The consumer guarantees provided under the Australian Consumer Law (‘ACL’) cannot be excluded, modified or restricted and are in addition to any manufacturer’s or supplier’s warranty. The ACL provides consumers with rights and remedies against suppliers (including on-line retailers) and manufacturers of goods or services acquired by them that do not comply with consumer guarantees. Is your business compliant?
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Businesses using AI computer systems or technology to generate literary or artistic works such as reports, directories or other compilations, databases, computer software, digital images, designs or plans, are at risk of not having copyright protection. Copyright material is a valuable asset of a business. However, businesses may not be able claim and enforce copyright protection in such material where human authorship of that material cannot be established, particularly if it has been generated using AI technology.
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A strong business reputation is crucial in today’s online and social media environment. A good on-line business reputation can affect the bottom line of a business. So it makes good business sense to take steps to maintain and protect your good, strong business reputation.
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The Australian privacy law provides for an individual affected by a data privacy breach to seek compensation from the organisation involved in the breach. In this article, Stephens Lawyers & Consultants also provides a review and summary of the compensation awarded in determinations made during the years 2016-30 June 2020 by the Office of the Australian Information Privacy Commissioner in relation to privacy breaches and some of the factors taken into account by the Privacy Commissioner in awarding compensation and costs.
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The ACCC 2020 Compliance and Enforcement Policy identifies a number of key areas which will be the subject of ACCC scrutiny. These include: retailers’ and manufacturers’ compliance with consumer guarantee laws; competition and consumer issues in the funeral services sector; competition and consumer issues relating to digital platforms; ensuring small businesses receive the protections of the competition and consumer laws, with a focus on the Franchising Code of Conduct; misleading conduct in sale and promotion of food products; competition and consumer issues in the commercial construction sector.
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Businesses should be aware that competition and consumer laws still apply during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the ACCC will be prioritising its focus on the competition and consumer issues of most relevance arising from the impact of COVID-19. The ACCC has established a COVID-19 Taskforce focusing on early intervention to address immediate problems being faced by consumers and to communicate directly with businesses and inform them about their obligations in relation to cancellations, refunds and suspension of services as a result of the pandemic.
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Confidential Information/Trade secrets are the most valuable assets of many organisations and this data is potentially exposed to greater risk of unauthorised access, disclosure or use, with employees working remotely and using video conferencing services. Remote workplaces also give rise to increased security risks associated with privacy breaches. This article offers steps for consideration by agencies and organisations which use video conferencing, to help them manage and minimise the risk of data security breach and to protect their confidential information/trade secrets and ensure compliance with privacy laws.
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Recent cases show that interlocutory injunctions can be successfully applied for to remove defamatory material and to restrain an injurious falsehood.
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Businesses utilising electronic marketing communications that are linked to Australia must ensure their electronic communications comply with the Australian Spam Act 2003 to avoid significant penalties and court action. In this article, Stephens Lawyers & Consultants offers risk management strategies for compliance with the Spam Act and to minimise the risk of infringement.
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The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) has published its Notifiable Data Breaches Report for the period 1 January to 30 June 2020. Stephens Lawyers & Consultants’ Privacy Risk Management: Data Protection and Privacy Compliance Information Sheet provides an update and summary of some key findings and statistics in this Report. Whilst there is no single solution for the protection of privacy data, there are steps which organisations can take to minimise the risk and harm of privacy data breaches.
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