Guide to the Australian Resource Super Profits Tax 25 May 2010 On 2 May 2010 the Australian Government announced the The Resource Super Profits Tax as part of the Government's response to the wide ranging Australia's Future Tax System Review, headed by Dr. Ken Henry of the Department of Treasury. This guide produced by Minter Ellison will help you to understand any potential implications for your or your client's current or future investments in the non-renewable resources sector in Australia.

Greenhouse gas emission offsets in Australia: the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme and the voluntary market 08 April 2010 One aspect of the government's proposed emissions trading scheme that has not received a great deal of attention, but which has been subject to intense political negotiation, relates to offset mechanisms. Minter Ellison's briefing paper on the topic outlines a range of issues relating to offsets that Australian companies need to understand.

Private Equity Glossary 31 March 2010 Minter Ellison has developed a glossary of terms to demystify a broad range of the terms used by private equity and venture capital investors and their advisers. It also considers some terms more generally used in capital raising transactions and mergers & acquisitions.

Infrastructure 2010: Building cities for the 21st century 29 March 2010 The debate about the future of our cities has now been elevated to its highest level in half a century. A fresh and truly national approach is needed to solve common growth challenges in urban centres, and to renew old and congested infrastructure. Minter Ellison is pleased to release the third edition of its major thought leadership publication series: Infrastructure 2010 : Building cities for the 21st century.

Sample Credit Reform Compliance Management Register 25 March 2010 This Credit Reform Compliance Management Register sets out the obligations for a person engaged in credit activities and required to hold an Australian credit licence under the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 (Cth) (Credit Act). The Register has two volumes which comprehensively set out the obligations under the Credit Act, including the National Credit Code, transitional provisions and all associated regulations in an easy to follow, step by step, manner. We've manage to simplify over 1000 pages of legislation into our 128 page comprehensive register. It also includes requirements and guidance provided by ASIC.

Directors of Commonwealth Authorities and Companies - Legal Duties and Liabilities 28 January 2010 Minter Ellison has prepared this Guide for persons serving on, or considering serving on, the boards of Commonwealth companies or authorities. It covers their legal duties and obligations, focusing in particular on the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) and the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997 (Cth).

Energy in Australia and New Zealand (7th edition) 16 October 2009 The seventh edition of this publication provides a detailed overview of the energy sector in Australia and New Zealand, supported by a comprehensive series of maps and tables.

Special Report: National Consumer Credit Reform 18 September 2009 The National Consumer Credit Protection Bill and related legislation sets out to provide a single set of rules, and a single system of regulation, for the consumer credit industry. Considerable adjustment will be required to implement the National Credit which will involve new compliance responsibilities. Our report provides an overview of the core elements of the reform package including the credit licensing regime, responsible lending provisions, National Credit Code, timetable and transitional arrangements and penalties for breaches and non-compliance. It also lists the key tasks for credit industry participants to ready themselves for the new regime.

Establishing a business in China 13 July 2009 Foreign investment in China continues to grow. Large numbers of wholly foreign owned businesses and joint ventures with foreign investors operate in China and their numbers are rapidly increasing. Foreign investors need to consider many factors when planning their investments in China but the complex approval processes, layers of government bureaucracy and consequent time delays can be difficult to grasp for investors unfamiliar with the environment. Our introductory guide to doing business in China outlines the key issues and processes and addresses many frequently asked questions. View our guide.

An introduction to Australian takeovers 23 June 2009 Minter Ellison's Introduction to Australian Takeovers provides a concise overview of the regulatory framework, including the role of the Takeovers Panel, and analyses the issues that may arise along the way.

Doing business in Australia (Energy and Resources sector) 01 June 2009 Minter Ellison's popular report on the fundamentals of doing business in Australia for investors in the energy and resources sector.

Australia’s foreign investment approval regime 01 June 2009 Australia’s foreign investment approval regime - Chinese investment in the Australian resources industryis designed to provide some guidance on Australia's approach to foreign investment and the procedures that must be met to obtain investment approval. It has been specifically prepared for Chinese investors and companies looking to invest in Australian resources companies. View our guide.

Doing business in Australia 01 June 2009 Minter Ellison's popular report on the fundamentals of doing business in Australia has been fully revised. The new edition outlines Australia's business rules, from foreign investment guidelines to taxation, consumer protection, intellectual property and the employment law system.

The ASEAN Australia New Zealand Free Trade Agreement 02 April 2009 Minter Ellison's International Trade Group has released its overview and assessment of the recently announced free trade agreement between Australia, New Zealand and ASEAN.

Australian and New Zealand Retirement Villages Legislation Compendium 30 March 2009 Minter Ellison has launched the first edition of the Australian and New Zealand Retirement Villages Legislation Compendium. The compendium aims to provide the retirement village industry with a quick reference guide to key aspects of the legislation regulating retirement villages in each state and territory of Australia and in New Zealand.

Protecting your Position – Laws imposing personal liability on Directors and Officers 06 March 2009 In Australia today there are more than 600 statutes at federal, state and territory level that impose personal liability on company directors and officers for the actions of their companies. These are in addition to duties imposed by the Corporations Act.

Infrastructure 2009: Delivering transport solutions in challenging times 27 February 2009 Minter Ellison's Infrastructure Industry Group releases the second edition of its major thought leadership publication Infrastructure 2009: Delivering Transport Solutions in Challenging Times.

Taxation opportunities and the consequences of the National Emissions Trading Scheme 08 December 2008 This paper summarises the path of international and Australian responses to climate change to date. It then focusses on the establishment of an emissions trading regime in Australia, particularly the recommendations of the Government's Green Paper, 'Carbon Pollution reduction Scheme' and the resulting tax implications. The paper provides a detailed discussion of emissions trading permits, likely GST application, the clean development mechanism and compensation issues.  The report concludes with a thorough review of the tax treatment of geosequestration and other expenses.

