This article is more than 36 months old and is now archived. This article has not been updated to reflect any changes to the law.

clearlaw

Business Structures in 2007: An eventful year in review — issues for you and your clients to consider

Last revised on : 01-01-2008
Two cases during 2007 aptly illustrated the need for joint venturers to carefully document their relationship — in particular, whether fiduciary duties apply between the parties as they would in a partnership. The Cleardocs Team at Maddocks

In Farah v Say-Dee, the High Court appeared to assume that fiduciary duties applied to the relationship — despite the parties having agreed that it was a joint venture.

In ASIC v Citigroup, the Victorian Supreme Court confirmed that parties can expressly 'contract out' of fiduciary duties — including in documents such as joint venture agreements.

These cases remind practitioners that they cannot rely on the assumption that fiduciary duties do not apply to joint venturers — even so, express contractual terms can address the issues adequately.

For a more detailed summary of the cases and the differences between partnerships and joint ventures, see our full article here.

 

Lawyer in Profile

Daniel Hui
Daniel Hui
Senior Associate
+61 3 9258 3563
daniel.hui@maddocks.com.au

Qualifications: BCom, LLB (Hons), Monash University

Daniel is a member of Maddocks Tax and Structuring team. He has expertise advising on both direct and indirect taxes. He has represented private and publicly-listed companies, high net worth family groups and not-for-profit organisations in a broad range of tax and duty matters.

Read Our Latest Articles