INTERNATIONAL SECTION
Law Council Submission to the Brumby anti-dumping review
The Law Council lodged a submission in September 2012 to the review of arrangements for assessing and investigating anti-dumping matters. The review is also considering the feasibility of establishing a Commonwealth Anti-Dumping Agency. The review, led by the Hon. John Brumby, is being conducted by the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department. The Law Council submitted:
• The outcome of any dumping or subsidy investigation should be the same regardless of who conducts it. It must be based upon objective and verifi ed evidence, as the anti-dumping regime is rules-based and derives from international agreements. The Law Council has no view on whether Australian Customs and Border Security (Customs) or a stand-alone Commonwealth Anti-Dumping Agency would be best to conduct investigations.
• Reform of the procedure for dumping investigations is required. Each investigation should involve two investigative teams: one to investigate dumping and/or subsidisation, and the other to investigate injury, materiality, causation and the public interest. Both teams should report to a three member review panel chaired by a judge, ex-judge or senior counsel with the other two members having appropriate expertise (such as an economist or academic specialising in trade law).
The review panel should determine whether measures should be imposed and, if it determines they should, so recommend to the Minister, or otherwise terminate the investigation.
The Deputy Chair of the International Law Section, Mr Andrew Percival, Special Counsel with Corrs Chambers Westgarth, met with the Hon. John Brumby, and led the development of the Law Council’s submission to the review.
Immigration Lawyers of Australasia (ILAA) Committee
In September the Immigration Lawyers of Australasia (ILAA) Committee of the ILS provided input to a Law Council submission on slavery, slavery-like conditions and people traffi cking. This inquiry is being run by the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Aff airs, Defence and Trade. The ILAA has recommended further amendments to the code of conduct applicable to migration agents and enhanced transparency and accountability mechanisms.
The ILAA submitted similar comments in response to amendments to the Code of Conduct proposed by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship.
In August the ILAA was represented at the tri-annual Migration Advice Liaison Meeting run by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship. Papers from the meeting may be requested from the ILS Administrator by email.
Hong Kong Chapter
The Convenor of the Law Council’s Hong Kong Chapter, Mr Anthony Chow, of CWL Partners, met with the Law Council President, Ms Catherine Gale, and the Deputy Secretary-General and Director, International, Ms Margery Nicoll, at a breakfast meeting at the Mandarin Oriental on 30 August 2012. Ms Gale and Ms Nicoll returned to Australia via Hong Kong, after attending the 23rd Conference of the Presidents of Law Associations in Asia (POLA), in Manila 27–29 August 2012.
A proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Law Council of Australia and the Hong Kong Law Society is under consideration.
Some of the developments that Ms Gale and Ms Nicoll discussed with Mr Chow included recent Law Council activity, the MoU, and the planning that is underway for future Chapter activities.
New York Chapter
The New York Chapter, with Susan Davies as Convenor and 43 members, is currently the most active of the Chapters currently.
On 27 September 2012 the Chapter hosted an inaugural roundtable discussion featuring Australians working as in-house counsel in New York. The roundtable was followed by a networking reception. The event was hosted by Jones Day, East 41st Street, New York.
In response to a request by the New York Chapter, the Law Council has sought the assistance of the Australian Taxation Offi ce and the Treasury in assessing an alleged double taxation issue raised by a member of the New York Chapter.
London Chapter
On 26 September 2012, the Law Council President, Ms Catherine Gale; President-elect, Mr Joe Catanzariti; and the Director, International, Ms Margery Nicoll, met with two Australian lawyers working in London, Mr David Truex Barrister, Consultant Solicitor with Taylor Hampton Solicitors Limited, and Ms Marnie Pearce, Legal Counsel with the Royal Bank of Scotland, to discuss the development of the London Chapter. The Law Council representatives were in London for the International Conference of Legal Regulators, 27–28 September, after which they traveled to Dublin for the 2012 International Bar Association Conference.
Strategy for growing the International Chapters
The ILS Executive agreed in July 2012 that the development of a strategy for servicing and growing the Law Council’s overseas Chapters was a high priority for the ILS for the 2012–13 fi nancial year.
The Executive has established a working party chaired by Dr Gordon Hughes, with Mr Chilton, Dr Babeck, Professor Nottage and Mr Percival, and the ILS Administrator, Dr Hanna Jaireth, as members. Dr Jaireth has developed a manual for Chapters and template marketing and event management documents.
European Focus Group
The European Focus Group was represented at the launch of Rewriting a Constitution: Georgia’s Shift Towards Europe by Group Chair Dr Wolfgang Babeck in mid-August 2012. The Chair of the Georgian State Constitutional
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