Research and Whitepapers on the hottest topics in the legal industry today

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2020

The future of the wide brown land: How our nation’s unique conditions affect our ability to innovate

Innovation is often attributed to market forces as a key driver, but there is so much more to it than that. Our appetite and ability to innovate is shaped by our culture, politics, legislation, geography, and any number of other uniquely Australian factors.

We partnered with the Governance Institute of Australia to host a virtual roundtable with 11 innovation specialists to deep dive into what really drives - or restricts - innovation in our country. The findings from this roundtable forms the basis of this complimentary whitepaper.

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Top 5 facts you need to know about ASIC civil litigation

Over the last 10 years, the ASIC regulatory landscape has changed a great deal — legislative developments, funding changes, royal commissions, the political spotlight — but how does this landscape translate into real life experience in the courts? Lifting the lid on civil litigation involving ASIC — does a deeper analysis of enforcement judgments in this space reveal any surprises?

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Navigating the post-pandemic privacy and cyber landscape

Dudley Kneller is a Partner at Gadens and a legal expert for LexisNexis Regulatory Compliance. In this whitepaper, Dudley summarises the post-pandemic privacy and cyber landscape, outlines the cybersecurity risks during this current transition period and shares the likely permanent changes to organisations as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

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The Role of Automated and Integrated Risk Management Systems in Ensuring Complete Compliance

Throughout June and July 2020, LexisNexis, Enable Professional Services and ServiceNow held a series of online sessions with Australian governance, compliance and risk professionals to delve into the realities of regulatory burden for modern businesses and discover how technology can help to manage these issues. The following discussion paper summarises the issues and learnings from these sessions.

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AML & Financial Crimes Congress 2020 Insights

In June 2020, the GRC Institute held its annual Anti Money Laundering and Financial Crimes Congress. This whitepaper provides a detailed overview of key insights from the day’s discussion, along with practical recommendations for how businesses can strengthen their anti money laundering and financial crimes risk frameworks.

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Transforming Culture and Driving New Behaviours: How the ASX Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations can change culture for the better”

We spoke to governance professionals to find out about the challenges in governing company culture, understand  whether culture can be measured and offer some practical recommendations on how to positively impact culture.

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Spotlight on Barrister Danny Feller SC and the ‘paperless practice’

It wouldn’t be an understatement to say that the legal industry is going through a period of unprecedented change, with the rapid adoption of technology in many forms in Australian courts.

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Complimentary Checklist: Infection Control, Disease Management and Biosecurity

As businesses continue to operate in the current environment, it’s important that you are aware of your Covid-19 compliance obligations that relate to Infection Control, Disease Management and Biosecurity, which is why we are offering you a complimentary checklist.

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Complimentary report: A must-read interview with ACCC Chairman, Rod Sims

In this special report, ACCC Chairman, Rod Sims speaks to MLex (a LexisNexis company) about the inquiry into tech giants that has brought him notoriety and the challenges that remain ahead.

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Australia's new Consumer Data Right – What's not to like?

The introduction of the CDR is coming during a time of increased regulation across many sectors of the Australian economy. Dudley Kneller is a Partner at Gadens and a legal expert for LexisNexis Regulatory Compliance. In this whitepaper, Dudley explains what the CDR framework is, who it impacts and outlines how you and your business can prepare for it.

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The rise of mandatory mediation in Australia—insights for litigators

While mediation hasn’t always fitted perfectly into an adversarial system that’s evolved over hundreds of years, the rise of the digital age and user-friendly sentiment is driving a new wave of interest in the role and process of mediation.

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LexisNexis 2019 Legal Industry Survey Report - Decoding Cybersecurity: Clause and Effect

With the introduction of the GDPR, the National Data Breaches scheme and various other data privacy legislation, cybersecurity and data protection are growing areas which all sectors of society must be aware of – the legal sector being no exception.

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LexisNexis 2019 Roadshow Report - Decoding Cybersecurity: Clause and Effect

The legal industry is at the forefront of advances and changes in the cybersecurity arena - acting as a trusted advisor to businesses, but also grappling with these same changes from the perspective of its own cyber resilience.

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Contingency planning for lawyers: A practical guide for sole practitioners and small law firms

While lawyers may be diligent about helping clients plan for the future, prepare for the worst and handle a crisis, they often neglect their own plans and preparations.

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The future of the governance professional

LexisNexis is proud to be a sponsor of the Governance Institute of Australia’s research paper, “The future of the governance professional”.

