Switching careers, starting a business, studying, and travelling the globe are what we value most and prioritise. We choose to spend our money living in the moment and accumulating experiences, rather than planning for the future. As a result, maintaining our financial security or having solid investments like a house, a car, shares or savings can often pale in comparison to our immediate ambitions.

But dedicating a few thoughts to your financial situation is not as scary as it seems. There are multiple ways to become more financially grounded, without spending all of your spare time drowning in spreadsheets or sacrificing nights out with friends.

Superannuation

Most of us would rather hit ourselves in the face with a giant red ball than think about superannuation.

The letters come in the mail on an infuriatingly regular basis informing you of changes to your account balance. If you have changed jobs more than once, it’s also likely that you have multiple accounts with different funds and with differing balances.

If you are with more than one super fund, now is the time to merge all that money into one fund. By consolidating, or rolling over your super, you are avoiding unnecessary fees from multiple funds, and are in a better position to track how your super is growing.

To consolidate your accounts, use the ATO’s handy SuperSeeker tool to search for any lost or unclaimed super. AusFund is another way to track down unclaimed super. If you are on a break from the workforce and not receiving contributions, or planning to be overseas for an extended period, AusFund is also a great place to park your superannuation.

If you are unsure about which fund to choose, CanStar compare and rate the best super funds including options, services, and performance based on your age bracket and super balance. Industry Super and ASIC Money Smart are also good places to start.

While your employer contributes an amount from your salary towards your super, making additional contributions (for example, an extra $20 per week) can quickly accumulate and really pay off in the long run.

The government also makes co-contributions from time to time to help save for your retirement. This scheme applies to low and middle-income earners who make personal contributions to superannuation. In this situation, the government contributes up to $500 per year. The amount the government contributes to your super fund depends on how much you contribute and your annual income.

Budgeting And Saving

Budgeting and saving are a lot like the administrative component of your study life or job – painful but necessary.

Saving is a trial for everyone. The voice in your head relentlessly pesters you “I need to save for a house…no wait…a car…. no…a holiday.” This creates conflicting priorities and means that the easiest option is usually just to continue with your original spending habits.

Setting a budget and savings goal is essential to acquiring important assets, having the freedom to do what you want with your life, and is also crucial for emergency situations. The best way to get started is to set a weekly, monthly or yearly goal. You may want to save 75% of your pay packet after expenses like rent, utilities, petrol and social activities. Or you may commit $100 per week to your savings account. Another highly effective method of saving is to dig out your good old piggy bank. Even if you’re just collecting some loose change, it all adds up!

Save a lot, quickly

One of the best ways to save a lot quickly is to commit to paying off your monthly expenses and splitting the remaining amount in half (one-half for everyday expenses like sales, petrol, transport, lunches and drinks; the second-half for your savings account). It does mean paring back your monthly ‘unconscious’ spending on ‘want’ rather than ‘need’ items but in the long run can get you on the next adventure holiday months sooner and without needing to go into serious credit.

Say you have approximately $500 left over each pay day after expenses. If you set up an automatic transfer of $250 to a high-interest savings account, you will be making regular and consistent savings of $500 per month (assuming you are paid on a fortnightly basis) which adds up to $6,000 per year.

Save a moderate amount, consistently

If you are not in a position to save a large lump sum every month, make sure that you set a realistic saving goal and stick with it. No matter what your salary, you can aim to save 10% of that fortnightly income. Once it is in your savings account, make a rule not to touch it unless it is for emergencies.

Investments

You may feel like you have no idea what you are doing with your money, but it really is never too early to start investing, whether in the property market or some low-risk shares.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugB8uvh1heI

Consider making an appointment with a financial adviser to explore options based on your income and circumstances and for guidance on how to start saving for a deposit on a house or apartment.

If the prospect of investing in stocks and shares makes you jumpy, consider an alternative and lower risk option and set up a managed fund.

With time and patience, any goal is achievable.

Conclusion

Achieving financial stability in your 20s and 30s takes time, patience and dedication. If you regularly evaluate the above areas, it eventually becomes easier to manage and you will start to see real rewards for your efforts.

Further Information

Feeling overwhelmed?

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has a handy ‘Money Health Check’ Quiz to help track your overall financial health.

Congratulations!

Welcome to full-time work – including all the joys of early starts, lunch meetings, CLE points, figuring out team dynamics, and triple-checking an email before you send it to anyone in the office!

It’s pretty easy to fall into a bit of billable cynicism and weekend-pining when you finally start working at your law gig. So here are a few ideas and insights from those who have gone before you to help make your first years a little easier.

• You’re Going To Make Mistakes

Without a doubt, you will make mistakes. It’s not called the “practice of law” for nothing.

But let’s be realistic: as a junior lawyer you’re rarely going to be put in a position where something you do (or don’t do) will lead to an ‘end of the world’ scenario. Regardless, be open to the fact that despite your perfectionism, attention to detail, and fastidious nature, at some point you’re going to make a mistake – and that’s OK. See the next dot point.

• It’s How You Handle Mistakes That Matters Most

Okay, so you’re now aware of your error.

If you discovered it, think about what has or hasn’t happened and consider possible ways that you can fix it.

Never try to cover up what has happened. This is not the time for pride. Now, go and see someone more senior and give them the straight run of facts. You don’t need to apologise profusely, but do say that you’re sorry and that you messed up. Suggest ways you think the situation can be fixed and werk, werk, werk, werk, werk until the problem is fixed or the issue is mitigated.

If the mistake has been identified by someone else, then you need to apologise immediately and open a dialogue as to how you think the problem may be solved. Don’t blame anyone else at this point. You need to wear it.

Once the problem is no longer a problem, or the fall-out has been substantially minimised, start a conversation with your manager or partner to figure out why the mistake happened in the first place, and how you can do things differently in future. This conversation is super important.

Senior lawyers know you’re going to make mistakes – they’ve been there before, even if they don’t always seem to remember what it was like. They’re not going to make you feel great about it when the inevitable happens. But the real test of your character, and your resilience, is to do everything you can to fix the problem and to identify strategies to diminish the risk of a repeat scenario.

• Communication Is Key

You’re going to work with people at many different stages of their legal careers.

Make sure you are always respectful in your communication – whether it’s via email or in person. If you’re giving a clerk or paralegal a task, remind yourself what it was like to be in their shoes and explain the task slowly and considerately.

If you’re called to anyone’s office to discuss a task ALWAYS take a pen and notepad with you. Write everything down. And always ask questions. If you don’t understand something when you’re receiving initial instructions for a task it’s far easier to ask straight away rather than later that afternoon when you’re trying to recall all the other things that were said!

It’s also essential that you ask when the task is due and how long you should spend on it. This way you can manage your time effectively. It also means you’re likely to be adding value to the file, rather than spending too long on a task with the time later written off.

• Dealing With Different Personalities

It’s not always easy working with different people who have unique working styles.

Try not to be disheartened if you feel you don’t “click” with someone. Keep trying, even if you feel like you’re not making progress.

• It’s Okay To Say “No”

If your workload is maxed out – don’t be afraid to say “no” to extra work.

It’s important that you manage your tasks so that you can finish the work that has been assigned to you in an achievable timeframe. It’s better to be realistic and say to a Senior Associate:

I’m pretty snowed under this week because of due diligence for the Commercial team, but I will have capacity on Monday.”

This is the preferred approach.