Optimising the collaborative advantage through IRCs 07 July 2008 In the pursuit to find remedies to some of the world's challenges, International Research Collaborations (IRCs) are fast becoming a popular vehicle to develop and commercialise innovative solutions. Learn more about establishing an IRC and managing the risks of these ventures in Minter Ellison's publication: Optimising the Collaborative Advantage.

A to Z of China Employment Law 23 June 2008 Minter Ellison has more than 100 specialist employment lawyers based across the Asia Pacific region, and is one of the few law firm’s in Greater China to have a team of specialist employment lawyers on-the-ground in Hong Kong and Shanghai. This useful A to Z guide outlines terminology used in Employment Law in China.

A to Z of Hong Kong Employment Law 23 June 2008 Minter Ellison's Hong Kong Employment practice provides a full range of employment law services, specialising in complex contractual arrangements; post employment restraints and confidential information; discrimination; managing senior exits, particularly in terms of risk management; and cross-border, multi-jurisdictional issues. This useful A to Z guide outlines terminology used in Employment Law in Hong Kong.

Insurance Contracts Act Handbook 27 March 2008 The sixth edition of Minter Ellison's Insurance Contracts Act Handbook was officially launched on Thursday 13 March 2008. This edition is current to the end of December 2007. The main aim of the Handbook is to provide the insurance industry with practical guidance as it is working with insurance policies or insurance claims.

Infrastructure 2008: An Ambitious Agenda 27 February 2008 Hot off the press is Infrastructure 2008: An Ambitious Agenda – a 44-page thought leadership contribution from our Infrastructure industry group to the current debate on how Australia can successfully deliver the critical infrastructure it needs to sustain long-term growth.

Establishing a business in the UK 28 November 2007 In view of the UK's highly respected legal, business and financial systems, non-European businesses have tended to look to the UK as the preferred base from which to launch into Europe. Our London office has updated a guide to some of the factors that should be taken into account by an international business which is considering establishing itself in the UK.

Tort law reform throughout Australia – 7th Edition 08 October 2007 Minter Ellison's Insurance & Corporate Risk practice has prepared the 7th edition of 'Tort law reform throughout Australia'. The publication reviews and compares legislative changes across the jurisdictions, as at June 2007. It also provides a brief commentary on the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's findings into monitoring the costs and premiums in public liability and professional indemnity insurance.

Addressing Trade in Legal Services within a CEPEA 04 August 2007 This paper, delivered to a group of eminent international researchers mandated by the East Asian Summit to consider the feasibility of a Comprehensive Economic Partnership across ASEAN, China, India, Korea, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, argues that greater internationalisation of this sector is possible, even though there remain good grounds for maintaining a reasonable level of domestic regulation.

The Importance of Transparency in WTO Dispute Settlement 04 July 2007 This paper, delivered to the Lowy Institute's conference on Transparency and the Multilateral Trading System in July 2007, argues that, with the Doha Round of trade negotiations moribund, the dispute settlement framework will take on a greater workload as the gloves come off and WTO member countries change the 'negotiate not litigate' attitude they have adopted in recent years.

Green Buildings - Do not leave it to goodwill and collaboration alone 18 April 2007 Corporate Australia is increasingly recognising the importance of conducting business in an environmentally sustainable way. Most corporations have implemented policies to reduce their ecological footprint. 'Green buildings' is one example of this shift in community and business attitudes to environmentally sustainable development. This article provides an overview of the green building rating tools, in particular the Green Star system, and provide guidance about the contractual terms that will ensure that the building can be appropriately accredited.

Legal Risk Management for Major Government Projects 27 November 2006 Over the next few months, public sector senior managers will begin to formulate initiatives and budgets for projects to be carried out next financial year and beyond. At Minter Ellison we apply a Legal Risk Management Methodology that empowers a project team to make effective and auditable decisions. Our brochure 'Legal Risk Management for Major Projects' contains an overview of the steps to support seamless project implementation.

Minter Ellison's Retail tenancy legislation compendium (4th edition) 28 August 2006 Minter Ellison's real estate team has prepared the fourth edition of our Retail tenancy legislation compendium as an invaluable summary of the eight sets of state and territory legislation as at 7 August 2006.

The regulation of LNG in Australia 25 May 2006 Andrew Thompson and Duncan Maclean produced this overview of the regulation of LNG in Australia. The article appeared in the May 2006 special feature on Liquefied Natural Gas, published and reproduced with permission by OGEL.

Submission on draft taxation ruling: TR 2006/D2 31 March 2006 TR 2006/D2 – Income Tax: ascertaining the effective life of a mining, quarrying or prospecting right mentioned in item 11 of the table in subsection 40-95(7) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997.

The International Comparative Legal Guide to: Gas Regulation 2006 - Australian Chapter 01 November 2005 Denis Gately and Andrew Thompson produced this overview of gas regulation in Australia. This article appeared in the 2006 edition of The International Comparative Legal Guide to: Gas Regulation, published and reproduced with kind permission by Global Legal Group Ltd, London.

PPP policies throughout Australia 30 May 2005 In this paper, Fred Tinsley, a Partner in our Finance division,provides a comparative analysis of policies and procedures governing public private partnerships (PPPs) throughout the various Australian jurisdictions.  He also gives a useful reference guide to PPP practitioners and participants in different jurisdictions. This report first appeared in Issue Five (May 2005) of the Public Infrastructure Bulletin, published by Melboure University Private.