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Strategy for Engaging with Regulators

In a post-Financial Services Royal Commission (Hayne Royal Commission) world, the regulatory landscape has changed fundamentally. Therefore, the question needs to be asked: “Does your business have a strategy in place to deal with regulators?”

The Governance Institute of Australia has partnered with LexisNexis to co-author the whitepaper, “Engaging with regulators post the Hayne Royal Commission”. This whitepaper discusses who the custodian of regulatory engagement within a business is. It also talks about how culture, remuneration and transparency of information can help businesses re-establish trust while adequately deal with regulators.

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Complimentary Privacy and Data Protection checklist

Having a governance structure around privacy and data protection is critical to your business which is why are offering you a complimentary checklist. This checklist has been designed to help you identify your privacy and data protection obligations.

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Curlington Legal Case Study

David’s firm, Curlington Legal, is a boutique law firm based in Sydney that focuses on drafting and negotiating IT contracts, intellectual property licensing and advice for technology companies. Prior to Curlington, David was in-house as Asia Pacific General Counsel for two US software vendors. Prior to that, he was a partner at Clayton Utz and head of the Technology, Trade and Intellectual Property team.

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The Hidden Cost of Free Legal Research

During the average work week, over 50% of small law practitioners conduct legal research, with many relying on free resources. However, the evidence suggests that what is ‘free’ may actually cost small law firms both time and money.

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Using AI in the Courtroom: What are the Implications?

When a judge makes their final decision, they have a duty to apply the principles of procedural fairness, including the rule that the judge must not have an interest in the matter adjudicated, nor appear to be biased in their conduct or conclusions.

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Legal Frontiers: AI to Ethics

Legal Frontiers: AI to Ethics 2018 LexisNexis Roadshow Report explores the current and potential future effects of Artificial Intelligence technology on the legal industry.

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Risk Management Forum: Ask the Best Questions

There has been a fundamental shift in the risk landscape and the spotlight has never shone brighter on risk management in Australia.

‘Ask the best questions’ was the theme to this year’s National Risk Management Forum, hosted by Governance Institute of Australia. You can download a summary of the event, co-authored by LexisNexis and Governance Institute of Australia.

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Shareholder resolutions: Is there a case for change?

There has never been a more relevant time to talk about shareholder resolutions and the place they should have in influencing corporate governance and board accountability. That is why the Governance Institute of Australia partnered with LexisNexis to co-author the green paper, “Shareholder resolutions: Is there a case for change?”

This green paper outlines the arguments for and against changing the current frameworks pertaining to shareholder resolutions.

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Dudley Kneller’s 2018 Tech Compliance “Hot List”

As the in-house, risk and compliance communities struggle to keep on top of emerging trends and compliance risks, new technologies, increased regulation and growing cyber threat will present continuing challenges (and opportunities) for Australian organisations in 2018.

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Mandatory Data Breach Notification – Tips and Traps by Cheng Lim

Technology is moving fast and altering the legal landscape of your clients, and we at LexisNexis are keeping our finger on the pulse of change – with the help of our expert authors.

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Straight to the Source — Bypassing the Gatekeepers
Why Trump & Brexit Calls for Primary News Gathering

The Western world is going through immense technological and cultural change, and nowhere is this more apparent than at the intersection of politics and the media. Technology has enhanced individualism and made people less attached to mainstream political parties and traditional sources of information.

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Lawyers & Robots?
Conversations around the future of the legal industry

New technology is exciting, but we shouldn’t let that cloud the fact that we work in an industry built on people. We took this simple position in deciding to produce this report, and it is one we believe underpins the successful deployment of any new technology.

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Human v Cloud
2017 Roadshow Report

The legal sector is experiencing a technology-driven shake up of traditional roles, disruption of service delivery, and a shift in the dynamic of legal professionals’ ways of working. This is creating both opportunities and challenges which need to be identified and acted upon, so that the sector and the people that work within it can prosper.

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GST coming for your online cart
Australia's proposed changes to the taxation of low value imports

Will the broadening of Australia's GST base really level out the playing field in the retail sector or will it simply lead to increased complexity for non-resident online vendors while placing higher costs of living on Australian consumers?

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The Future is Insight
Connecting the dots with legal analytics

When we imagine a lawyer winning a dramatic case, or a landmark hearing, we often imagine a crack-shot lawyer from a show like 'Suits' or 'Law and Order' having an epiphany about a vital clue that we've all missed.

