Jacob Carswell-Doherty

The internet can often be described as the Wild West. A place where algorithms are explicitly designed to retain our ever-shrinking attention spans. Until now, Australia has relied on a largely reactive, co-regulatory model for online safety. Under this model, platforms largely set their own rules through industry codes. The system only kicked in once …

Australia’s Digital Duty of Care Bill: Separating the Facts from the Furore Read More »

When someone lodges a caveat against your property, NSW Land Registry Services (NSW LRS) may refuse to register a transfer, mortgage, plan or other dealing that the caveat’s terms prohibit. A caveat does not necessarily prevent you from entering into a contract for sale. It may, however, prevent settlement or registration until one of four …

Removing a Caveat in NSW: Withdrawal, Lapsing Notices and Court Applications Read More »

You sign the contract, pay the deposit, and choose a lot number on a plan. The building itself doesn’t exist yet, and won’t for a year or more. An off the plan purchase runs on different rules to buying an established home. The rules govern what the vendor must disclose before you sign. They also …

Buying Off the Plan in NSW: Contracts, Risks and Sunset Clauses Read More »

When a relationship ends, one of the most important issues is how property, liabilities, superannuation and financial resources will be divided. In Australia, property settlement is not based on an automatic 50/50 split. The Court does not apply a fixed formula. Instead, it considers what outcome is just and equitable in the circumstances of each …

Property Settlement After Separation: 2026 Family Law Changes Read More »

You have signed the contract, chosen your conveyancer and are waiting for the next step. Instead of a costs disclosure, you receive a questionnaire asking where your deposit is coming from, whether you hold or have ever held a prominent public office in any country, and whether you are acting on behalf of someone else. …

AML Conveyancing Rules: What NSW Buyers Need to Know Read More »

A recent Federal Court decision has set aside a visa cancellation character test ruling because the Tribunal failed to engage with handwritten letters from three children. A reminder that decision-makers cannot treat children’s voices as mere character references. The Case at a Glance In Sumeo v Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs [2026] FCA …

Visa Cancellation & the Character Test: How Children’s Evidence Can Change the Outcome Read More »

Every litigator who briefs experts has had the experience of opening a draft report and feeling a quiet drop in the stomach. The opinion is fine but the reasoning is gone. Or the assumptions are wrong. Or the witness has wandered into a paragraph that no person in their field could give. Thankfully, there is …

Briefing the expert: what the judges actually say Read More »

Michael Meek J was appointed to the Supreme Court of New South Wales in late 2022 after more than two decades at the equity bar. 138 published judgments since. No decision overturned on appeal. Several already cited as authority by the Court of Appeal. “When you’d buy vinyl, you’d have this lovely-sized object with a …

Appearing before Justice Michael Meek in the Equity Division: what solicitors should know Read More »

A $3 billion company is being forced to rebrand in its home market after years of trademark infringement, and the honest concurrent use defence it relied upon has been decisively rejected by the High Court. This decision isn’t just a corporate cautionary tale; it’s a warning to any business that has ever assumed a name …

Trademark Infringement and Honest Concurrent Use: What Zip Co’s High Court Defeat Means for Your Business Read More »

When relationships break down, many parents understandably worry about the impact of separation on their children. Research on children and divorce conflict consistently shows that the focus should not be on whether separation occurs, but on how its consequences are managed. Under Australian family law, the guiding principle in s 60CC of the Family Law …

How Children and Divorce Conflict Shapes Outcomes More Than Separation Itself Read More »