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For many businesses, insurance is the most important, if not the only, risk management tool utilised in the protection of the business.  Knowing that policies of insurance have been put in place to protect your business from a wide array of potential losses and liabilities can bring great peace of mind and allows you to focus on the core aspects of your business.

However, unless you carefully note the terms of your policies, your standard business practices have the potential to render your insurance ineffective in many common situations.

For the full article click here. Business Services Bulletin Feb 2009

Fox and Thomas was recently featured in the 2008/09 Summer Edition of the Australasian Law Management Journal.

In an article focussed on the success of small to medium firms Fox and Thomas was one of four firms from around Australia described as exemplifying “how smallish firms, do big things.”

Key factors in the success of the firms discussed included:

·         Knowing your market

Fox and Thomas is currently recruiting for a 3 to 5 year post admission lawyer.  Read more about the position here - 3 to 5 year PAE position ad

Fox and Thomas recently hosted around 30 local real estate agents, bankers and accountants for a seminar on the new water allocation system.

Fox and Thomas St George Director Michael Cowley provided the briefing which outlined the practical implications of the new allocation system for those that regularly deal with water entitlement issues.

Michael Cowley said, “Of particular significance is the ability to trade water allocations with or without also holding property.”

“The opportunity now exists for irrigation properties to increase or decrease their allocations more easily in line with their requirements.”

Property owners who don’t plan to irrigate in a particular season can easily lease or temporarily transfer their water.”

“Others may decide to simplify their operation by selling their allocation and remaining a dryland operation.”

“The new system treats water allocations in a similar way to property, with a register of the allocations being retained by the Land Titles Office.”

“With water no longer tied to the land many opportunities and risks arise in the areas of wills and succession planning and asset structuring and protection.

“In particular a gift of land will no longer automatically include a gift of a water entitlement being used on the land.

“While the ability to trade water is a great step forward the system is still complex and owners and prospective purchasers should contact their solicitor or the Department before dealing with an allocation to ensure they do not jeopardise their entitlement.”

 Click here to view photo.

Fox and Thomas Conveyancing Manager Jo Thompson was recently awarded a Rotary Pride in Workmanship Award at a ceremony in Goondiwindi.  Jo was nominated for the award by the Directors of the firm in recognition of her success in her role, loyalty to the firm’s business and dedication to our clients’ best interests.  In preparing the nomination Director Kay Rhodes sought comments from some of the real estate agents Jo works with regularly.  Just a few of these comments were: “…she carries out the clients’ instructions to the letter, 100% each on every time.” “Jo is inspirational, but humble.” “…complete confidence in her professional advice and competency…” “Doing business with her is easy.” “I know the job will be done well, and she has a sense of humour that helps in the tough times…”

Kay said, “The enthusiasm of Jo’s co-workers and the agents she works with towards her nomination is a testament to how fitting this recognition truly is.”

Fox and Thomas is pleased to announce the appointment of Melissa Fitzpatrick as a director of the firm effective 1 July 2008.

Melissa’s practice is based in Brisbane where she started with the firm as an associate when that office opened in early 2007.  She has extensive experience in a wide variety of corporate services including business sales, corporate reconstructions and industrial relations.

As many of the firm’s existing clients broaden their operations beyond agribusinss, they are increasingly likely to benefit from the experience that Melissa brings to the firm.

Managing director Norman Fox said the appointment is recognition - not just of Melissa’s outstanding talent as a lawyer and her exceptional client service - but also the show of faith she made in joining a firm which at that time did not have a Brisbane presence.  “Eighteen months on and the office, now with 2 directors, 2 other solicitors and 3 support staff, has gone from strength to strength in attracting and retaining a wide variety of work”, Mr Fox said.

Melissa joins existing directors Norman Fox, Kay Rhodes, Michael Cowley and Paul Paxton-Hall.

For quite some time the inability of a superannuation fund being able to borrow or invest in geared unit trusts has meant that better wealth creation alternatives could be found through other forms of geared investments e.g. family trusts.  However with changes to the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act (SIS) in September 2007, these borrowing restrictions have been relaxed and, with that, significant alternative wealth creation strategies through self-managed superannuation funds (SMSF) have been opened up.

Due to this article’s length, please click here to download as PDF.

Fox and Thomas made a strong showing in the recent Hell of the West Triathlon. Held in Goondiwindi during the hottest part of the year this triathlon is renowned as one of Australia’s toughest.

With 5 participants across three teams, including the “Fox and Thomas Legends”, the firm was proud to take part in what is one of Goondiwindi’s major annual events.

The team members, including two of the firm’s directors, involved were:

• 80km ride - Norman Fox and Paul Paxton-Hall
• 20km run - Melissa Fitzpatrick and Anna Hudson
• 2km swim - Dianna Henry

For more information on the Hell of the West click here http://www.hellofthewest.com

Click here to view photos.

Paul Paxton-Hall recently presented at a LegalWise seminar on the topic of Using Superannuation for Best Effect.

In his presentation, Paul spoke about the significant changes to the superannuation legislation in late 2007 which now mean that superannuation funds are able to borrow in certain circumstances.

The procedures involved are complex and involve the establishment of a separate security trust. Loans made in accordance with the new rules must be on a limited basis so that the lender may only have recourse to assets acquired by the borrowed funds and not the assets of the super fund generally.

These developments in superannuation law are likely to have a very significant impact on wealth creation strategies involving superannuation funds - particularly self-managed funds.

The powerpoint of Paul’s presentation is available here.

For more information on this topic please contact us.

