We fight for you History shows us that some automotive manufacturers have tried upsetting local motor dealerships through a number of means.  These include setting unreachable sales targets, restricting dealers from having multiple brands and threatening to not renew Dealership Agreements if the business is not sold.  M+K's Motor Dealers team has assisted clients in this position through a range of unique strategies.  These have included improving business performance through our commercial team and disputing the validity of sales targets.  We've also assisted Dealer Principals get all their affairs in order before selling their business to achieve maximum sale price.

Protecting your business On 30 January 2012, the introduction of the new Personal Property Securities Law came into effect.  Our Motor Dealers team has been working with dealerships to ensure they protect themselves, their businesses and their assets when selling vehicle or parts. 

When things don’t work out We have assisted clients in disputes ranging from customer complaints over alleged defects, customers not paying, and recovering vehicles from Wholesalers who have fallen into Administration.

Motor Vehicle Dealers Beware

How Motor Dealers can avoid ACCC penalties from linked sales processes

New Consumer Law: What it means for your automotive business

Motor Vehicle Industry Struggles

Unions Threaten Business Livelihood

Protecting a contractor
Work was halted for 12 months on a CBD office site when the retaining walls of an 18m deep underground carpark excavation moved, risking catastrophic collapse.  While the GFC ran its course, we advised the civil works contractor in navigating a path through negotiations with the builder, the owner and a subcontractor, and in litigation against the contract works insurer.  The client survived and is now prospering.

Development finance
Advising a foreign bank on a AUD100 million syndicated loan facility for development and construction of a CBD apartment tower.

Crane incident
A 50 tonne gantry crane used for tunnelling works on a sewer reconstruction project suffered mechanical failure.  Litigation between the construction company, the crane manufacturer, a professional indemnity insurer and a product liability insurer was resolved at mediation.

Engineering contracts
Advising an international engineering company on a contract for the design, manufacture and supply of an ammonium nitrate plant (based on AS4911-2003 Australian Standard General Conditions for the Supply of Equipment without Installation). 

Security of Payments
An earthmoving contractor retained M+K after the developer of a large subdivision substantially delayed and underpaid the contractor. After 15 years of successful business, the earthmover was virtually ruined.  The process was carefully managed through to a Security of Payments adjudication, recovering $650,000 plus interest from the developer.

Carbon Pricing
Seminar series for Civil Contractors Federation and National Association of Women in Construction on the impact of carbon pricing on the construction industry.

How long do you have to sue for building defects?

Insurance claims - don’t take rejection lying down!

Don’t Discriminate Against Non-Union Labour - Mr HSR

The ABCC. Gone.

Unfair Dismissal - A Case Update

Global advice and counsel
We have experience with Australian-based companies with overseas operations.  Our team recently helped a listed Australian mining services company acquire an internationally owned screening company to advising on numerous drilling and coal supply agreements. We've also advised on a joint venture agreement between two international drilling companies and helped a large Singaporean based company acquire exploration assets in Papua New Guinea, India, Africa and Australia.

Corporate solutions in Zimbabwe
Our client sought a majority stake in a Zimbabwean coal seam gas exploration company, but needed to comply with local Black empowerment laws. To resolve the issue, we worked closely with counsel in Zimbabwe. Ultimately, we structured a deal where our client retained control but also complied with local legislation.

ACCC Closely Monitoring Carbon Price Related Price Increases

First Enterprise Migration Agreement awards 1,700 mining jobs to Overseas Workers

The Carbon Price Checklist for SMEs

Carbon Pricing Scheme - Some Important Concepts

Clean Energy Finance Corporation - Pay Day for Clever Businesses

Our experts regularly advise on:

• Recovery of debt, secured or unsecured
• Issuing and setting aside statutory demands
• Winding up applications in State and Federal jurisdictions
• Personal bankruptcy
• Receiverships and administrations, including voluntary administration and Deeds of Company Arrangement
• Liquidations
• Voidable transaction litigation including preference payment claims
• Insolvent trading claims
• Creditors reports and meetings
• Examinations by liquidators
• Personal Property Securities Act issues

A Receiver’s Personal Liability for Capital Gains Tax

Our areas of experience include:

• Product and public liability;
• Professional negligence;
• Fire claims;
• Fraud claims;
• Industrial accidents, workers compensation and occupational health & safety litigation;
• Motor vehicle accidents and personal injury claims;
• Marine claims and litigation;
• Industrial special risks;
• Directors & Officers;
• Asbestos litigation;
• Indemnity and coverage disputes; and
• Life and disability claims.