It’s much better to be clear about your existing workload, rather than a) taking on more than you can manage; b) offloading the task to someone else at the 11^th hour; or c) giving it a bare minimum crack.

Be honest about your time and manage the expectations of others.

• Time Is Important

As cold and callous as it may sound, if you’re working in any kind of firm that makes money you’re probably going to have to bill for your time, meet KPIs, or both.

While things are changing, and some firms are offering alternatives, the vast majority of commercial firms charge by the 6 minute unit.

You have to get good at billing and establish a routine of entering your time as soon as you’ve completed a task. Otherwise, you’ll probably miss time which means you won’t be meeting budget and you won’t be demonstrating your value.

It can be really depressing looking at “the clock” and seeing how many more units need to be done for the day. So try and plan your day around getting short and sharp units on the clock first thing in the morning – like firing off emails and telephone calls. When you start the bigger tasks a little later in the day, it’s not so daunting and you have already posted some good time.

Figure out what works for you – but make sure you bill, and bill honestly. If a three-page letter took you three hours, you’ve got to bill for it. This is also the partners’ way of seeing how you spend your time, so that if you’re spending too long on something they can help you.

• Get Involved And Give Back

Young Lawyers and the various Law Society Committees are a great way to meet other people and attend cool (often free! open bar!) events in the law.

If you’re in a big graduate program, it’s important to be involved with the other graduates and participate in your firm activities and events. However, don’t let this limit you to the world outside your firm. There are lots of interesting law and other speaking events, competitions and networking opportunities that are great for meeting other people and growing your personal brand. You just need to be aware of what is available and tap into it.

Once you have become settled into the full-time routine, you may wish to think about volunteering your time at a community legal centre.

As a lawyer, you’re in a pretty privileged position and giving something back is a nice way to recognise this.

• Take Time For Yourself And Your Health

It’s no doubt been drummed into you all the way through law school, and sounds like such a textbook suggestion, but it’s really important that you have a life outside work.

Take time for yourself, your friends and family and continue to enjoy the things you like doing in your spare time. Whether this takes the form of enjoying weekend sleep-ins, competing in Iron Man events, having dinner with friends or relaxing with Netflix and wine, it’s crucial that you carve out some dedicated “you” time.

Working in law can be high-pressure and competitive. To perform at your best during work hours, it is critical to take time for yourself and pursue interests outside the office.

This gives you a bit more balance in your life and means that you will be in a better position to cope with work-related stress when it arises.

• Get Yourself A Mentor

This doesn’t necessarily need to be someone working in law.

Find a person who can give you guidance and support, especially in your early years working as a solicitor.

There are many unforeseeable challenges that come with full-time professional work, not to mention the challenges that are specific to law. It’s nice to be able to soundboard problems or ideas with someone who has a few years on you and has literally “been there, done that” before.

You might already have someone like this in your life, which is great. Use them as a resource to fast track your professional development!

Otherwise, Young Lawyer Mentoring Programs can assist. LinkedIn is another great networking resource. Don’t be afraid to reach out to people you admire, or would like to get to know better, and seek out their time and advice.

Just remember to always be very grateful and respectful of their time!

What are some of the main challenges you face as a young legal professional in Australia? What strategies have you found are the most effective in helping you cope? Let us know in the comments section below! 

Further Information

For light-hearted guides and resources on how to survive law school and beyond visit:

• Survive Law

To find out more about young mentoring programs get in touch with:

• NSW Young Lawyers Mentoring Program
• Law Society of NSW Womens Mentoring Program
• Womens Lawyers Association Mentoring Program
• Victorian Womens Lawyers Mentoring Program
• Law Society of South Australia Womens Mentoring Program
• Australian Corporate Lawyers Mentoring Program
• AICD Coach and Mentor Connect
• ACT Law Society Young Lawyers Mentoring Program
• Adelaide Law School Young Lawyers Mentoring Program
• Law Institute of Victoria Mentoring Program

Universities run Alumni Mentoring Programs twice per year:

• ANU Alumni Mentoring Program

For support coping with work-related psychological or emotional distress contact:

• Lifeline for Lawyers – telephone crisis support every night between 8pm to 4am (AEST).
  Call 1800 085 062; or start a live chat.
• Lawyers Assistance Program – Open 9am – 5pm Monday to Friday.
  Call 1800 777 662 or email to access support.
• LawCare – a professional and confidential counselling service for solicitors and their immediate family members. Counsellors are practising GPs experienced in dealing with unique difficulties faced by legal professionals. Initial phone assessment and referrals are free. Costs only incurred for face-to-face consultations and much of this can be claimed back through Medicare or private health cover for clinically relevant medical conditions.
  Call 0416 200 788.

• Vic Lawyer’s Health – LIV members and their families have complimentary 24-hour access to the Vic Lawyers’ Health line. Up to three face-to-face counselling sessions are free.
• The Tristan Jepson Memorial Foundation Psychological Wellbeing – Best practice guidelines for the legal profession are intended to support the profession in raising awareness of mental health issues.
• R U OK? – Helpful tips for having a conversation about mental health openly and respectfully with those around you.
• R U OK At Work? – Workplace resources to educate and inform managers and employees to ask for help and manage difficult situations.

Following the increased frequency and severity of revenge porn attacks in Australia, intensifying community rhetoric concerning the inadequate state of criminal legislation to deal specifically with the revenge porn problem, as well as other troubling incidents involving the use of technology to breach the privacy of individuals, (for example, the Sydney nurse who took explicit photos of a patient under anaesthetic), new legislation that would make it a Federal crime to distribute sexually explicit images of a person online without their consent has been introduced into Parliament.

What Are The Proposed Changes?

The Bill to amend the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth) would introduce three new telecommunications offences.

While there are existing provisions in the Commonwealth Telecommunications Act that go some way towards addressing this issue, current legislation has not kept pace with technological developments, and does not adequately protect individuals against the escalating problem concerning breaches of privacy that are carried out using technology.

The proposed Bill contains important new offences that will prescribe appropriate penalties for persons involved in image-based sexual exploitation, known as revenge porn. The offences reflect the community’s increased use of telecommunications to engage in harmful and abusive behaviour of a sexual nature and the harm that can be caused.

The proposed offences prohibiting revenge porn focus on the use offenders make of technological tools to engage in sexual exploitation. The offences are designed to respond to the harm that is caused to a person that has their private sexual material shared without their consent.

The proposed new laws will make it an offence for a person to transmit, make available, publish, distribute, advertise or promote private sexual material.

It will also be an offence for a person to:

1.  threaten to transmit, make available, publish, distribute, advertise or promote private sexual material;
2. possess, control, produce, supply or obtain private sexual material, for a commercial purpose or for the purpose of obtaining a benefit. This would encompass popular revenge porn websites.

The proposed offences are particularly aimed at the use of the Internet, email, SMS and other online applications or technological tools to engage in revenge porn.

What Constitutes Private Sexual Material?

The proposed definition of private sexual material has been drafted broadly not only to encompass the range of possible exploitative scenarios that legislators can currently predict but also, importantly, to cover future scenarios they cannot currently foreshadow.

The definition includes sexually explicit or nude images of women, men, transgender or intersex persons, as well as sexual poses or sexual activity.

The proposed new laws also encompasses different cultural contexts, such as an image of a Muslim woman without her religious headscarf on.

If You Have Been The Victim Of A Revenge Porn Attack, What Do These Changes Mean For You?

