As a result of the 2017 budget, it would appear that from 1 July 2018, any buyers purchasing new residential property or land within a subdivision will have the onus placed on them to collect the GST from the purchaser and pay it to the ATO. This change will necessarily require developers to amend their...
Generally, if there is a child support assessment in place pursuant to the Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989 (CSA) or if the parents of a child have come to their own private arrangements in respect of child support, these payments usually cease upon the child reaching the age of eighteen. However, child support can continue...
As blended families become more and more common in today’s society, a photo released by a family made up of a mother, father, step-mother, step-father and child has gone viral in the news for all of the right reasons. Promoting the belief that co-parenting is completely do-able, and most definitely in the best interests of...
As one of the leading Gold Coast law firms, our property and conveyancing team at Affinity Lawyers deal with many transactions, and a common question asked is ‘what happens if the house is damaged after the contract has been signed, prior to settlement occurring?’. As most of you would be aware, Queensland has been suffering...
ASSUMPTION — IT WILL BE A 50/50 SPLIT Most people presume that their assets will be split straight down the middle, however there is no hard and fast rule that this will occur (see pages 12 to 13 for more details). ASSUMPTION — What I put in, I get back A person may not...
Unfortunately, ‘elder abuse’ is becoming more and more prevalent in today’s society, and accordingly it is important to be aware of the signs that elder abuse may be occurring. The Australian Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse defines elder abuse as “any act occurring within a relationship where there is an implication of trust,...
Don’t forget that the Queensland First Home Owner’s Grant is expiring on 30 June 2017 for New Homes. In a bid to boost the Queensland property market, the Queensland Government boosted the First Home Owner’s Grant (‘FHOG’) from $15,000.00 to $20,000 – but only until 30 June 2017. The FHOG is designed to assist first...
There are significant changes to the way superannuation funds can be built and how retirement wealth can accumulated from 1 July 2017, and it may severely impact on many Australian’s ability to accumulate enough funds to retire without having to rely also on the aged pension. For those of us over the age of 49,...
The Fire and Emergency Services (Domestic Smoke Alarms) Amendment Act 2016 which came into effect on 1 January 2017, has resulted in various amendments being made to the principal legislation dealing with fire safety in Queensland, namely, the Fire and Emergency Services Act 1990 (‘Act’). The amendments to the present legislation have been made as...
The recent review of the Adoption Act 2009 has seen the most significant overhaul of the adoption system in Queensland come to fruition in the form of the Adoption and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2016 (‘the Bill’) being passed by Parliament in November 2016. As a result of the Bill, the Adoption Act 2009 has...
