We work with mutuals and not-for-profits on a daily basis.
Here are some useful resources:
About this site
About this site
We work with mutuals and not-for-profits on a daily basis. Here are some useful resources:
Credit Union and Mutual Law Blog
Legislation
Articles
Corporate Governance
Not-for-Profit links
PHIAC corporate governance standards
The Private Health Insurance Administration Council (PHIAC) is an independent Statutory Authority that regulates the private health insurance industry.
PHIAC has announced that it will restructure to bring a stronger focus to its statutory role of protecting the interests of consumers of private health insurance, including to make sure it can deal quickly and effectively in the (unlikely) event that there is a major prudential crisis within the PHI industry.
PHIAC will be rolling out a suite of prudential standards.
Capital standards have already been reviewed.
A draft standard on Corporate Governance is currently circulating within the industry for comment by 6 March 2009, with an intended commencement date in June 2009.
The draft standard includes rules on:
- board composition;
- independence of directors;
- chairperson;
- residency of directors;
- director associates of shareholders;
- board charter;
- delegation;
- board policies;
- board performance;
- board renewal;
- board audit committee;
- conflicts of interest;
- internal audit.
It is clear that health funds will be coming under greater regulation and that PHIAC expects boards to be fully involved and responsible for their organisations.
Langes specialise in advising not-for-profit companies and have had experience with these types of standards for listed companies (supervised by ASX) and financial institutions (ADI’s) and insurers (supervised by APRA).
We have have produced a 52 page Toolkit to help private health funds implement the governance standards.
The Toolkit explains:
- what corporate governance means
- what your board needs to do
- what policies and documents you need to prepare
- constitution changes
- corporate governance reporting
- board succession
Call David Jacobson on 07 3878 5098 if you’d like to discuss issues that concern you.
PHIAC corporate governance standards
The Private Health Insurance Administration Council (PHIAC) is an independent Statutory Authority that regulates the private health insurance industry.
PHIAC has announced that it will restructure to bring a stronger focus to its statutory role of protecting the interests of consumers of private health insurance, including to make sure it can deal quickly and effectively in the (unlikely) event that there is a major prudential crisis within the PHI industry.
PHIAC will be rolling out a suite of prudential standards.
Capital standards have already been reviewed.
A draft standard on Corporate Governance is currently circulating within the industry for comment by 6 March 2009, with an intended commencement date in June 2009.
The draft standard includes rules on:
- board composition;
- independence of directors;
- chairperson;
- residency of directors;
- director associates of shareholders;
- board charter;
- delegation;
- board policies;
- board performance;
- board renewal;
- board audit committee;
- conflicts of interest;
- internal audit.
It is clear that health funds will be coming under greater regulation and that PHIAC expects boards to be fully involved and responsible for their organisations.
Langes specialise in advising not-for-profit companies and have had experience with these types of standards for listed companies (supervised by ASX) and financial institutions (ADI’s) and insurers (supervised by APRA).
We have have produced a 52 page Toolkit to help private health funds implement the governance standards.
The Toolkit explains:
- what corporate governance means
- what your board needs to do
- what policies and documents you need to prepare
- constitution changes
- corporate governance reporting
- board succession
Call David Jacobson on 07 3878 5098 if you’d like to discuss issues that concern you.
Review into Australia’s superannuation system
Senator Nick Sherry, Minister for Superannuation and Corporate Law, has announced the details of the Review into the governance, efficiency, structure and operation of Australia’s superannuation system including the membership of the Expert Panel and the Terms of Reference.
This follows the release last month of an industry-wide Communique of Principles on the Australian superannuation system, which contained an industry resolution that the operational features of the system be examined.
The Review will report to the Government by 30 June, 2010, although it may report on particular issues prior to that date.
The Review will commence its work early in the new financial year and the Panel will call for public submissions and conduct public hearings in due course.
Company charges and the Octaviar decision
ASIC reviews the GFC
In Regulatory issues arising from the financial crisis for ASIC and for market participants, ASIC Chair Tony D'Aloisio argues that " a significant feature of the collapses which have been part of this wealth destruction, has been flawed business models. Flawed in the sense that they could not withstand the downturn. Too many businesses, and a very large proportion of the failures to date, were built on business models that could only prosper if asset prices continually rose and debt markets remained open and liquid."...
"should ASIC have prevented these business models or put an end to them earlier?
Now, the answer to this specific question, in the context of the Corporations Act and ASIC’s powers, is clearly ‘no’...responsibility for flawed business models lies with management and with their Boards. It’s part of the ‘free enterprise’ system."
Review of Non-Forestry Managed Investment Schemes
The Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Competition Policy and Consumer Affairs, Chris Bowen MP,has released the findings of a review of non-forestry agricultural managed investment schemes (MIS).
The review examined the costs and benefits of non–forestry MIS, and assessed whether such schemes are an effective tool for attracting investment to rural and regional Australia. This included an examination of the way in which the tax system treats non-forestry MIS.
Access to Share Registers and the Regulation of Unsolicited Off Market Offers
The Minister for Superannuation and Corporate Law has released for public consultation an options paper: Access to Share Registers and the Regulation of Unsolicited Off Market Offers.
The paper puts forward a range of options to address the continuing practice by some entities of making undervalued, unsolicited off market share offers to shareholders of publicly listed companies especially where the offer involves instalment payments.
The paper also proposes reform options to significantly change the rules around access to share registers.
The reform options for addressing issues on share register access include:
- implementing a proper purpose test for access to a register;
- replacing the current "marginal cost" fee arrangement with either a reasonable cost, full cost, market cost, negotiated cost, a prescribed fee based on the takeovers access prescribed fee, or a combination of these; and
- modernising the rules around the format of share registers.
The reform options for boosting consumer protection of listed company shareholders include:
- introducing a cooling off period of between 1-3 months for the accepting shareholder to withdraw from the contract or acceptance document before it becomes binding;
- including a warning statement in offer documents like the health warnings on cigarettes;
- put in place a pre-emptive right to be given to companies to intervene in sales of their shares that do not reflect the market value of the shares; and
- establish a "do not contact" register.
The Government is seeking submissions on the options paper by close of business 24 July 2009.