Events @ CGW

We host a variety of events both at our offices in Brisbane and at a range of venues interstate. In addition we support educational and networking events hosted by industry and professional associations across Australia.

Please click on the below links to view information about the following events:

CGW Breakfast Brief  

In-House Counsel, Company Secretaries and others with in-house legal responsibilities are playing an increasingly important role in Australian businesses.

Cooper Grace Ward hosts a series of forums for these individuals, entitled the CGW Breakfast Brief.

Each one-hour Breakfast Brief focuses on current issues for people with
in-house legal responsibilities, providing a forum for peer discussion as well as practical knowledge to take back into the workplace.

The events feature keynote speakers including In-House Counsel, Company Secretaries, Company Directors, Judges and other well known authorities on corporate legal issues.

The CGW Breakfast Brief series is supported by an online discussion forum, where you can share ideas and opinions, and gain access to previous speaker information and other useful resources.

Best Laid Plans with Mr Ralph Devlin SC

10th September

So far in our CGW Breakfast Brief series this year, we have heard from:

• Justice Richard Chesterman who spoke about the requirements of in-house counsel and company secretaries in commercial litigation
• Alan Ducret, Queensland Regional Director for the ACCC, who discussed the value of compliance programs in avoiding prosecutions
• Commissioner Ken Bacon from the Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) who spoke about common industrial relations matters and how these are handled by the AIRC.

If you implement the types of systems mentioned by our guest speakers, you are much less likely to end up in front of a commission or to be involved in commercial litigation. However, for reasons beyond your control and despite your best laid plans, there is always potential to end up in Court...

In our September Breakfast Brief, Mr Ralph Devlin SC will talk through the potentially disastrous situation where the police have arrived at your premises with a warrant - and what you should do next.

Register your attendance now

If you would like to join the mailing list for the CGW Breakfast Brief series, please email us your details now.

Professional Advisors Seminars 

Latest Developments with Trusts & Binding Financial Agreements

In this seminar we will also consider a number of current tax and asset protection issues and developments in relation to trusts including:

• The role of the settlor and scope of section 102

• Who can/should be beneficiaries?

• When will the addition or removal of beneficiaries trigger a re-settlement?

• Issues with distribution minutes

• Who should be default beneficiaries?

• Are distributions between trusts with different vesting dates valid?

Our Family Law Partner, Justine Woods will also discuss Binding Financial Agreements which are a crucial tool for protecting a client's assets although some clients are uncomfortable bringing up the subject with their spouses. 

Several recent cases that were decided by the Family Court have, for the first time ever, challenged Binding Financial Agreements. In this seminar, Justine will be discussing recent developments in the law regarding Binding Financial Agreements and highlight the importance of using them properly.

Lismore Seminar: 18th August, 12:00pm

Register now

Estate Planning & Disputes

Estate planning is now a complex area because of the increase in wealthy Australians and the complexity of their structures as well as the popularity of superannuation. This increased level of wealth and complexity will generate more disputes in relation to deceased estates – and there is already evidence that this is occurring.

At this seminar, Scott Hay Bartlem from our estate planning team and Rocco Russo from our estate dispute group will present some workshop scenarios to illustrate estate planning strategies to deal with the complexities involved in many modern estates and provide practical and tax effective outcomes which reduce the risk of disputes.

Issues that will be considered include:

• structuring companies and trusts to protect from disgruntled beneficiaries;
• excluding children;
• giving children fixed entitlements to discretionary trust assets;
• how effective are gift/loan back arrangements;
• the use of joint tenancies to defeat estate disputes;
• using the flexibility in superannuation to minimise disputes. 
   

Brisbane City Seminar: 20th August, 5:30pm

Estate Planning Workshop

In recent years, Estate Planning has moved beyond Wills to cover a variety of issues including asset protection, superannuation and family law. It is becoming increasingly difficult to protect clients' interests during their lifetime as well as ensuring their wishes are fulfilled after their death.

At this event we will overview Estate Planning from start to finish and provide practical guidance and solutions for ensuring your clients' estate planning concerns are identified.

Due to the workshop nature of this event, numbers will be strictly limited.

Family Law Seminars 

An interdisciplinary approach to family breakdown

What can you tell your patients and clients about how they can help themselves when it comes to legal matters?

What should they expect from the family law system and their family lawyers?

The CGW family law workgroup has six specialist lawyers representing clients in relation to the full spectrum of issues surrounding family breakdown. These include children’s living arrangements, property settlement, tax and superannuation issues and financial support for children and spouses.

Relationship breakdown is a well known risk factor for mental health problems. We see that almost all of our clients at some point experience some or all of the following:

• depression, anxiety, anger and shame about the relationship breakdown
• guilt about the impact of the separation on their children
• deep mistrust of their ex-spouse
• uncertainty about the future and worry about their ability to cope on their own
• frustration about perceived delays on the part of their ex-spouse, their lawyer or the Court.

We consistently find that the involvement of experienced medical and allied health professionals in our clients’ support team improves their wellbeing and expedites a positive outcome, including for children caught in the middle.

Cooper Grace Ward Lawyers’ twilight series will bring together professionals in the health, education, social services and legal industries in three informal, interactive sessions to discuss the best ways to deal with the problems and questions presented by family breakdown.

We would be delighted if you could join us for one or more of the following seminars on the first Thursday of each month in August, September and October 2008.

Please use the below links to register for each seminar individually or email events@cgw.com.au to register for all three

Corporate Governance Forum  

Once a quarter, Cooper Grace Ward hosts a Corporate Governance Forum.  These luncheons provide a forum for CEO's, Chairs of Boards and Senior Directors to network with Directors of other organisations and to build their knowledge of Corporate Governance and Compliance issues.  We host these events in conjunction with Global Board Consulting, an organisation that assesses the effectiveness of Company Boards, reviews Board performance both as a group and individually, and assists in improving Board effectiveness.

To register your interest please email: events@cgw.com.au

For more information on our expertise in Corporate Governance and Compliance, please click here

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