On 1 July 2022, the grace period for enforcement of the revised Air Navigation (Aircraft Noise) Amendment (2021 Measures No. 1) Regulations 2021 that came into effect on 14 December 2021 ends meaning that some RPAS operators can now face heavy penalties for operating without an approval.

On 27 May 2022, Judge Forbes of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia delivered a landmark decision in Nino v Kuksal [2022] FedCFamC2G 401 on the ability of the workers to claim against officers of the company personally.

The case involved claims brought by eight international students against their former employer Mr Kuksal and two entities owned and controlled by him. The applicants alleged that they were either not paid or underpaid for cleaning, housekeeping and related duties they carried out in the course of their employment.

In Melbourne Aircraft Leasing (UK) Ltd v Algeri [2022] NSWSC 443 the NSW Supreme Court dealt with a rather complex trust that was created over Virgin Australia Group’s assets following the Group’s exit from voluntary administration. The main question was whether the Trustee’s acted correctly in distributing funds to creditors without preferencing certain aircraft lessors. The lessors were of the view that their claims should be given priority in the distribution of funds from Trust based on the principle in Re Lundy Granite Co (1871) LR 6 Ch APP 462 (‘Lundy Granite’).

Thirty two Plaintiffs brought claims for disappointment pursuant to s 267(4) of the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) against Scenic Tours Pty Ltd (Scenic) for breach of consumer guarantees under the ACL after their river cruise was disrupted due to weather, meaning that sections of the tour had to be completed by bus.

Thirty two Plaintiffs brought claims for disappointment pursuant to s 267(4) of the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) against Scenic Tours Pty Ltd (Scenic) for breach of consumer guarantees under the ACL after their river cruise was disrupted due to weather, meaning that sections of the tour had to be completed by bus.

Wells Fargo Trust Company , National Association (as owner trustee) v VB Leaseco Pty Ltd (administrators appointed) [2022] HCA 8

One of the consequences of Virgin Australia going into Administration in 2020 was the return of aircraft and engines to lessors. In this case the High Court unanimously dismissed an appeal from a decision of the Full Federal Court concerning the construction of the obligation to “give possession” under the Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment (Convention) and the Protocol on Matters Specific to Aircraft Equipment (Protocol). The decision sets out the procedure to followed in relation to enforcement of rights under the Convention and Protocol in insolvency proceedings in Australia

Throughout the past 130 years, Australia’s maritime legal history paints a vibrant picture of the transformation of an economy from an island colony tied to British imperial norms to a dynamic and independent trading nation carving its own legal narrative. Alexis Cahalan looks at some of the cases and legislation that have shaped the development of Australia’s maritime legal identity

Hanger to Hanger Event 2022

The Supreme Court of New South Wales has in a judgment delivered at 4pm today dismissed a group of applications seeking to challenge the decision of the Health Minister, Bradley Hazzard, to mandate COVID-19 vaccinations for health care and aged care workers.

In another interlocutory judgment arising from the Ruby Princess, on 10 September 2021, Justice Stewart of the Federal Court of Australia refused Carnival plc’s application to stay proceedings against US and UK overseas passengers seeking to participate in the Australian class action. The class action was brought by the passengers of Ruby Princess cruise ship who contracted COVID-19 and the executors of the deceased passengers together with the close family members of the passengers) alleging negligence and breaches of the Australian Consumer Law by Carnival plc, the time charterer of the vessel, and Princess Cruise Lines Ltd, the operator of the vessel (‘Respondents’).

On 3 0 September 2021 the Transport Safety Investigation Regulations 2021 (TSI) came into effect and introduced a reportable regime for certain types of remotely piloted aircraft (RPA)….

A recent decision from the Singapore International Commercial Court provides an important reminder of the practical issues that can arise in aircraft sales.

The Fair Work Commission is currently considering its proposal to amend the Air Pilots Award 2020 to cover helicopter aircrew. Helicopter aircrew are currently covered by the Miscellaneous Award 2020. The proposed amendments will extend the operation of the Air Pilots Award to aircrew which are defined as:

The following is a note about the effect of commencing a claim for compensation as a result of the death of a passenger in the wrong Court.

We are pleased to provide you with our update on developments affecting the shipping and transport industries in Australia.

Many of you will be following closely the latest legal developments relating to COVID-19 vaccines in the workplace. Qantas for example, recently announced it will introduce mandatory vaccination for its employees and a number of Australian employers have indicated that they will mandate vaccines for their workers.

The aviation and transport industries rely heavily on a casual workforce, but due to recent case authority the issue of which workers are true ‘casuals’ has been unclear, meaning some casuals have been entitled to both casual loading and leave entitlements when an employee was found to be a part time worker….