If the Bill is passed by both houses of Parliament and made into Australian legislation, it will be a Federal crime to use technology to distribute sexually explicit images of an individual without their consent.

This is good news for victims, and much needed protection, against future revenge porn attacks.

It means that regardless of which State or Territory a revenge porn offence is carried out in, it will be possible for you to report the crime to police and for offenders to be prosecuted under Federal legislation.

The maximum penalty  for the proposed offence is 3 years’ imprisonment, reflecting the seriousness of this type of conduct. The penalty for commercial use of sexually explicit materials is 5 years’ imprisonment, due to the aggravated circumstances surrounding this offence.

Conclusion

If you or someone you know has been the victim of revenge porn contact:

• Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network (ACORN)
• Local police assistance line: 131444
• National Counselling Helpline: 1800 737 732 (for assistance and practical strategies on how to cope with the ongoing effects of revenge porn)

For practical strategies on how to deal with the immediate aftermath of a revenge porn, read our previous article here.

To read more about the Criminal Code Amendment (Private Sexual Material) Bill 2015 you can read the Explanatory Memorandum.  You can also track the progress of the Bill through Parliament by clicking here.

You have to be friendly and affable.

You have to be thoughtful and charismatic.

You have to confidently circulate, oozing intelligence.

And as difficult as it is to achieve this perfect balance, you also have to do it all without coming across like a dog walking on its hind legs. It stands to reason then that resume-writing is consistently rated as one of the least preferred activities by Millennials. Most of us would rather have a meaningful conversation with a telemarketer than spend a few hours updating our CVs.

Unfortunately, to land your dream role in the current and highly competitive job market, a stand out CV is a not only necessary, it is essential.

Below is your Complete Guide to Writing a Kick Ass Job Application – everything you need to write a resume like a winner, and land your dream role.

How To Sell Yourself

Writing an excellent application is about effective communication.

Honesty speaks volumes.

Remember that your prospective employer is not a mind reader. He/she has no idea who you are, or what value you can bring to their organisation, unless you tell them! 

Don’t take any information for granted. At a minimum demonstrate your employability by canvassing the below questions:

• Why do you want the job?
• Why are you the right person for the role?
• How do your values or interests align with the position you are applying for?
• How does your skill or experience match the position they are looking to fill?

Pay attention to your structure, tone and content. Does it present you in the best possible light?

O-Rule: If you don’t have relevant industry experience, demonstrate how your current skills and experience can be transferred to the role you are applying for. This clearly indicates that you are self aware, possess emotional intelligence and have a sound understanding your strengths and limitations. 

Get Creative

If your application describes you as a creative genius, be sure to show your potential employer exactly why you hold yourself in this regard.

Back up your assertions with hard facts such as your relevant experience.

Honesty vs vanity: Know when to toe the line

The most efficient way to achieve? Tailor your application to the mission, vision and values of the organisation you want to work for.

If it is an design agency, for example, use your creative skills to show a recruiter exactly what you can bring to the team.

Interactive applications – always a crowd favourite.

If it is a travel company, for example, you can use a similar formula to transform your CV into a passport.

Reserve the first application page for personal particulars such as contact details and educational history (visas held).

Use the second page to outline your employment history which you have creatively reimagined, in this case, as travel stamps.

The same model works effectively for other creative industries, such as the music industry.

The great thing about this approach is that it simultaneously illustrates your individuality and ballsiness, willingness to go the extra mile and ability to think outside-the-box. It also shows an employer that you have a sound understanding of company ethos.

A simple but effective strategy guaranteed to win you an invitation to interview.

O-Rule: Never use a Microsoft Word template for your resume.

Ever.

Two Pages Maximum

Most employers are pressed for time.

Never exceed two A4 pages at 12 pitch. Volunteering too much information can run a high risk that your application will be discarded without consideration.

Use headings

• PERSONAL PARTICULARS
• EDUCATION AND QUALIFICATIONS
• EMPLOYMENT HISTORY
• CERTIFICATES AND LICENCES
• AWARDS
• VOLUNTEER EXPERIENCE
• HOBBIES OR INTERESTS

Use dot points

Avoid providing a detailed description of previously held positions unless: 1) it is relevant to your current application; or 2) you can confine it to one-two sentences.

If you do not have university or higher education qualifications, don’t panic! Most professional knowledge comes from on-the-job experience and training. A growing number of employers are now recognising this and abandoning university degrees as a prerequisite for hiring new staff.

O-Rule: Keep It Brief

Triple-Check Spelling & Grammar

Errors in basic spelling, grammar or inconsistent use of tense account for an enormous percentage of rejected applications.

Not if you forget to do a spell check, you won’t.

If spelling or grammar are not your forte, ask a friend to read over your application.

O-Rule: Never submit an application without having an independent set of eyes (a friend, family member or mentor, for example) look over it for language, consistency, tone and content.

Briefly Describe Yourself

Paint your prospective employer an image they cannot forget.

I’m betting on me!

Give your recruiter an insight into who you are and a solid reason to continue the conversation with you at interview.

Describe your personal attributes, skills and interests.

For example:

Nick is an incisive thinker and possesses highly-attuned attention to detail. He enjoys working as part of a dynamic team and thrives in an environment that requires working to tight deadlines and thinking outside-the-box. 

Nick is intelligent, reliable, outgoing, flexible, trustworthy, energetic, highly motivated, a fast learner, friendly, diligent, honest and can exercise initiative. Nick is also capable of working autonomously to achieve results. 

O-Rule: Use a work-appropriate contact email, for example: [your.lastname@gmail.com] 

Include A Personal Image

You may wish to include a high resolution head shot in your application.

When done the the right way, personal touches put your employer’s mind at ease. They can immediately see that you don’t have two heads, for instance.

A number of studies have revealed that attractiveness also plays an important role in an applicant’s ability to land a new job, as well as secure pay increases and promotions. Attractiveness is also thought to have a bigger impact on maximum earning capacity than higher education.

O-Rule: If you hold the beauty card, don’t be afraid to play it.

Play The Numbers Game

Send out as many applications as you can.

When you have 20-30 applications out in the world (as opposed to 2 or 3), you statistically increase your odds of being offered an interview by a significant margin.

Out of those 30 applications you may receive 5 invitations to interview, which could lead to 2 job offers.

Being able to cherry-pick between job offers places you in a solid negotiating position to start a bidding war between employers. If your skills are in high demand, an employer will fight to lock you into accepting their offer not only for their own benefit, but also to steal you away from the competition. This allows you to negotiate an attractive salary package and other employee benefits.

Write A Personalised Cover Letter

Generic cover letters leave a bad first impression.

It is obvious when an applicant has sent the same letter to multiple organisations.

To make a lasting positive impression, stay away from the standard [Dear Sir/Madam] or [To Whom It May Concern].

Research the organisation you want to work for and address your cover letter by name to the most appropriate person.

This will vary depending on the size of the company, organisation or government department. It could be the head of recruitment, HR Manager, Editor-In-Chief or even the CEO. Find out who is making decisions about your recruitment using Google, LinkedIn, the company website or even asking around.

You can even go one step further by performing some light internet stalking. It may be that the person recruiting you has only recently begun working in their role. If this is the case, start your cover letter by congratulating them on their new appointment. It shows that you take an active interest not only in the company but also the people who work there.

