COMMERCIAL MATTERS

Leases

A lease is a formal agreement between a landlord and a tenant granting rights to a tenant to occupy premises owned by the landlord.

Leases can cover a wide variety of properties including private residences, retail shops as well as commercial and industrial premises.

The laws governing the rights and obligations of the parties to a lease can be found in various legislation including the Retail Leases Act 1994, The Real Property Act 1900 and the Residential Tenancies Act 1987.

Recently amendments to both the Retail Leases Act and the Residential Tenancies Act and the introduction of new laws dealing with smoke alarms has meant significant changes to the rights and obligations of the parties as well as changes to the way parties negotiate terms and conditions of a prospective lease.

Some amendments to the Retail Leases Act include:

• Pre-lease disclosure;
• Types of premises governed by the Retail Leases Act;
• Retail lease bond scheme;
• Assignment of lease; and
• Resolving disputes

Quick Tips

1.Always seek professional assistance, prior to entering into a lease;

2. Landlords and tenants alike should protect their rights by ensuring that the lease is in place prior to taking occupation of the premises;

3. Ensure that you comply with the recent changes in the law;

4. The parties should negotiate terms and conditions that are reasonable; and

5. If a dispute arises, always attempt to resolve it amicably between the parties in the interest of minimising costs.

Contact an expert property lawyer at Shad Partners.

Partnerships

Many small businesses operate as partnerships. Some do and some don’t have formal partnership agreements in place. The common law and the Partnership Act offer a basic regime for partnerships, but with a formal Partnership Agreement you get the added advantages of being able to regulate termination issues, notice periods, sale of partnership shares, holidays and business succession. Shad Partners Solicitors have had years of experience assisting clients with structuring the right Partnership Agreement for their businesses and we would be pleased to assist with yours too.

Family, discretionary and unit trusts

A trust structure is often a wise way of doing business. A trust can take an important place in the proper planning of a business structure and in protecting your valuable assets. There are different features of different types of trust. You need the proper legal and financial advice to select the right trust vehicle for your purposes, which we can certainly help you with.

Corporate Structures

A limited liability company is a common and sensible business structure for many types of business. A company is a separate “legal person”, it can sue and be sued in its own name and it can hold assets or borrow money in its name.

As with trusts, there are usually greater legal and taxation compliance issues to consider and therefore greater set-up costs and ongoing annual fees. However, those apparent disadvantages may often be offset by the tax and asset protection features that these structures offer. Trusts are typically headed up by a company known as a corporate trustee.

Shad Partners Solicitors would be glad to assist in the detailed analysis of your business and legal affairs to help formulate and establish the correct business structure for your needs. That is what we have done for several years now, for many successful and satisfied clients.

Joint ventures

Joint ventures are sometimes a relatively simple way of combining various business parties in a common enterprise. Such a business enterprise may well be a “one-off” transaction such as a land redevelopment, but the rights and duties that flow-on from such ventures need to be carefully and expertly examined, and then documented.

Shad Partners Solicitors have worked with “syndicates” of builders and developers and even land-owners in a number of successful joint venture arrangements in the past. We have the experience and know-how to assist in a whole range of different joint venture arrangements.

Legal Advice

We can advise you on a range of legal documents including:

• Sale of business agreements;
• Contracts for Sale of Land;
• Contracts for Sale of Chattels;
• Employment agreements;
• Retail and Commercial Leases;
• Franchise Agreements;
• Equipment Leases; and
• Hire Purchase agreements.

We can also assist with other important legal advisory and compliance issues such as advice upon superannuation obligations; payroll; industrial/workplace relations and occupational health and safety matters.

Contact one of our business lawyers / commercial lawyers / corporate lawyers now on (02) 9790 7000 to get the expert legal assistance you deserve