Corporations Amendment (No. 1) Act 2010

Articles Written by John Keeves (Partner)

The Corporations Amendment (No. 1) Act received the Royal assent on 24 November 2010, and is awaiting proclamation.

The Act expands ASIC's powers to seek search warrants, and permits telephone tapping in relation to market manipulation and insider trading invetigations (by amending the Telecommunications (Interceptions Access) Act 1979. It also allows inspection of register held on computer to be inspected by computer, rather than hard copy, and for a copy of a register held on a computer to be provided in accordance with the regulations. Further, the Act limits the purposes for which information obtained from a register to be used to those permitted in accordance with the regulations.

In relation to penalties for market manipulation and insider trading, these have been increased to:

  • for an individual: 10 year imprisonment and the greater of 4,500 penalty units ($495,000) or 3 times the benefit derived
  • for a corporation: the greater of 4,500 penalty units ($495,000) or 3 times the benefit derived.

If the benefit cannot be determined, 10% of the corporation's turnover for the preceding 12 months (including turnover of related bodies corporate).

Important Disclaimer: The material contained in this article is comment of a general nature only and is not and nor is it intended to be advice on any specific professional matter. In that the effectiveness or accuracy of any professional advice depends upon the particular circumstances of each case, neither the firm nor any individual author accepts any responsibility whatsoever for any acts or omissions resulting from reliance upon the content of any articles. Before acting on the basis of any material contained in this publication, we recommend that you consult your professional adviser. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation (Australia-wide except in Tasmania).

For more information, please contact

Related insights Read more insight

Paying with scrip? Key considerations for junior ASX-listed mining companies

The past year has undoubtedly been challenging for companies in the lithium, rare earth and critical minerals sectors. To provide some context, lithium carbonate, lithium hydroxide and spodumene...

More
Do you need to disclose an ACCC investigation to comply with your continuous disclosure obligations?

Recent cases have highlighted whether an ASX-listed entity must make a market disclosure to the ASX if it receives a confidential compulsory investigation notice under section 155 of the...

More
Preliminary discovery – the neat trick that allows you to obtain another party's documents

In recent years, several cases have involved a party seeking preliminary discovery against another party to determine whether to commence proceedings against that party for conduct that breaches...

More