Reducing WorkCover Premiums
M+K have worked closely with councils developing early intervention models for workplace health and safety.  The models focus on determining employees' fitness for work, managing any work or non-work related injury and prosecuting a rapid return to work with the use of external health providers.  This complex but clever strategy has led to a reduction of a large Council's premium by over 40% in the first 18 months of the strategy's implementation.

Securing Prosecutions for Councils
Our team has a detailed understanding of the Food Act, Public Health and Wellbeing Act, Water Act, Environment Protection Act and the legislative framework for Local Government and Water Law compliance, prosecution and enforcement. We have advised and represented Councils and statutory bodies on hundreds of matters, and enjoy a high success rate in prosecutions. A recent prosecution on behalf of a Victorian Council under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act related to a premises described by the Magistrate as a 'Third World pig-sty'. To read the full article on this prosecution, click here.

Preparing Councils For New OH+S Laws
M+K have been engaged with a number of council's to develop the necessary risk management, reporting and governance structures necessary for councils as they move towards OH+S harmonisation on 1 January 2013.  This integrated approach to safety and workers' compensation will lead to:

• a reduction in workers' compensation premiums
• the protection of officers in the council from a potential liability, and
• an improvement in safety culture through the business.

Government seeks to amend the Sentencing Act

Food Act Update - Company Offenders

Changes to the Magistrates’ Court’s ability to penalise proprietors with forced charitable donations

Important changes to the Adjournment Process under new Criminal Procedure Rules

All About Pollution

Thinking outside the box

A client identified a competitor in the marketplace manufacturing similar products and marketing them in a similar way. Court proceedings were commenced to protect our client's interest. However, rather than waiting for the Court to rule as to whether our client's intellectual property was being breached, or seeking compensation from the competitor, we assisted our client to resolve the dispute through acquiring the other business.  Most importantly, we were able to structure the deal to purchase its specialised manufacturing equipment at a discount to the ordinary value of the competitors business.  This had a huge impact on strengthening our client's position in the market place.

Curbing industrial action

A large agricultural manufacturer with perishable product faced lengthy industrial action that threatened to ruin farmers and badly impact its profitability and brand. After undertaking a communications process with farmers, workers, unions and clients, our team began developing contingency plans to reduce the risk of industrial action. We then applied to suspend industrial action and instigated other conciliation strategies. The matter was finally settled in the company’s favour with only half a shift lost.

Resolving “back charging”

A Eurozone manufacturer of industrial doors for aerospace and defense installations encountered difficulty with illegitimate “back charging” designed to progress claims on an Australian site. Ultimately, we resolved our client’s issue under contractual dispute resolution – and preserved a valuable commercial relationship.

Winning the fight for life

Lessons from 2012 - Australian Consumer Law Recap

Warning to manufacturers - liability for hidden defects

Managing Director, James Sturgess comments on Victoria’s large manufacturing sector

Dandenong the Brave

International reach

Our team has acted on a vast majority of matters based overseas.  These include acting for an Australian subsidiary on one of the largest global suppliers of SAP consultancy services based in Singapore and the UK;  acting for a New York based finance company to establish an Australian subsidiary seeking acquisitions;  advising on a $200m facility with a German bank as fund capital for its Australian operations; helping a listed Australian mining services company acquire an internationally owned screening company; and advising on a joint venture agreement between two international drilling companies.

Getting the deal across the line, quickly

An Australian-based consultancy firm owned by a UK publicly-listed parent company was interested in making an acquisition.  Given the parent company need to announce the acquisition prior the end of financial year announcements, this acquisition needed to be completed in an extremely short amount of time.

The transaction involved the unwinding of complex trust ownership structures, securing senior management employees, and negotiating the formal assignment of some key customer contracts with large Government owned companies whilst ensuring Government contract procurement policies were complied with.

The transaction was completed within 2 weeks and in time prior to the EOFY announcements.

Surplus of wine stock

Our team advised on loan and security arrangements for the funding of a managed investment scheme operating and owning wine producing assets. There was an international surplus of wine stock which caused there to be a serious cash flow problem for the wine producer.

Corporate solutions in Zimbabwe

A client sought a majority stake in a Zimbabwean coal seam gas exploration company, but needed to comply with local Black empowerment laws. To resolve the issue, Brisbane Principal, Craig Roelofsz, worked closely with counsel in Zimbabwe. Ultimately, we structured a deal where our client retained control but also complied with local legislation.

Saving our client from defaulting

The loan portfolio for our client was in great risk of default.  The enforcement of the security would mean  the managed investment scheme would collapse and a significant devaluation in secured assets such as leaseholdings and wine sales royalties. Our team identified secured assets which could be liquidated without disrupting the borrower's business, addressed certain funding risks with substitute guarantees, and were successful in profitably selling the restructured and reduced loan assets to a local financier.

