Both Federal, State and Territory Governments and the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) have adopted measures to assist taxpayers and businesses through the current COVID-19 crisis. We have prepared a summary of the support packages.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have far reaching impact on our clients, referrers and staff, their families and communities. We remain committed to helping ensure the health and safety of all people in our broader networks.

A state of emergency was declared in Victoria from 16 March 2020 until midnight on 13 April in order to combat the COVID-19 threat.

On the weekend ASIC released guidelines for upcoming AGM requirements as companies are impacted by social distancing requirements in response to COVID-19.

The restrictions on social gatherings and non-essential businesses will impact the ability of many parties to comply with their contractual obligations.

On 22 March 2020, the Australian Government, as part of its economic response to the Coronavirus, announced temporary relief measures for financially distressed businesses.

The Building Amendment (Swimming Pool and Spa) Regulations 2019 (“the Regulation”) commenced on 1 December 2019 and added mandatory requirements for landowners who have a swimming pool or spa.

The Retail Leases Amendment Bill (Bill) proposes reforms to the Retail Leases Act (Act) in an effort to make retail leases fairer and easier to understand.

In some circumstances farm leases will be outside the scope of The Retail Leases Act (Act) following a determination by the Minister for Small Business, exempting farm leases from the Act, effective from 29 October 2019.

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) is having a significant impact across Australia. At Harwood Andrews we remain acutely aware of the impact this is having, and may continue to have for the foreseeable future, for our clients. We are taking a position of ‘business as usual’ with our offices still being attended, whilst keeping abreast of the evolving direction from various authorities.

Web content can be challenging for those with a disability to navigate and understand. All Victorian Government online services and departments working directly with people with a disability, must ensure internal and external digital content meets certain accessibility standards. For private sector businesses, these standards can also provide a great guide on what to aim for in your communications.