O-Rule: Never send the same cover letter to multiple organisations. 

Make Yourself Appear To Be A Low Risk Investment

Humans are naturally risk averse.

Recruiting new staff is one of the highest risk activities for any company, but particularly for startups. If you turn out to be the wrong person for the job they have wasted a considerable chunk of their budget on advertising, running the recruitment round, as well as the time and resources required to train you.

By putting yourself in your prospective employer’s shoes, and creatively demonstrating your ability to do the job in your application itself, you significantly lower that perceived risk and nudge yourself ahead of your competitors as the most attractive applicant.

O-Rule: The secret to being offered your dream job is to successfully establish yourself as a low risk investment. Align yourself with the qualities an employer seeks in an ideal candidate and make their decision to hire you the only logical option.

Think we’ve missed anything? Would you like to see us cover more career hacks for Millennials? Let us know in the comments section below! 

I’m not just talking about the savings you can make through duty free shopping at the airport. You can also claim the tax component of the sales price when making purchases throughout your trip.

For young Australian travellers, tax-free shopping is often met with a chorus of questions and confusion – and for good reason! There are often prescriptive rules attached to the claims process and these rules differ from country to country. Unless you are a seasoned traveller, keeping up with these rules (not mention rule changes) is no mean feat.

To help you take off on the next leg of your trip with some extra spending money, we’re making this process as seamless as possible for you. Below are some common questions about tax-free shopping for Australian residents travelling overseas.

How Do I Claim A Refund When Leaving Australia?

The Australian Tax Refund Scheme (TRS) allows overseas visitors and Australian residents (except operating aircrew) to claim a refund of goods and services tax (GST) and wine equalisation tax (WET) when you purchase certain goods in Australia.

To claim a refund, you must:

• be leaving the borders of Australia;

• purchase the goods no more than 60 days before departing Australia;

• spend $300 or more (including GST) at a single business. Bundling multiple receipts from a single business is fine;

• wear or carry the goods on board with you as hand luggage and present them along with your tax invoice(s), passport and boarding pass to the TRS officer. If the goods are restricted e.g. liquids, gels, aerosols or oversized items you will need to speak to check-in staff and have these goods checked in;

• have paid for the goods yourself; and

• have an original tax invoice for the goods.

I’m An Australian Resident Who Is Leaving Australia For A Holiday – Are There Any Additional Limitations To Claiming GST Back On Goods I Purchase?

The TRS was designed to ensure that tourists who visit Australia do not have to pay GST since they are not Australian residents. Accordingly, this scheme is based on the fundamental assumption that when you claim the GST component of your purchases with the TRS you will not be re-entering Australia with those items.

Nevertheless, the Passenger Concession does allow you to bring into Australia up to $900 worth of goods duty free or $450 worth of goods duty free if you are younger than 18 years of age. Families travelling together can pool this duty free allowance.

For example, if you are a family of four (2 adults and 2 children) and you claim $2,200 of goods tax-free in total as a family on your return to Australia, under the Passenger Concession, you will not be required to pay back tax on these goods – even though you have returned to Australia with them.

If the goods that you are bringing into Australia tax-free are of greater value than the Passenger Concession, Australian law requires that you declare all of these goods to customs on arrival.

In this situation, you will be required to pay back previously claimed tax under the TRS. The obligation to pay back the tax will apply to all items of this nature and not just goods that fall outside the Passenger Concession limit.

Penalties may apply if you do not declare that you are carrying into Australia duty free goods which are in excess of your Passenger Concession.

Hot Tips:

• Arrive at the airport early

This ensures you leave yourself enough time to have your claim processed. Long queues at the TRS office at Sydney International Airport are common. I recommend factoring in at least an extra 45 minutes to avoid disappointment.

• Save time by planning ahead

Enter the details of your purchases in the Customs and Border Protection Services mobile and web TRS app in advance of your departure date. Once you have completed the steps on the TRS app you will be issued a QR code which you can take with you, along with your purchased goods and tax invoices, to the TRS office. A dedicated queue is available for those who have taken this additional step, which is likely to help speed up the process for you.

• Have all your details ready

For big ticket items over the value of $1,000 AUD, make sure that you obtain a tax invoice which includes details of your name and address.

• What your tax invoice should include

Remember your tax invoice should have the words “tax invoice” on it and display the business name and Australian Business Number (ABN) of the retailer, a description of the goods, the date you bought the goods, the purchase price and the GST/WET component of the price.

Can I Claim Tax Back On Purchases Made In The EU?

Subject to certain rules, if you are a visitor to the EU you will be able to claim the Value Added Tax (VAT) back on your departure from the EU.

Some main points to note when claiming VAT back:

• If the retailer participates in the VAT-refund scheme (most larger-sized or tourist-oriented stores do), you will need to purchase a minimum amount before the store will process the paperwork necessary for you to obtain a refund document. From personal experience, each form can look quite different, so make sure you ask the retailer to show you how to correctly complete the forms before leaving the store;

• If you are travelling to multiple countries within the EU, you only need to declare your purchases to customs, and obtain a stamp on each of the refund forms you have, at your last point of departure from the EU.

• Depending on your final departure airport, you will have a couple of options on how you can receive VAT back on your purchases. At Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, for example, you can either claim the VAT at the airport or post your refund documents (once you have obtained the requisite customs stamp) at the airport. In the latter option, a refund should be made to your nominated account within a few months.

Hot Tips:

• Factor in the length of your trip

If you are planning a substantial sojourn to the EU (6 months, for example), remember that you only have 3 months from the date of purchase to claim your VAT back;

• Get to the airport early

On a recent European holiday, my last destination was Paris. Even arriving at the airport 3.5 hours ahead of flight departure time, I was not able to collect a refund at the airport. Queues are shockingly long and could easily have taken another 45 minutes. I chose to post stamped/verified documents via the yellow postal boxes and received most of my VAT refunds about 2 months after arriving home.

• Ask retailers about minimum qualifying amounts

Find out from the retailer the minimum qualifying amount that you need to spend before you are eligible to receive the refund documentation. This can vary from country to country within the EU.

• Be prepared for different processes among stores

Different stores have different processes in place with respect to the tax refund. At large department stores in major cities (for example, Galeries Lafayette or Printemps) the process for claiming tax back is extremely organised.

Always speak to the “Information Desk” or “International Shopping Desk” to clarify the process before making purchases.

A Note About Shopping Overseas

Whether or not you are able to claim tax back on goods purchased in stores overseas can vary substantially.

In the United States, for example, sales tax is charged by a number of individual states and, in most cases, you will not be eligible for a sales tax refund. On the other hand, in countries such as Singapore and Japan there are similar programs to the TRS in place.

Further information 

• Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP)
• Sydney Airport
• European Commission
• Useful information on tax free shopping worldwide

Along with your passport, a good travel insurance policy is the one of the most essential things you need before jetting off on holiday. Travel insurance can cover you for emergencies you may run into while away from home – for example if you become sick or injured, if your luggage is lost or stolen, or if you need to cancel your trip because of a medical emergency.

But a staggering number of young Australian travellers do not know what is included in their travel insurance policy. Dean Van Es, CEO Fast Cover, says:

A survey commissioned by Fast Cover found that 17.2% of Australian travellers don’t understand what they are covered for when they buy travel insurance. 34.4% of these people are between 18 and 24 years old.”

Here we debunk some of the most common misconceptions about travel insurance and what you need to know to protect yourself while on holiday.