Resolving “back charging”

A Eurozone manufacturer of industrial doors for aerospace and defense installations encountered difficulty with illegitimate “back charging” designed to progress claims on an Australian site. Ultimately, we resolved our client’s issue under contractual dispute resolution – and preserved a valuable commercial relationship.

Obligation for Small Proprietary Companies - Can you seek relief from ASIC?

Stopping Parallel and Grey Imports in Australia

No Credit For SME Manufacturers

Family Law Issues in Overseas Relocations

Rising stars in your practice

For the past few years, M+K has run an annual "Your Career" two-day workshop for future leaders of our firm.  It gives participants unique insights and tools for building a legal practice.

It occurred to us that many of the topics covered (strategy, marketing, finance and leadership) are highly applicable to other professional services firms.   So in 2011, we extended the invite to a number of our accounting partners that did not operate a formal leadership program.  This gave them a chance to invite their 'rising stars' to a structured career program.

The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive and next year we intend to include more of our friends in the accounting profession to the workshops.

An exiting partner

A local accounting firm that M+K has built a strong relationship with found themselves embroiled in a dispute with an exiting partner.  As we had previously received favourable outcomes for a number of their clients over the past few years, they decided to engage M+K's commercial litigation team to handle their own issue.  We achieved an extremely successful outcome (avoiding timely litigation) for the firm and as such, strengthened our referral relationship with this accounting firm even further.

Planning for the future

Last year, we recognised that many of accounting colleagues were calling on us to assist their clients with succession planning advice.  After speaking with the accountants on these issues, it became apparent that succession planning was also a burning issue for many accounting practices.  To add value to our referral relationships, the M+K team ran workshops on succession planning and growth strategies in accounting firms.  The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.

Protecting medical practitioners

The M+K team worked with a group of specialist medical practitioners to establish exit strategies for practices with multiple owners.  By drafting an Associateship Agreement that dealt with specific exit scenarios, including insurance funding for death, TPD and trauma events, we were able to protect the owners' commercial interests.  Soon after the agreements were put in place, a partner of one of the practitioners we worked with was diagnosed with a life-threatening condition.  Unfortunately, this person was unable to continue practising.  The documentation created by M+K protected the practice, and the continuing parties were able to purchase additional interest in the business.  The affected practitioner was also able to obtain insurance proceeds.

Boardroom Radio - New 10% withholding tax on foreign sellers

Are you FOFA compliant?

Paying Expenses on behalf of a SMSF may constitute a “Contribution”

Inappropriate advice? Unwanted financial products? Toxic loans?

A Receiver’s Personal Liability for Capital Gains Tax

Licensing

• Licensing applications (individual and corporate licences)
• Advice on licensing and compliance issues
• Advice in relation to compliance with relevant legislation

Structuring

• Corporate structures and restructures
• Shareholder and unitholder agreements
• Converting your real estate agency businesses to a franchise

Transactions

• Sale and purchase of rent rolls
• Sale and purchase of real estate agency businesses

Intellectual Property

• Protection of intellectual property including trademark applications
• Licensing of intellectual property

Disputes + Litigation

• Advice and representation in relation to Consumer Affairs Victoria investigations
• Recovery of outstanding commissions and marketing expenses
• General litigation and dispute resolution

Employment + Workplace Relations

• Preparing employment agreements
• Dealing with employment issues

Real Estate Listing company gives Court enforceable undertaking to the ACCC

Your obligations as a landlord before entering into a lease of retail premises

National Licensing of the Real Estate Industry

Victorian Land Rich Duty - Think twice before changing underlying ownership even prior to settlement

Reducing a claim by over 2000%
A carrier client was facing a claim for over $1m for allegedly damaging a cargo of steel pipes. We were able to forensically review the claim and obtain a settlement for $50,000.

Overseas arbitration result
Our Australian grain exporter client was involved in a dispute involving London arbitration. We were able to represent the client and successfully overcome a challenge to jurisdiction, settling the matter shortly thereafter very advantageously to the client.

Eliminating demurrage
When an Australian exporter and charterer needed advice about demurrage arising under a FOB contract, we provided a solution that removed the obligation to pay any demurrage whatsoever.

A New Era For Road Transport Employees Relations

‘Stronger Shipping for Stronger Economy’ Reforms

The Carbon Price Checklist for SMEs

China Inflation Syndrome

Count Down to the Carbon Tax

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Tax Issues in Family Law

• May 07

  Dandenong

  Insights: Think Before You Hire!

• May 08

  Melbourne

  Insights: Think Before You Hire!