the accommodation bond to the resident’s Estate. The bond will then be distributed in accordance with the resident’s Will.
If the money for the accommodation bond has been paid by the resident, then so long as their Will is up to date this usually won’t create any problems. However, if the bond has been paid by somebody other than the resident, the money may not end up going to whom it was intended. Read the rest of this entry »
The NSW Public Holidays Act
By Sally Davies
Sally Davies is a Solicitor at Mullane & Lindsay in Newcastle and specialises in our Commercial, Property & Estates Law Team
The Public Holidays Act 2010 commenced on 31 December 2010, replacing the old Bank and Bank Holidays Act. This is an attempt to clarify what is an often confusing area, particularly what happens in the event that a particular Public Holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday. Read the rest of this entry »
Making a Power of Attorney – Part 2
By Robert Lindsay
Robert Lindsay is a Director at Mullane & Lindsay in Newcastle and leads our Commercial & Property Law team.
The Powers of Attorney Act provides that an Attorney is not entitled to benefit himself or herself unless the Principal (the person appointing the attorney) specifically empowers the Attorney to do so in the Power of Attorney. It is commonplace for a spouse to appoint his or her spouse as Attorney. Often a substitute Attorney is not appointed in the event that the spouse dies or is unable to act as the Attorney. Section 12 (2) of the Powers of Attorney Act allows a clause to be added to the Power of Attorney whereby the Principal authorises the Attorney to confer benefits on the Attorney to meet his or her reasonable living and medical expenses.