
Newsletter – July 2015
Welcome to the July 2015 edition of the ABKJ newsletter.
In this issue…
The Hunt For Illegal Downloading In Australia
Recently the Federal Court of Australia made orders to the effect that Internet Service Providers (“ISPs”) must disclose to two American companies the names and residential addresses of the Australian account holders whose IP addresses had been identified as having shared the film, ‘Dallas Buyers Club’. An ‘IP address’ is a unique identifier assigned to a device (i.e. computer, iPad, etc) participating in the internet network.
The case was brought by Dallas Buyers Club LLC (“DBC”), a subsidiary of Voltage Pictures LCC (who were ultimately joined as an Applicant in the case) (“Voltage”), who asserted that various Australian IP addresses had shared the Dallas Buyers Club film online via Bit-Torrent; a peer-to-peer sharing network. Under the Copyright Act 1968, sharing of copyrighted works is illegal in Australia.
Recovery of Unpaid Body Corporate Levies
The recovery of unpaid body corporate levies is an issue close to the heart of most body corporate committees and managers. Experienced delinquent owners can in some cases drag out the process for many years and even avoid payment entirely.
This article is the second in our series, and continues on from the article in our last newsletter with further practical steps that a body corporate needs to take when issuing its levy statements to maximise the chances that its levies can be recovered quickly and efficiently.
This article is not intended to be a substitute for proper legal advice and, if you have any questions, we encourage you to contact us to discuss the matters raised in the article.
TIP 5. Know the penalties you are entitled to charge and make sure they are properly authorised
The late payment of levies by delinquent owners is a disruption to the smooth operation of a community titles scheme because it causes the body corporate not to have its budgeted cash flow, which if not properly managed could disrupt the supply of services by the body corporate. In addition, the body corporate committee has to spend time and effort in pursuing the unpaid levies and managing the consequences arising from the unpaid levies.
To encourage lot owners to pay their levies on time, and to compensate the body corporate for the late payment of levies, each of the accommodation, standard and commercial modules permit a body corporate to pass an ordinary resolution fixing a penalty to be paid by lot owners if a levy is not received by the body corporate by the due date.
Tour De Push Up
From 4 July – 26 July, two of ABKJ’s Lawyers (Tony Kyle and Daniel Samuel) will be participating in the ‘Tour de Push Up’ to raise money for the Cure for Brain Cancer Foundation and Starlight Children’s Foundation.
For every 1km the cyclists on le Tour de France ride within any given stage, they will each be doing 1 push up that same day – so overall that’s 3,364 push ups over 19 days.
If you like the idea of causing your lawyers a bit of discomfort, consider sponsoring this worthy cause. Donations can be made via the fundraising pages of Tony Kyle and Daniel Samuel.
We appreciate any support that you are able to provide.
Please note that the content in this newsletter does not take into account your individual circumstances, and is not to be considered as legal advice. Please contact our office if we can be of assistance in relation to any of the issues covered in this newsletter.