By: Daniel Butler, Director ([email protected]) and Bryce Figot, Special Counsel ([email protected]), DBA Lawyers The recent decision by the Supreme Court of Queensland in the case of Re Narumon Pty Ltd [2018] QSC 185 (‘Narumon’) again confirms the importance of having a quality SMSF document supplier. More specifically, it shows how poorly drafted binding death benefit nomination [read more]
By Daniel Butler, Director, DBA Lawyers In Australia, death duties (broadly inheritance taxes) were abolished in 1979. In the realm of superannuation, however, when a member dies, recipients of superannuation death benefits are sometimes liable to pay tax. Who doesn’t have to pay the super death tax? Superannuation death benefits are received tax free by [read more]
Daniel Butler ([email protected]), Director, DBA Lawyers We outline below the key superannuation changes announced in the Federal Budget 2018 on 8 May 2018. Some of the proposed changes will have a substantial impact on SMSFs if they are finalised as law. Nomination of superannuation guarantee (‘SG’) for certain employees with multiple employers Broadly, members with [read more]
Daniel Butler ([email protected]), Director and Bryce Figot ([email protected]), Special Counsel, DBA Lawyers The new transfer balance cap regime can make succession planning tricky. A member may desire to make their pensions reversionary upon death. However, there may be situations where receiving these reversionary pensions would cause the beneficiary to exceed their transfer balance cap. Consequently, [read more]
By: Daniel Butler, Director ([email protected]), DBA Lawyers The mid-2017 superannuation reforms have had a profound impact on market linked pensions (‘MLPs’). While most of the planning should have already been implemented, there is still some opportunity to review and potentially restructure clients with MLPs. We briefly examine below the treatment of an MLP depending on whether [read more]
By Daniel Butler, Director, DBA Lawyers Removing a member from a self managed superannuation fund (‘SMSF’) is not a simple process, particularly where there is a dispute or some animosity among members. Here are some situations that DBA Lawyers has come across: family members have a falling out with a particular family member that they [read more]
By William Fettes, Senior Associate, Daniel Butler, Director, DBA Lawyers The rules that govern when exempt income arises in relation to the earnings on assets supporting transition to retirement income streams (‘TRISs’) were substantially changed with effect from 1 July 2017. Advisers and SMSF trustees should be aware that there are now two types of [read more]
Daniel Butler ([email protected]), Director, DBA Lawyers Company constitutions are often treated as a commodity even though they are a very critical document to the overall effective operation of a company. A constitution, for instance, governs the company’s decision making, powers including the appointment and removal of officers, shareholders and many other aspects of a company. [read more]
Daniel Butler, Director, DBA Lawyers Small private companies frequently act as trustees for SMSFs or trusts, and sometimes in their own right. These companies are governed by their constitution (a set of internal rules). Standard constitutions for a private company are often outdated and contain many pitfalls for the unwary. On the other hand, the [read more]
By Daniel Butler, Director, DBA Lawyers SMSF changes of trustee are a ticking time bomb if not properly drafted by a lawyer with proper experience. While it is easy to put together a document that simply states that one trustee resigns and one trustee is appointed, several real examples exist where SMSF changes of trustee [read more]
