On a macro level, some of the challenges facing Australian businesses today are the cost pressures, declining consumer demand, political unrest and an increasing business insolvencies. We’re seeing a record number of elections in Europe, together with uncertainty over the presidency in the USA as Kamala Harris and Donald Trump battle it out. These elections are guaranteed to impact the economies of other countries around the world.

The cost of everything – from labour, to fuel, to groceries, to housing, to raw materials – has risen exponentially with high inflation. It’s taking a toll on Australian people, households and businesses with no signs of slowing down.

CreditorWatch’s June 2024 Business Risk Index shows that invoice payment defaults are rising and order values are dropping. With businesses experiencing pressure in both cost and demand, it’s more important than ever to keep your business ahead of the curve. To help you do that, CreditorWatch has teamed up with Natalie Ledlin, Terry Ledlin and Holly Grujovski from FCW Lawyers to bring you our Legal Pulse newsletter keeping you up to date with the latest legal developments and best practice tips to protect your business.

Check out what we have in store this month:

Credit applications and electronic signatures – Are they legal?

This year has seen changes to how documents can be signed and witnessed during the pandemic, and there are new challenges with the rise of AI and digital technologies. Many are asking, “Can my customer sign the Credit Application electronically?” The short answer is yes BUT there are different types of electronic signatures and some precautions to follow. Make sure you get it right so that your Credit Application is signed validly.  Read more.

Make trusts great again – How to avoid confusion when dealing with them

Trusts can cause confusion and misunderstanding, often because they are less transparent than other business structures and the concepts can be hard to understand. But trading trusts are still out there and you should have a basic understanding to protect yourself when doing business with one. To help you, this refresher on trusts will break down some of the transparency and demystify some of the confusion.

The top 10 PPSA risks in your Terms & Conditions

For suppliers of goods and equipment, the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth) (PPSA) is a fundamental requirement to protect against customer insolvency. The PPSA all starts with the contract between you and your customer – usually in your Terms & Conditions document.

But if not followed properly, the protections provided by the PPSA can be lost (along with money that is owed or even ownership to goods and equipment supplied). Read this article to avoid the top 10 PPSA risks we see in Terms & Conditions.  

Are your personal guarantees worth the paper they’re written on?

For many suppliers, a common feature of the onboarding process is a personal guarantee taken from an owner or director of the company customer. These personal guarantees can lie dormant for months and years on end until the customer can’t (or won’t) pay any longer.

When the time comes to enforce the personal guarantee and make the owner or director pay, you need to be able to rely on it – make sure you have these top five things in your personal guarantee to ensure it is valid.

Stay tuned for our next legal newsletter and if there’s a topic you want discussed or a question you want answered, let us know !