Reasons to Prepare Your Will Now

Everyone knows the importance of having a will. After all, we know that at som ...

Will a Criminal Record Affect My Visa?

Holders of 'temporary visas' such as 'student visas', 'work visas' ans 'sponso ...

Why You Need to Hire a Lawyer

Lawyers are needed in criminal and civil matters to protect the rights of clie ...

Getting Criminal Charges Dropped

Criminal Lawyers are often criticised for adjourning cases from court-date to ...

The Consequences of Withholding Evidence

Criminal defendants are entitled to know what charges they are facing and what ...

Your Rights as a Client

Once you have retained a lawyer, you do have certain rights. For example, your ...

Conveyancing Terms You Need to Know

The act or business of transferring property titles from the vendor to the pur ...

Tort Law in Australia

In late 2002, Australia’s tort law went through major changes. Originall ...

The PPSA - What It Means For You

With far-reaching implications that stretch across multiple industries, the ne ...

Privacy Laws: Australia

Did you know that Australia has no legal definition for privacy? When the Aust ...

Employment Law - What are your Rights as an Employee?

Unless you’re one of the world’s richest, you’re most probab ...

Lost appeal no laughing matter

THE rock band Men at Work and record label EMI will, after all, have to hand over 5 per cent of royalties earned on the 1980s hit Down Under since 2002 after losing an appeal to the full bench of the Federal Court yesterday. The songwriter Colin Hay and his publisher, EMI, had argued that a February 2010 ruling that Down Under had taken a substantial part of the folk song Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree was wrong and that there had been no breach of copyright. Lawyers for Hay and EMI listed 14 grounds for the appeal, including that the resemblance between the two songs went unnoticed by the general public and Larrikin Music, which holds the copyright for Kookaburra, for more than 20 years until it was pointed out on the TV show Spicks and Specks. But the appeal judges ruled "the aural resemblance need not be resounding or obvious" and reaffirmed that Down Under did reproduce a substantial part of Marion Sinclair's 1934 Girl Guides' campfire ditty. The judges also confirmed that two 30-second Qantas advertisements containing "a languid orchestral version" of Down Under only contained the second bar of Kookaburra and did not breach Larrikin's copyright. EMI was ordered to pay Larrikin's costs.

Sympathy for the devil

The Lincoln Lawyer brings to life the perfect villain, writes Jenny Cooney Carrillo.

Film

A HEARTBEAT AWAY PG

Yang release heads off problem for Gillard visit

CHINA'S release of the Australian writer Yang Hengjun has averted a diplomatic crisis before Julia Gillard's first visit to China late this month.

20-year ban, but man kept on driving: court

DANIEL James Thompson had been banned from driving for 20 years but ambitiously described his occupation as a truck driver when asked by police.

Rio's tilt for Riversdale falls short

RIO TINTO'S hopes that a partial acceptance by the Brazilian steelmaker CSN of its $3.9 billion takeover bid for Riversdale Mining would deliver it control of the Mozambique coal developer have been dashed, for the time being at least.

Ethnic voting trends prove powerful force behind political swings

A SECOND great migration is under way for many of Sydney's ethnic groups - not from place to place but from party to party.

Cap on population in cities could slash the value of houses

SYDNEY real estate prices would fall more than 18 per cent over the next decade if the federal government adopted policies that cap population growth in the biggest capital cities, according to a new report.

Hearing warning

A LAKE Macquarie man charged with making false accusations about a former girlfriend two weeks before she was murdered was given an ultimatum in court yesterday.