Myth 1: I Don’t Need Travel Insurance

Surprisingly up to 30% of travellers, the majority of whom are Gen Y, still travel without travel insurance.

Even if you are young, have never broken a bone, are very rarely sick, have had all your immunisations and plan to just relax on a beach overseas, you still need travel insurance.

Accidents and illness can happen to anyone, anywhere and at any time. There is no way to guarantee that it will not happen to you. What you can guarantee without travel insurance is that you will foot the cost of any unexpected expenses in an emergency.

The Australian Government will not pay for your medical expenses or medical evacuation while you are overseas. Depending on the nature of the emergency, the cost can range from a few hundred dollars to a six figure sum.

A single day in a hospital in the United States, for example, can cost between $1,400- $13,400 AUD. The cost of a medical evacuation from a cruise ship in Australian waters can reach between $10,000 and $20,000.

Travel insurance also covers you for a lot more than medical expenses. For example, you can purchase cover for lost luggage and unexpected trip cancellations, as well as emergency assistance.

Some travel insurance companies can provide you with international assistance over the phone:

Fast Cover gives travellers 24/7 access to the Allianz Global Assistance team. This team can guide you over the phone when you experience an emergency, wherever you are in the world” says Mr Van Es.

Myth 2: I’ll Get Travel Insurance The Day I Leave

While no one is going to make you buy travel insurance as soon as you book your trip, it may be in your best interests to do so once you have made some deposits.

Without travel insurance, if you need to cancel your trip unexpectedly, any deposits you have made towards your trip may be lost.

Paying a couple of hundred dollars for accommodation you will never stay in, a flight that you will never take or a cruise that you will miss is a learning experience that you can easily avoid.

Myth 3: My Pre-Existing Medical Condition Is Not Such A Big Deal

So perhaps you have been taking medication regularly for years with no problems, or you previously have had surgery.

You might not think this is significant when you buy your travel insurance, but it can be if your condition lands you in hospital or requires medical attention while you are overseas. Some travel insurers will cover a number of pre-existing medical conditions, however, if your condition is not covered by your policy then you will personally face any medical expenses.

It is always best to check your policy and to choose a travel insurance company that covers your underlying medical condition.

Myth 4: Travel Insurance Covers Me When I Party!!

Well, yes and no. While your travel insurance will cover you if you go to a party, it will not cover you if you do not act in a responsible way or if you participate in any illegal activity.

Most likely you will not be covered for medical expenses if you become sick or injure yourself when you have drunk an excessive amount of alcohol or taken illegal substances.

Myth 5: Everything I Do Overseas Is Covered

This is another unfortunate misconception.

If you hurt yourself by falling off an elephant, crashing a moped or toppling from a kayak, your travel insurance may not cover your medical expenses.

Your travel insurer will outline what activities you are covered for in their Product Disclosure Statement. If your activity is not listed it is best to assume that it is not covered and to find out if your travel insurer can cover you for that activity.

Adventurous activities such as bungee jumping and paragliding may be covered by paying an additional premium.

Myth 6: The Cheapest Policy Is The Best Policy

If only the cheapest option were always the best option.

It is worth remembering that in many cases paying more means getting more. While the cheapest travel policy will always be the most appealing, you should expect limitations on the level of cover you receive.

Compare a few policies and decide which option suits your trip best.

Myth 7: I Will Recieve A Refund If I Decide Not To Travel

Cancellation cover does not mean that you can recover the deposits you have put towards your holiday if you simply decide that you would rather not travel.

Cancellation cover only applies when an event prevents you from going on your trip.

For example, if you or a relative becomes sick or injured and you need to stay at home. In these situations you will be able to make a claim. If you decide that you would rather save money by cancelling your trip, you probably will not be able to make a successful claim.

Conclusion

Understand what is, and is not, covered by your travel insurance policy before your next adventure. When it comes to travel, a little bit of planning and research can go a long way.

What are some of your best (or worst) travel experiences? Has your travel insurance policy covered you? Tell us about it in the comments section below! 

While previous generations have prided themselves on maintaining job security, a stable income and working up to executive-level positions, unlike any generation before them, Millennials place a high value on independence.

We are wary of working in stagnant jobs with little variety or flexibility. After, perhaps, observing family and friends toiling in unfulfilling roles in a fluorescent-lit cubicle (nb: no one looks good in fluorescent light), we want to innovate by breaking the traditional career mould.

We crave the occupational freedom to create something meaningful and unique. In a recent study of Millennials in the workplace undertaken by Bentley University, 67% of surveyed participants described their career goals as starting their own business.

One of the most important criteria for establishing a successful business is to set it up the right way, in accordance with relevant legislation in your state or territory.

Say you have an amazing business idea to open your own boutique cafe! You have found excellent premises to open up shop and all that stands in the way of your thriving new venture is your landlord, and negotiating a favourable commercial lease for the premises.

The following tips will help you prepare for your meeting with your new landlord or leasing agent and put you in a position to confidently negotiate your new lease.

1. Rent

Do your homework. What are the rental costs like in the area of the premises you wish to rent?

It is handy to work on a costs per square metre basis.

Keep in mind that GST will usually be payable on top of rent.

2. Rent Review

A Rent Review is either of the following options (or sometimes a combination of them):

• Consumer Price Index Increase – CPI reviews are usually carried out once per year;
• Fixed percentage increase (for example, 4% each year); or
• Market review – ensures the rent you pay is consistent with current market rates. Market rent reviews are based on the rent paid by tenants in similar properties in the surrounding area and influenced by demand for similar properties. These reviews can be carried out by your landlord, a property valuer or estate agent.

From the perspective of your landlord, the rent review is an integral element of your commercial lease. It means that your rent will be reviewed at specified intervals and makes sure that your rent aligns with current market rates.

Make sure you aren’t paying too much. Over the course of a five-year lease, fixed price increases of 5% a year can see your rent increase 25% over the term of your lease.

3. Term Of The Lease

The length of your lease agreement is something you will need to negotiate with your new landlord. You may wish to sign a long-term lease to secure your premises, however, there are advantages and disadvantages with this approach.

One of the main benefits of a long-term lease is that it provides you with security, the ability to build up your business and to make it a saleable asset.

A potential disadvantage is that if the term of your lease is too long, and you expand your business, you may outgrow your premises.

Write a business plan so that you are confident of where you want your business to be in 5 years time. Is the current location temporary until you can find the capital to expand? Or do you have plans to develop the business operations from the same location?

By asking yourself these simple questions you can be sure that the length of your commercial lease is right for your circumstances.

4. Will You Need To Fit-Out The Premises?

Do you need to provide the necessary equipment to run your business from the premises, such as final decorations or fittings? If so, what is it likely to cost?

Sometimes your landlord will either pay for the fit-out or provide a combination of a lease incentive payment and/or rent-free period to assist with the costs of your fit-out. The most common lease incentive is a contribution by a landlord to whole or part of a tenant’s cost of fitting out of the premises or the provision of a rent-free holiday or a rent discount period.

Make sure you consider these hidden costs and ask your landlord for a lease incentive payment and rent-free period.

5. Permitted Use Of The Premises

When negotiating your lease agreement you should be aware of your proposed use of the premises.

Negotiate your permitted use to be as broad as possible to account for the fact that in the future your business may diversify, or you may want to sublease some of your space.

