Partnering with clients to provide on-demand contract lawyers, giving in-house legal teams the confidence to be agile.
Major water projects require legal solutions from advisers who understand how the industry operates. Water industry participants, developers and the public sector look for authoritative advice on issues including reforms, access rights and transferability, environmental impacts and construction of new infrastructure (particularly using innovative methods of project delivery and funding).
MinterEllison has been the legal and strategic adviser to more than 80 major water projects in Australia and Asia over the past five years. Our water sector clients include governments and government owned entities, private sector project proponents and financiers. We have advised on projects in the agricultural, mining, petroleum and urban development sectors. We have also advised governments on major water reform initiatives.
Our strengths include advising clients on rights to access water (both statutory and contractual); transferring and taking security over water rights; advising owners and operators of water and sewerage infrastructure on their regulatory rights and obligations; water resource management planning and compliance; water infrastructure development and project management (including tenders, design, construction, operation and maintenance, and supply and distribution regimes); competition and trade practice issues; native title; litigation; and GST and tax advice.
We are experienced in drafting complex documents including term allocation and delivery contracts; transportation contracts; water reservation; water substitution and water supply agreements; contribution agreements; interconnection arrangements; supply, operation and maintenance agreements; and addressing the interface with existing ‘legacy’ contracts (in relation to issues of source, quality and commingling of supplies).
On 28 December 2012, the PRC National People’s Congress passed Amendments to the PRC Labour Contract Law (the Amendments) in relation to the labour dispatch arrangement. The Amendments will come into force on 1 July 2013.
On 31 December 2012, the China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC), a foreign-related arbitration commission set up by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (also known as the China Chamber of International Commerce) (CCPIT), released its Announcement on Issues Concerning CIETAC Shanghai Sub-Commission and CIETAC South China Sub-Commission" (the Latest Announcement). This is the latest development in a dispute, which has been on foot since April 2012, between CIETAC, the Shanghai Sub-Commission of CIETAC (CIETAC Shanghai), and the Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration (SCIA) (the CIETAC Dispute). SCIA was known as the South China Sub-Commission of CIETAC before 22 October 2012.
The Australian Food and Grocery Council recently released its Sustainability Commitment report for 2010-11 setting out its key objectives and targets for improving sustainability in the food & beverage and grocery industry. We highlight these objectives and targets and review the national legislative and policy underpinnings of the Sustainability Commitment in the key areas of water, waste, energy & emissions, packaging and procurement.
On Tuesday, 29 November 2011, as part of its Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook 2011-12, the Federal Government announced a package of changes intended to raise A$11.5 billion in new revenue and savings.