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Australian Corporations Act
Governance professionals call for a review

LexisNexis and Governance Institute of Australia hosted a roundtable of senior governance and risk professionals in May 2017 to explore the big picture, determine what parts of the Act need attention and make recommendations on the best way to pursue holistic reform.

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Single Touch Payroll: bringing payroll into the digital world

Almost two years after Single Touch Payroll (STP) was first announced by the Federal Government as part of the Whole-of- Government "Digital by Default" agenda, the legislation has passed.

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10 Tips for Trust Accounting

There are few regulations more important to understand and follow than those that govern how law firms handle clients' money held in trust. Managing trust money is a valued-added service and allows firms to act for clients across many different legal matters.

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Creating an Even Playing Field: Extending Unfair Contract Term Protections to Small Business

The unfair contract term (UCT) protections which currently apply to consumers under federal legislation have been extended to small businesses.

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One Tweet and It's Gone - why social media is not always your friend

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Understanding the Unfair Contract Terms Legislation

This paper will outline the recent changes to the Australian Consumer Law 2010 (ACL), which introduced prohibitions on unfair contract terms in small business standard form contracts.

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The Independent Director's Dilemma : Is there ever a safe environment in which to be an independent director?

There was a time in the not too distant past when it was generally accepted that directors of corporate boards constituted a closed network. As a consequence, the role of directors and their accountabilities seemed shrouded in mystery – a mystery that few people outside of the directors' circle were interested in solving.

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Striking a balance between compliance and an effective social media presence

Can it be done, is the question. Establishing an effective social media presence is now such a crucial aspect of doing business in Australia. For those in the technology, media and communications industries, it is almost a given that your presence online is cutting edge, pushing the boundaries and engaging customers and stakeholders alike

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Respecting Care Recipients' decisions and managing providers' liability

What does capacity to make decisions mean?

Our right to make our own decisions is fundamental to our everyday existence. That includes the right to make decisions with which others may disagree or regard as silly. Equally, knowing when a person does not have the capacity to make a decision is just as crucial because a decision made without capacity can be invalid. A failure to properly assess and understand a person's capacity to make decisions can have significant adverse consequences both to the provider and the care recipient.

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Privacy and Social Media
Is the race to innovate online leaving privacy rights in its wake?

Organisations in Australia and overseas are recognising the benefits of using social media platforms such as Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter to promote their goods and services, and to effectively engage more with their customers and strategic partners.

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How I learned to stop building faster horse carriages and love disruption

Innovation is no longer on the list solely for start-ups but has become a strategic goal for senior leadership of small, medium and large sized organisations. However, professional service organisations, and in particular those in the legal industry, are struggling to match other industries in their stride.

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Governance Can you have too much of a good thing?

In July 2016, Governance Institute of Australia partnered with LexisNexis to conduct a survey of Institute members to capture their views on how governance is perceived in their organisations. The survey was designed to explore if governance is perceived as a drain on productivity or as a productivity enabler.

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Employer obligations in Australia -
A closer look at business and individual liability

There are many obligations that arise in an employment relationship. Of course an employer should look after their employees, it makes complete sense both ethically and commercially.

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Does the Annual General Meeting (AGM) need to become an eAGM?

The annual general meeting (AGM) has long been the forum where shareholders and directors have the opportunity to interact.

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Dodging the Draft
How proofreading failures are creating risk for firms and their clients and denying firms extra revenue.

Law firms are under increasing pressure to become more efficient in the way they work, driven not just by macroeconomic conditions but also increased competition. There is a growing expectation from law firm clients that firms will make greater use of technology in order to reduce costs and increase the value they provide to clients.

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ACCC Essentials - Understanding the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's 2016 Compliance and Enforcement Priorities

It is vitally important for all Australian businesses to have a thorough understanding of the way in which the ACCC prioritises its enforcement activities, given the highly interventionist and aggressive approach which the ACCC takes to both competition law and consumer protection matters. Indeed, the ACCC is arguably one of the most active and aggressive enforcers of competition law in the world.

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SmartLaw
2016 LexisNexis® Roadshow Report

Technology has been a disrupting force in many industries for years now. To date, the practice of law has been relatively slow to embrace these changes, due to entrenched workplace cultures dictating how things are done and an inherent tendency for the profession to be risk averse.

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Do More With Less: Australian in-house Lawyers' views on workplace efficiency

The in-house lawyer role has never been more important and challenging than it is today. As well as functioning as the legal conscience of the organisation, the in-house lawyer manages legal risk, provides important advice on a wide range of legal issues, and endeavours to deliver commercial value for the organisation.