Fox and Thomas has an unrivalled reputation for providing legal services to agribusiness. With a history of staying the distance in regional Queensland and New South Wales, no other firm has the depth of expertise, developed over many years, to service the industry as well as Fox and Thomas. With offices in Goondiwindi, St George and Brisbane, we have staked our reputation on helping your agribusiness to flourish. When you choose Fox and Thomas, you get the attention of key people, with access to the firm’s directors and senior people from the beginning. It’s a complex legal landscape in agricultural business, and Fox and Thomas knows it like no other.

Due to this article’s length, please click here to download as PDF.

As part of the Fox and Thomas commitment to working closely with other professional advisers we recently hosted a group of accountants and financial planners at a Law Australasia Special Interest Group conference.

This conference provides a rare opportunity for lawyers and accountants to discuss top legal and financial issues affecting their clients and to develop common ground from which to more efficiently and effectively serve their clients.

Topics discussed at this conference included:

• Taxation
• Family Law Essentials
• Estate Planning Essentials
• Strategies in superannuation
• Tax effective asset protection

Fox and Thomas guests at the event included Tim Herden and David Elder from Fox & Elder (Goondiwindi), Don McRae and Peter Nevell from WHK Camersons (Inverell) and Shane Curran from the Westwood Group (Brisbane).

This conference gave us the opportunity to discuss some of the key issues affecting our clients away from the pressure of the office environment. And by learning from each other we develop better working relationships that ultimately provide our clients with saving in time and money.”

David Elder, Partner, Fox & Elder

The conference was organised by Law Australasia, a national association of independent law firms who share information and expertise so that their clients benefit from the legal experience of more than 150 lawyers from across Australia and New Zealand.

Introduction

2007 has seen some important developments in the law concerning not-for-profit organisations including:

1. the commencement of the first round of changes to the Associations Incorporation Act in Queensland on 20 March 2007;
2. the release of the federal government discussion paper on financial reporting requirements for companies limited by guarantee;
3. various changes to the Tax Act; and
4. a number of important cases including the recent Commissioner of Taxation -v- Word Investments Limited.

Associations Incorporation and other legislation Amendment Act 2007

Background

After more than 4 years of review, long anticipated changes to the Associations Incorporation Act (AIA) were finally passed on 20 March 2007 with passage of the Associations Incorporation and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2007.

Due to this article’s length, please click here to download as PDF.

Background

The Full Court of the Federal court in Melbourne recently handed down its decision in Commissioner of Taxation -v- Word Investments Limited. This is a landmark charity case decision - perhaps the most significant charity case we have seen in Australia in the last 30 years.

The decision was concerned with the central issue of whether a company which operates a normal commercial business for profit, but which is not charitable in its own right, can be regarded as a charitable institution if, as a matter of purpose and practice, its profits are wholly distributed to other bodies which are charitable.

In a nutshell, the Court has held that a company in this situation will be charitable institution and therefore entitled to the various tax concessions afforded to charitable institutions.

The ATO’s view

The ATO has long held the view that, in working out whether a company is exempt form income tax in circumstances where it has a relationship with another entity which is itself exempt, the company itself must be able to stand on its own 2 feet in terms of satisfying the tax exemption requirements of division 50 of the Tax Act. In other words, the ATO takes the view that it is not possible to merely attribute the characteristics and purposes of an exempt entity to a different company or to simply “look through” the company to the exempt entity.

Due to this article’s length, please click here to download as PDF.

Important changes have been made to the Tax Act impacting on the requirements for Deductible Gift Recipient’s (DGR) to maintain a gift fund.

Background

A fundamental aspect of the requirements for a deductible gift recipient endorsed under Division 30 of the Tax Act has been the obligation applied to the situation where the DGR was endorsed as a whole and also where an organisation was endorsed for a fund, authority or institution which it owned and operated.

Due to this article’s length, please click here to download as PDF.

Summary

Recent changes to superannuation have meant that it is probable large sums will be held in many superannuation funds at the time of death of a fund member, with the prospect of significant tax being paid as benefits pass to non-dependent beneficiaries.

This “death duty” can be avoided with careful planning.

The change

Previously, there were limits on the amount of superannuation contributions, strict requirements to “cash out” benefits in retirement, and adverse tax consequences if benefits were received by a “working retiree”

All that has changed. Generous contribution allowances in recent years mean that amounts held in superannuation funds are now measured in billions of dollars. Also, from 1 July 2007 persons over 60 can withdraw superannuation benefits tax free before death. Read more

The St George office of Fox and Thomas recently received the Rotary Balonne Shire Business Awards Excellence in Staff Development Award.

The award recognises the efforts of organisations who demonstrate investment in their staff through training and development.

St George Partner Michael Cowley said he was particularly pleased to receive the award for staff development as it provided some public recognition of the firm’s commitment to investing in training and developing its team members.

Michael said, “We should also recognise that while successful staff development is about providing training and growth opportunities it depends on having team members who are willing to accept those opportunities and challenges.”

“I would particularly like to recognise Candice Twiner who has accepted these challenges many times in the past and was a nominee for the Staff Member of the Year category within these awards.”

The Award was accepted by Michael Cowley at the annual presentation dinner which is a highlight of the social calendar for the St George and district business community.

In the past, the classic way in which families would minimise risk exposure would be for the low-risk spouse to own family assets - particularly the family home. The theory has been that the high-risk spouse (usually the higher income earner) would be exposed to trading or professional liabilities with personal and investment assets being held by the spouse or perhaps a separate entity such as a company or trust. Read more