Without a broad permitted use of your premises, this may not be possible unless the lease is varied.

6. Assignment And Subletting

It is important to ensure that your lease allows you to sell your business and assign the lease. Assigning your lease means that all rights you have over your premises may be transferred to another party. This will be important if your business expands or you wish to move premises for other reasons.

You should also make sure that your lease allows you to sublease part of your premises. Subletting allows you to lease all or part or your premises to a third party, rather than your landlord, during a period of the unexpired balance of your term of occupancy in the premises.

Most landlords will allow this, subject to several conditions.

7. What Are The Outgoings/Operating Expenses?

The reference to ‘outgoings’ in a commercial lease usually refers to increases in taxes and rates that may include the running of the physical building where your premises are located. Generally you will not be responsible for paying outgoings, unless this is specified in the lease agreement.

If your landlord is passing on the outgoings (or operating costs) to you, and is charging separately for these services, negotiate a fixed-fee or cap on the amount.

Also, make sure your landlord is transparent and discloses these expenses to you before you enter into the lease.

8. Alterations Or Improvements

Most leases state that a tenant cannot make any changes or improvements to the premises without your landlord’s approval.

While sometimes a landlord’s approval is a formality, the approval is still conditional and subject to your acceptance that:

• all work is undertaken by a licensed and approved contractor
• you must extend your own insurance to cover all improvements
• you agree to make restitution for any damage incurred when removing the improvements (if mutually agreed – to restore the property to its previous condition).

What happens with the improvements at the end of your tenancy should be clearly documented and understood by you and your landlord.

Ask for a clause that gives you permission to complete particular work, for example, if you require a fit-out of the premises with your landlord’s consent.

9. Make Good And Refurbishment

A make good clause is common for commercial lease agreements. It requires you to make sure that the premises are returned to your landlord in the condition you found them.

Some leases only say that you must return the premises in the condition they were in at the start of the lease. Other leases can be onerous and impose redecoration obligations that extend to re-painting and re-carpeting premises.

Make good clauses can have some hidden lurks, so it is important to carefully check the terms of your lease agreement and raise anything you are concerned about with your landlord prior to signing.

10. Costs

When negotiating your lease agreement, make it clear who will pay the lease preparation costs.

Ideally, each party should bear their own costs. In the case of a retail lease, Retail Lease Legislation in each state and territory prohibits your landlord from passing on these costs to you.

There is no such restriction in commercial leases, and all prospective tenants should be aware of this.

Conclusion

Like most things in life, starting your own business is not hard when you know how.

Branching out on your own entrepreneurial venture is less daunting when you understand how to avoid potentially costly pitfalls and where to find professional help.

Renting a commercial property is a business transaction, and you should make the decision to enter a commercial lease agreement carefully and with professional assistance. The cost of your business lease is likely to be one of the biggest overheads you have.

Have you started, or dream of starting, your own business? Tell us about your startup experiences in the comments section below!

Further Information

To get in touch with a legal professional specialising in commercial leases visit:

• LegalVision; or
• Ph: 1300 544 755

With the high point of the 2015/16 Federal Budget wave breaking over small to medium sized enterprises, if you are a Gen Y entrepreneur, or small business owner, there has never been a better time to start paddling.

The Federal Budget influences the Australian economy in much the same way that oceanic currents affect the size and severity of an incoming swell. It sets the government’s political agenda for the year and, excluding global catastrophes, has the single biggest effect on the nation’s economy and the business environment. Unlike previous years, this year’s Budget has something different. The government announced the largest ‘small business package’ ever, coupled with changes to make crowdfunding more accessible for small businesses.

If you are an entrepreneur, small-business owner, or run a start-up, there is a strong undertow of benefits for you in this Budget.

Carving The Wave: Tax Rate Cuts For Small Businesses

The most notable budget item for small business is the tax rate cut of 1.5% (from 30% down to 28.5%), expected to take effect from 1 July 2015. Small businesses are classified as those with revenue of less than $2 million per annum – that’s around 780,000 Australian businesses.
Although it is less than ideal to have a tiered corporate tax system, which comes with its own complexities, it can generally be said that tax cuts to businesses are good for everyone. Income tax for individual taxpayers is automatically deducted by employers and, for the most part, this arrangement is well established and accepted. For companies, however, tax is a business cost and all costs ultimately flow on to the consumer.

For consumers, this reduction in tax for small businesses means that benefits will ultimately trickle on to you.

The Rip Tide: How Will The Small Business Rate Cut Help The Economy?

Small business owners will be encouraged to maintain, and continue developing, their businesses and new businesses will open. Many commentators agree that the focus on small business in this Budget is a move by the government to encourage Gen Y entrepreneurs to start new and innovative enterprises that will boost the economy.

This comes as increasing reports emerge of the great ‘brain drain’ where lack of venture capital investment is causing Australia to lose its start-up entrepreneurs to the lucrative shores of the US and Silicon Valley.

Big Wave Surfing: Accelerated Depreciation

Accelerated depreciation for small businesses was also announced in the Budget.

Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze in a scene from the 1991 motion picture “Point Break.” Photo by Richard Foreman, 20th Century Fox

This means that each and every new asset (for example, a car or kitchen) purchased by a small business owner, up to a value of $20,000, will be completely and immediately tax deductible from Budget night until 30 June 2017. If you own a small business, you can purchase as many individual items up to the value of $20,000 as you like.

This overtakes the current threshold of $1000, which can take years before a business can fully claim an asset for tax purposes.

Swimming Between The Flags: Employee Share Schemes for Start Ups

In small business, having access to the right resources can mean the difference between succeeding or wiping out.

Excitingly, the Budget addresses this by including changes to the Employee Share Schemes (ESS’s).

Typically, entrepreneurs and start-ups do not have a lot of capital floating around and may have negative cash flow. This means that they cannot afford the salaries commanded by the talented individuals needed to streamline the company and grow. The result is a negative feedback cycle that impedes small business development in the same way that a pro surfer’s progress would be crippled by not having a full sized surf board.

The operations of ESS’s have worked around this limitation by rewarding employees with shares in the company. This has had the two-fold effect of marrying employee risk and reward with that of the company. If the company succeeds, so does the employee.

Prior to a legislative change on 1 July 2009, individuals could defer payment of tax on their ESS’s until they sold their shares or the share gains were ‘realised’. Post 1 July 2009, employees had to pay tax on ESS’s upfront. So, individuals wishing to work for entrepreneurs and start-ups would not receive a wage or shares in a company that may go bust. The employee would also carry considerable personal risk while also being required to pay tax up front.

This Budget changes these measures so that employees who are issued with shares, or options, under ESS’s will generally be able to defer tax until they ‘realise’ the share/option value, rather than having to pay tax when they actually receive the shares.

Sudden Swells: Changes To Crowdfunding

Everyone loves the possible swell of financial support offered by crowdfunding platforms.

The Government has recognised these benefits and announced new incentives for start-ups, specifically around crowdfunding. $7.8 million has been allocated for the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) to remove obstacles to crowd-sourced equity funding by working-up and implementing a new regulatory scheme regarding the raising and access to crowd sourced funds.

Currently in Australia, only ‘sophisticated’ or ‘professional’ investors can invest in start-ups through crowd funding arrangements.

The Government will still be keen to ensure that an appropriate level of investor protection is maintained. However, it is envisaged that the framework will facilitate easier conversion to a public company as well as simplifying reporting and disclosure requirements, all of which will reduce compliance costs and support investment.