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The 5 Critical Steps to Legal Research

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Innovation Inertia
LexisNexisRoadshow Report 2015

Innovation in the Australian legal landscape means adopting a commitment to addressing the legacy of conservatism and developing an appetite for innovation to improve the client experience.

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Digital Disruption  and its impact on Legal Research

With the entry of a new generation of digital-native lawyers into the workforce and pressures on law firms, in-house counsel and the justice system to become more streamlined and cost-efficient, technology has become integral to work practices.

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Making sense of Big Data: A behind the scenes look at Legal Search Technology

Legal professionals operate in an increasingly competitive industry and are under constant pressure to meet their clients' needs, gain competitive edge and increase their efficiency.

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Rethinking Cyber Risk: board and director obligations in 2015 and beyond

What many directors and company secretaries fail to realise is that the foundation of effective cyber risk awareness is just a matter of good corporate governance.

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Guide to becoming a strategic counsel: Learning the art of engaging external solicitors

Benjamin Brewster said: A lawyer starts life giving $500 worth of law for $5 and ends up giving $5 worth for $500. It is a sad indictment on certain elements of the legal profession that although Benjamin Brewster died in the 1880s, many clients in 2015 would still agree with his sentiments.

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Do More With Less: Australian in-house Lawyers' views on workplace efficiency

Word of mouth is one of the best ways to sell a product or service. Many consumers rely on reviews for information about goods and services to assist in purchasing. A glowing testimonial or endorsement can have a strong influence on a consumer's decision to purchase a product or service.

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When being a good lawyer is not enough
Understanding how in-house lawyers really create value

LexisNexis spoke with over 100 in-house lawyers to understand the corporate legal landscape in real depth. Among the key themes that emerged, in-house lawyers spoke most passionately about the need to really create value for their organisations.

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In-house legal teams: Identifying and nurturing value

The advisory board recognised that developing genuine business insight is a critical first step before encouraging in-house lawyers to develop closer relationships with business colleagues.

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Guide to successful client relationships
Seven Essential Strategies

It doesn't need to be said that clients are the most essential aspect of every legal professional's practice — after all: no clients, no practice.

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Workflow and Productivity in the Legal Industry
How today's legal professionals are responding to the changing landscape

The rise of the use of technology in the legal profession to achieve greater efficiencies and flexibility has been well documented.

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Enabling Technology in a Small Law Office

How many times a day, as a Partner or Sole Practitioner, do you wish for less IT hassles, lower costs for equipment maintenance or enhanced productivity through the use of technology? However, you didn't get past the point of thinking about it.

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A Practice Owner's Hierarchy of Tasks: 12 things to stop doing to start driving more revenue

Every new law firm owner starts out doing pretty much everything. Hard work and sacrifice are part of the price of starting a new business.

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6 Steps to Selecting the Right Practice Management System

The Legal Profession is under pressure to change and selecting the right Practice Management System is essential to the long-term success of a practice.

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Giving Clients that Extra Sparke: How Lexis Visualfiles technology helps Sparke Helmore Lawyers offer award winning unique services to clients

The Client

Sparke Helmore Lawyers is a leading Australian law firm of 600 people working from eight offices across Australia. They support the needs of the insurance, government, financial services, mining, construction and property sectors.

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When does an intermediary become a bad actor, and not merely an accessory?

There are a growing number of court cases and enforcement actions initiated by regulator relating to claims that intermediaries are responsible, or share some liability, for the actions of the users of the services, software, and facilities they own or operate.

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Re-Thinking Technology In The Law Firm: How Technology can be a trusted partner.

For legal firms technology is often perceived as something to which the individual or organisation must adapt.

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Measuring the In-house Legal Team Discussion paper: LexisNexis® in-house Advisory Board

In January 2012, our UK LexisNexis In-house Advisory Board met to share practical experiences of using metrics to demonstrate the value of the inhouse legal team.

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The Mobile Lawyer: Knowledge Gathering in a Connected World

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In the zone: Is technology helping or hindering lawyers' decision making?

A lawyer's success could be said to rest on a bedrock of good decisions. Equally, a successful law firm is one that is adept at good decision making across all facets of its business, whether it is picking the right argument for a matter, selecting the right law to support an argument, choosing the correct precedent, recruiting a good team, providing clients with information which is useful, ensuring your client base is made up of profitable clients, or accepting profitable matters to work on.

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