Page 1277 - Week 04 - Thursday, 8 May 2014
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I will comment briefly on some of the amendments.
The Agents Act 2003 and Agents Regulation 2003 are amended to de-regulate the travel agent industry by 31 December 2015, including a wind-down of the travel compensation fund. This is part of a national approach agreed to by fair trading and consumer affairs ministers. I note from our consultation with the Australian Federation of Travel Agents that the industry supports the amendments. Primarily this is because the industry will be more competitive, particularly with online overseas agents that are not subject to Australian regulatory frameworks.
Under the Family Provision Act 1969 the time for making a family provision claim against a deceased estate reduces from 12 to six months. The ACT Public Trustee advises that this will create efficiencies in the management of deceased estates and is more in line with the practice in other jurisdictions.
Amendments to the Legal Profession Act 2006 and the Legal Profession Regulation 2007 transfer barrister licensing and disciplinary matters from the Law Society to the Bar Association. The sense of this amendment is self-evident.
The amendments also create a process to ensure that, unless there are good reasons, trust moneys are kept in the ACT. This is because the interest earned goes to the statutory interest account and is used in legal assistance programs.
Finally, there are two amendments to the Public Trustee Act 1985.
The first provides the Public Trustee with more flexibility in advancing trust entitlements to beneficiaries. Currently the Public Trustee has the power to advance up to 100 per cent of trust entitlements to beneficiaries under trusts established by court order—for example, a third-party damages order. However, this is limited to up to 50 per cent for other trusts, such as deceased estates, including intestate estates. The amendment allows the Public Trustee to advance 100 per cent of beneficiary entitlements in all cases. This will provide the Public Trustee with more scope to meet what are sometimes very grave needs of beneficiaries. Currently, regardless of whether or not a need is critical or urgent, the Public Trustee’s hands are tied, sometimes to the serious detriment of the beneficiary.
The second amendment reduces from six months to three the time in which a creditor can make a claim against a deceased estate. Again, this creates efficiencies for the Public Trustee and facilitates the early distribution of estates to beneficiaries.
The JACS directorate have identified the need for these amendments, which are generally minor and non-controversial in nature. We acknowledge their work and we will be supporting the bill.
MR RATTENBURY (Molonglo) (11.13): I also will be supporting this bill. It makes a number of minor policy changes in the Justice and Community Safety portfolio. I will make a few brief comments.
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