Sink Or Swim: What Is The Low Down For Small Businesses And Entrepreneurs?

Lower compliance costs and obligations, lower taxes, accelerated depreciation, easier access to capital, and providing business greater flexibility with ESS’s are all more conducive to a more hospitable business environment for small businesses and start-ups.

All in all, for the small business and start-up sector in Australia this is a very good legislative package.

Think we’ve missed anything? Let us know what ways the Federal Budget will benefit your business in the comments section below!

Further Information

For more information on the Federal Budget and how it impacts your business visit:
Budget 2015 website.

Lawyers tend to get a bad wrap.

From perceived profiteering from the misfortune of others to exorbitant fees and long delays in litigation, many young Australians would prefer a meaningful exchange with a sledgehammer and their face over a conversation with a legal professional.

But while lawyers have long-endured all manner of jokes and deeply-entrenched cultural stereotypes, there are many practical benefits to legal training. When it comes to going toe-to-toe in an argument with the lawyer in your social group, for example, you can bet that few are willing to take on the challenge. Why?

Because lawyers not only understand how to argue a point; they also know how to win the point.

The good news is that presenting an effective argument is a learned skill that has little to do with formal legal training, and a lot to do with a few practical strategies. So what is the secret to winning an argument?

Act like a lady; argue like a lawyer.

1. Identify The Issue And Don’t Deviate From It

Recognise the main point of discussion and stick with it.

When someone challenges our views, our natural reaction is to defend ourselves with all available evidence. Particularly if the issue is a deeply contentious one (such as immigration detention centres, people smuggling, human rights, climate change, environmental issues, the Federal Budget or marriage equality) your brain will perceive many different, but unrelated, ways to further your point.

This grassroots response is natural. But it will not help you win your argument.

The main risk here is that your debate will quickly and irretrievably deviate from the subject at hand to one that does not progress the current issue at all. This is where it is easy to become lost in a sea of unrelated issues.

How To Get Your Lawyer On:

Lawyers stick with the topic.

Subjective opinions are not objective facts. No matter what strategies the opposing side uses to distract you from the main issue, or how tempting it is to draw in other connections, a good lawyer always brings the argument back to the original point.

2. Leave Emotion At The Door!

Emotion will never win an argument.

When we feel strongly about a subject, it is likely that our views are informed by past personal experiences. A strong emotional response to someone challenging these views leaves us not only vulnerable to feelings of personal attack, but also not thinking clearly. This can lead to anger, resentfulness, jealousy, defensiveness or distress.

We may naturally cast the conversational net wider in search of ‘evidence’ to support our position. However, introducing new subjective issues can easily lead to a no-holds-barred shouting match.

Becoming emotional is like giving your opponent a bill board-sized signal advertising your weak spot.

Emotion makes it difficult for us to present a convincing argument. Negative displays of body language such as yelling, crying, sighing, eye rolling or name-calling is a waste of the mental energy required to win your argument. It fortifies your opponent’s psychological and emotional defences meaning that from this point, no matter how persuasive you are, you have already lost the battle.

Emotion deafens us to conflicting points of view meaning your opponent can no longer hear what you are saying. 

How To Get Your Lawyer On:

Lawyers stay calm and stick with the facts.

When it comes to arguments or negotiations, emotion is weakness.

Even if lawyers are provoked, or are emotionally connected with a particular subject, they do not allow their opponent to use it to their advantage.

It gives them the ammunition they need to focus their own strategy, distract you from your core objective and, ultimately, win the argument.

3. Be Wary Of Shifting Dialogues

A strategy often used by those with limited argumentative skills is to shift the overall dialogue.

This is achieved by drawing in related, but irrelevant topics. The debate slowly moves away from the central issue to similar sub-issues meaning that the original topic is never dealt with.

You will have noticed politicians using this strategy to avoid direct responses to journalists.

The result is a circular debate that fails to progress the original topic or come to any solid conclusions. Introducing a secondary conversational theme is often an attempt to shift the conversational landscape to something your opponent is more comfortable discussing. When this happens, rest assured that you have the upper hand.

How To Get Your Lawyer On: 

Lawyers are not drawn in by a conversational bait and switch.

They hold their ground and remind their opponent of the real issue.

At The End Of The Day

A lawyer’s ability to win an argument can be summed up by a few key skills: organising ideas and delivering them effectively.

Keep your discussions on the right path by understanding exactly what you are debating and, no matter what strategies your opponent uses to distract, intimidate, confuse or shift the conversational ground beneath you, always bring the argument back to the original point.

Use these tactics and you will never lose another argument.

At least not the one you originally started.

More on BucketOrange Magazine

• Laws Of Conversation: How To Argue Like A Lawyer (Vol. 2)
• How To Think Like A Lawyer (Even When You Don’t Have A Law Degree)

The ease of communication and relative anonymity afforded by the internet has left most of us quite complacent about the information we post and share.

Ideas, opinions and impressions about colleagues, friends, politicians or public figures are all readily published online with little regard to the possible impact or consequences.

But what you might not know is that by publishing or spreading information (whether online or otherwise) that is damaging to another person’s reputation, you can be sued under State and Territory defamation legislation.

One poorly composed status update, tweet, Instagram image, email, group text message, comment, blog post or news story that reflects negatively on the reputation of another person can leave you open to legal action under defamation law, regardless of whether your remarks are intentionally damaging or not.

To minimise the risk of unknowingly defaming someone, and potentially facing a costly legal action, it is important to get informed about Australian defamation law and how it impacts you. We explain what information can be considered defamatory; options that may be available to you if someone publishes defamatory information about you, as well as general guidelines for good online habits.

What Is Defamation?

Anyone who suffers a loss resulting from something you published is able to take legal action against you for causing that loss.

Under Uniform Defamation legislation and Australian case law, spreading false or defamatory comments about another person is actionable under the law of any Australian State or Territory. Legislation governing this area of civil law is focused on protecting individual rights from unsubstantiated attacks that may harm an individual’s reputation. It seeks to balance free speech and the need for discussion on matters of public interest, with information or material that may be damaging.

It is important to remember that defamation is not limited to written communication. It can include detrimental information communicated verbally to a group, over the radio, through print media, online publications, social media, photographs, videos, illustrations or other means.

In a landmark ruling in Switzerland, defamation law has been found to extend as far as a Facebook user  ‘liking’ a post that is defamatory of another person.

In our ‘Mean Girls’ example, by spreading rumours and fabricating information that negatively impacts the standing and reputation of other students, Regina George, could find herself the defendant in an expensive defamation lawsuit under Australian law.

Vicarious Liability & Defamation Law

Defamatory information (in any form) that is seen or heard by at least one other person and that negatively impacts your character can quickly lead to a costly defamation lawsuit.

With the rise in popularity of social media and online services, virtually anyone online is a publisher of information. This means that you are subject to the same laws that apply to major media publications and news outlets.

The ACT Supreme court has gone one step further by establishing that owners of websites can face vicarious liability for information published by contributors that is harmful to an individual, even where the owner of the site is not aware of that information. If the site is intended to be silly, irreverent and not to be taken seriously, certain information can still be considered defamatory.

This serves as a timely reminder for private bloggers, publishers, media powerhouses and newspapers that everyone involved in the publication of potentially defamatory material can be held liable. It is not possible to argue that you are only repeating rumours or a comment made by somebody else as you can be liable for a republication.

