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Purchasing commercial property often involves navigating complex existing leases. In this session, leasing specialist Warwick La Hood discusses the nuances of commercial and retail leases, highlighting key clauses, common traps, and due diligence imperatives to identify potential pitfalls and protect their clients' interests. This session will provide a roadmap covering essential due diligence steps, important lease provisions under relevant legislation, and the hidden risks that could impact your client's investment.

The state and Federal governments are incentivizing mixed use, mixed tenure development in an effort to address the housing affordability crisis. That means increasing numbers of purchasers will be buying apartments in large, complex ‘stratum’ subdivisions, co-owing property with commercial and retail owners, along with community housing providers (CHPs). 

Stratum subdivisions are complex and expensive. While purchasers of apartments will own a lot and part of common property in a strata scheme, and be protected by strata title legislation, the overarching development is not strata title. The relationship between residential strata schemes and the commercial, retail and CHP components of the estate will be regulated by a building or strata management statement (BMS/SMS), a document written by the developer’s lawyer. It will apportion costs for ‘shared facilities’ in the estate and is only alterable with unanimous consent. The development will be governed by a Building Management Committee (BMS), a body on which the residential strata schemes will routinely be outvoted. Buying off the plan, it is extremely difficult for apartment purchasers to understand the complexity and financial burdens of this kind of development. 

This session will break down the legal structures, highlighting the essential elements conveyancers should be communicating to their clients.

Right now, it often feels like the world is spinning faster than we can keep up. As business owners and professionals, we’re navigating constant change, rising stress, and more uncertainty than ever before. In this keynote, Andrew Griffiths, Australia’s #1 business author and globally recognised entrepreneurial futurist, will share practical, uplifting, and sometimes surprising strategies to help you stay grounded, resilient, and focused when everything around you feels chaotic. Drawing on real-world experience and decades of entrepreneurial wisdom, Andrew will explore how to reframe challenges, lead with empathy, stay inspired and motivated and make better choices under pressure. Expect a highly engaging, thought-provoking session that will leave you calmer, stronger, and ready for whatever comes next.

In this session, AML/CTF consultants Neil Jeans and Alan Connor of Grant Thornton will provide a comprehensive update on the progress being made in the lead-up to 1 July 2026. The session will include an overview of the regime and the obligations that will soon apply to all practitioners and staff, not just business owners.

In particular, the discussion will cover AUSTRAC's step-by-step progress, including the recently been published rules, the current timeline for what's ahead, including the core guidance release set down for October, sector-specific guidance set down for December, and the enrolment and commencement dates.

Tony Cahill delves into the essential elements of contract formation, statutory interventions, and the role of agents in property transactions. ​ This session will explore key principles, case law, and practical insights, including the significance of exchange, the authority of agents, and the risks of agents acting outside their scope. Gain a deeper understanding of how contracts are formed, the impact of statutory frameworks, and the legal consequences of agent misconduct.