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Australia's Department of Home Affairs has introduced Ministerial Direction 119, fundamentally reshaping how skilled visa applications are prioritised based on occupation type and applicant location. For the first time, the Skills in Demand visa falls under priority processing rules, while regional location and accredited sponsor status no longer carry the weight they once did under the previous framework.

Parenting orders under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) (“the Act”) determine post separation living arrangements for a child, allocation of parental responsibility, and may include orders about education, such as which school a child/ren should attend. Courts have emphasised that parents must take positive action to ensure children spend time with or live with each parent in accordance with parenting orders.

Bartier Perry recently acted for homeowners in two separate cases in the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (Tribunal). In both matters the homeowners were successful, demonstrating that builders who perform residential building works and fail to comply with the statutory warranties pursuant to section 18B of the Home Building Act 1989 (NSW) (the HBA) could face significant financial liability.