In our ‘Mean Girls’ example, as the owner of the Burn Book, Regina could be held vicariously liable for defamatory comments regarding the false criminal activity of a staff member, even though those comments were not written by her personally. It also means that Regina, and everyone who contributed to writing defamatory comments about staff and students, could also be sued for defamation.

When Can Information Be Considered Defamatory?

Information is considered defamatory if the below three questions can be answered affirmatively:

1. Has the material been shared with at least one other person?

Excluding the person who was defamed, at least one other person must see or hear the false information.

In Australia’s first social media defamation case, a former student has been ordered to pay over $100,000 in damages to a teacher after tweeting a series of defamatory comments on Twitter. It is important to remember that even if you are not the author of the original defamatory message, but you share the message (for example by retweeting it), you can still be sued for defaming someone.

In our ‘Mean Girls’ example, Regina made copies and disseminated false and damaging information about Ms Norbury’s purported criminal activity to all staff and students. So the material has been shared with at least one other person.

2. Does the material adequately identify you?

The material must include information that adequately identifies you. Your name might be used in connection with the defamatory remarks. If your name is not included, some cases have found that other information may be sufficient to imply that the material is about you.

In our ‘Mean Girls’ example, defamatory comments about Amber D’Alessio were widely circulated, leading to public ridicule and loss of reputation. Her name and image were published in conjunction with the damaging comments which puts her identify beyond doubt.

3. Communication must be defamatory

If the average or reasonable person is likely to think less of you after seeing or hearing the published material, then it is usually considered defamatory.

The information may make fun of you, suggest that you have a disease, are promiscuous or committed a crime. If others are likely to avoid or isolate you after the information is published then it is likely to be considered defamatory and you can take action.

In our ‘Mean Girls’ example, publishing false accusations that Ms Norbury trafficked drugs led to public scrutiny of Ms Norbury, criminal investigations, a loss of professional reputation and personal standing. It is likely that Ms Norbury could successfully sue Regina for the loss suffered.

4. There are no available defences to publishing the material

Simply because information is mean, embarrassing, hurtful, irritating, offensive, false or has a negative impact on a person’s business does not mean it is defamatory.

In general, the courts will not find material defamatory if:

• the information is substantially true
• the information was an honest opinion
• the information is subject to qualified privilege (this covers references given by employers or complaints to the police or other relevant authorities)
• the information is not important and the chance that your reputation will be damaged is not high.

What Are Your Options If You Have Been Defamed?

If your reputation has been negatively affected by information or material shared by someone else, there are a number of options available to you. Outlined below is a list of various courses of action you may wish to consider, ranging from the lightest to strongest:

• Take the moral high ground and do nothing
• Approach the publisher or author and seek an apology or for the material to be removed
• Request that the publisher or author clarify the comments made about you in a way that does not harm your reputation
• Seek an injunction which prevents any further communication of the material

This will be relevant where the information is continuously being circulated, for example, in an online publication or media outlet and your initial requests for the material to be removed have not been complied with. To do this, you will need to obtain advice from a lawyer specialising in defamation law.

• Seek an urgent court order that prevents the information from being published

This option will be relevant where you become aware of potentially defamatory information before it is published.

Depending on which of the above options you choose, you may wish to consider using the below draft email:

Dear Sir/Madam

It has come to my attention that the [information/comment/image] about me has been published on your [website/publication/Facebook page/Twitter feed/radio show/email] as below.

[insert the defamatory material]

I wish to advise that this information is damaging to my personal and professional reputation and I consider it to be defamatory of me. 

I am happy not to take this matter further if you cease to distribute/publish the material further, immediately remove the defamatory information and issue a public apology to me.

I would be grateful if  you would urgently comply with my request.  Should you fail to do so within 24 hours, I will pursue legal action seeking [an apology / injunction / removal / damages] for the defamation. 

Regards,

[insert your name]

 

• Commence legal action against the publisher or author of the damaging material

You can sue the person responsible for defaming you as well as anyone involved in the publication of false information (for example a publisher or a newspaper).

You may wish to consider this option in more serious cases, particularly if the information is professionally destructive of your reputation and has led to loss of earning capacity. Rebel Wilson is suing the publisher’s of Women’s Day for publishing defamatory articles that caused damage to her career. A court may award you damages to compensate you for the emotional damage you suffered as well as the harm to your reputation.

In our ‘Mean Girls’ example, given the gravity of allegations levelled at Ms Norbury, Regina and her friends could be liable for a large sum of damages. The defamatory comments not only impacted her professionally but also caused a potential loss of earnings (time away from work) as well as psychological pain and suffering. A court would be likely to take into consideration the severity of the case and award a sum of money to compensate.

How To Avoid Being Sued For Defamation

Be conscious of all your communication.

The spread of information these days is instantaneous: what you may think is a personal message to a colleague can easily be forwarded to the entire office. Remember that anything you say has the potential to not only harm another person but also result in a great deal of financial damage to you.

1. Be mindful about what you put in writing

Never publish or send any information when you are distracted, stressed, angry or upset. Wait until you are calm, clear and objective. This might mean drafting an email the night before and re-reading it in the morning before pressing ‘send.’

Before posting a social media update:

• Ask yourself “Would a newspaper publish this?” or “Would you be happy if this information became a headline story in the newspaper?” If not, delete it
• If in doubt, ask a friend or colleague to read it over for an objective opinion
• Wherever possible, avoid written communication, if you are discussing information that might be sensitive to a third party. Try to communicate verbally, either over the phone or in person. This not only lessens the chance of information you pass on being quoted accurately but also reduces the risk of that information being misconstrued, used for the wrong purpose or shared.

2. Carefully consider what you share on the internet

You could unknowingly expose yourself to litigation. Remember once something is online you have lost control of it forever.

3. Adjust your privacy settings to ensure your posts are viewed by the least amount of people possible

4. If you host discussion forums, run a website with multiple contributors or own a company with a social media presence, be vigilant.

Regularly monitor discussions taking place on pages you manage and remove anything that could directly or indirectly identify an individual and be interpreted as damaging to that person. If you employ staff who monitor your social media channels, establish policy and procedures for determining whether third party content is offensive.

5. If you do find yourself accused of writing something defamatory, remove the material immediately and apologise. 

The best case scenario is that the person will not take things further.

Conclusion 

Know your rights. Defamation law exists to protect you. If you feel that you have suffered harm to your reputation as a result of information published by someone else, do something about it. Equally important is to be proactive in maintaining a healthy online presence that avoids causing harm to others.

An on-the-spot decision to publish something you consider clever or funny can quickly turn into a very serious and costly mistake.

Further Information 

If you have been the subject of defamatory comments or publications, seek legal advice immediately to prevent the further spread of the defamatory material and obtain a remedy. If you have been accused of making a defamatory comment or publication, you should also seek legal advice straight away because there may be consequences for not responding within a certain timeframe.

• For more information on good online habits visit Cyber Smart.

To get in touch with a legal professional specialising in defamation law contact:

• Marque Lawyers (NSW)
• Stephens Lawyers & Consultants (VIC)
• Slater & Gordon (National)
• Aherns Lawyers (WA)
• Australian Defamation Lawyers (QLD, VIC, WA, NSW)
• City First Solicitors (ACT); or

You can also search the Australian Lawyers Directory for legal representation in your area.