Chancellor George Osborne says he is “shocked” that some of the UK’s richest people have organised their finances so that they pay virtually no income tax. The Daily Telegraph reported that a study by HM Revenue and Customs showed the very rich had reduced their average income tax rate to just 10%. George Osborne said [...]
Details of the family feud between Australia’s richest person, Gina Rinehart, and her three oldest children have been reported after a court rejected her bid for privacy. Her children claim the billionaire threatened them with bankruptcy if they did not give her full control of the multi-billion-dollar family trust, according to court documents. Ms Rinehart [...]
By DeusExMacintosh
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Also posted in Australia, Funnies, Law, Motherhood, Privacy
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Tagged australia's richest woman, capital gains tax, CGT, Gina Rinehart, hancock prospecting, lang hancock, mining
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The High Court has just handed down a case dealing with the question of the availability of an action for money had and received when certain contracts have been found to be unenforceable as a result of illegality: see Equuscorp Pty Ltd v Haxton [2012] HCA 7. Facts: The facts of the case are rather [...]
By Legal Eagle
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Also posted in Academia, Equity, Insolvency law, Law, Restitution
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Tagged action for money had and received, blueberry farms, Companies Act, contract law, Equuscorp, failure of consideration, High Court of Australia, illegality, investment schemes, loans, Peter Birks, prospectuses, restitution law, tax minimization, unjust enrichment, void contracts
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December 3, 2011 – 1:14 pm
The High Court has recently overturned the right to refuse to give evidence against one’s spouse at common law in Australian Crime Commission v Stoddart [2011] HCA 47. It’s a fascinating decision, as it represents a further very large crack in the crumbling notion that husband and wife are one person. As I’ve mentioned here, [...]
By Legal Eagle
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Also posted in Feminism, History, Human/Civil rights, Law, Marriage, Personal liberty
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Tagged australia, australian crime commission, common law, coverture, coverture marriage, criminal law, England, evidence, evidence law, High Court of Australia, History, husbands, Marriage, society, spousal privilege, stoddart, taxation law, wives
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November 3, 2011 – 11:25 am
Retrospective legislation and the rule of law F A Hayek neatly summarises the rule of law as follows: Stripped of all technicalities [the rule of law] means the government in all its actions is bound by rules fixed and announced beforehand — rules which make it possible to foresee with fair certainty how the authority [...]
By Legal Eagle
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Also posted in Australia, Immigration, Law, Politics, Public Policy, Society, The Left, The Right, Welfare
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Tagged australia, Australian Federal government, Australian politics, FA Hayek, Heydon J, High Court of Australia, House of Representatives, Immigration, joseph raz, legal rights, Migration Act, payara, poniatowska, retrospective legislation, rule of law, Senate, Social Security Administration Act
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… is likely to be £6 – £8 billion. That’s the likely oil-based revenue that stands to be removed from British coffers if Scotland restored Independence and withdrew its share of North Sea assets (previously established in both The Continental Shelf Act 1964 and the Continental Shelf (Jurisdiction) Order 1968 as the UK North Sea [...]
By DeusExMacintosh
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Also posted in Britain, Economics, England, Environment, Law, Philosophy, Politics, Popular culture, scotland, Wales, Welfare
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Tagged Alex Salmond, Cadder ruling, crown estate. renewable energy, cymraeg, Holyrood, it's scotland's oil, natural resources, north sea, offshore windfarms, oil and gas, S4C, Scots law, scottish independence, Scottish National Party, scottish parliament, scottish politics, south wales valleys, tidal power, welsh, welsh assembly, wind power
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What has amused me most about the financial crisis are the endless media interviews with “real” people (and the occasional self-confessed bludger auditioning for Shameless). Those chosen are more usually hardworking folk previously on average incomes who are claiming welfare for the first time in their lives and getting a rude shock at the paucity [...]
By DeusExMacintosh
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Also posted in Blogging, Britain, Economics, Law, Marriage, Media, Personal, Politics, Popular culture, Public Policy, Society, Welfare
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Tagged benefit reform, benefits, benefits system, British Parliament, david cameron, Department for Work and Pensions, disability, employment and support allowance, Gordon Brown, Iain Duncan Smith, incapacity benefit, James Purnell, Lord Freud, MPs expenses scandal, national insurance, right dishonourable members, UK coalition government, UK conservative party, UK labour party, welfare reform
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Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to face fines of at least £50 for “preventable” errors in their benefits claims. The government expects to levy more than £60m in these civil penalties in the next four years, it revealed in its welfare reform proposals. Errors could include failure to inform the authorities of a [...]
By DeusExMacintosh
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Also posted in Britain, Economics, Funnies, Law, Personal, Politics, Society, Welfare
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Tagged benefit fraud, civil penalties, Department for Work and Pensions, DWP, HMRC, Iain Duncan Smith, welfare reform
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January 9, 2011 – 10:57 pm
Crocodile Dundee star Paul Hogan has announced plans to sue the Australian government for damaging his reputation. A five-year investigation into suspicions he was using off-shore banks to conceal his earnings and evade tax was dropped in November. Fairfax Media reported that Mr Hogan’s lawyer said the actor could seek up to $80m (£51m) for [...]
January 8, 2011 – 8:23 am
Over here in Australia, we’re trying to distract ourselves from the calamitous cricket result by focusing on other fights. (God, I can’t even watch said cricket any more. Too upsetting.) Retailer Gerry Harvey sparked a furore a few days ago by demanding that the government impose GST on internet sales. The Australian Retailer News reports: [...]
By Legal Eagle
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Also posted in Australia, Books, Economics, Internet, Media, Society
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Tagged Books, Economics, Gerry Harvey, GST, Internet, online commerce, online sales, taxation
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