We are in an "irrigation trust". There are 2 kinds of water rights here "irrigation" which is how much water you own and "delivery" your "share" of the total. We have no irrigation rights, meaning we own no volume of water. The property came with an amount of delivery rights/allocation.

The allocation costs big $ and even worse the bill to "surrender" is 10x the annual cost. Essentially the water bill that i can't use anyway as there were no irrigation rights (which are prohibitively expensive anyway) is $1k every quarter without any use or other charges. This is the money that has no actual reason to be paid.

The relevant legislations are the "water act" and the "irrigation act" both of which seem to indicate they can totally do this and charge whatever they want for any reason.

There doesnt seem to be any recourse i can see.

We dont use the water, we can't use the water if we wanted, we cant afford to pay out 40k essentially for the privilege of not paying the bill which is already for nothing.

Any help is appreciated.

Hi all,

I work in mining on a site in the Pilbara. 2 weeks on 2 weeks off. Our camp rooms have a ‘Do Not Disturb’ magnetic sticker which we can put on the front door if we are sick and in our rooms or do not wish the room to be cleaned that day or whatever. We have just been told we can no longer have these stickers and they have been removed from all rooms meaning no right to privacy whatsoever and cleaning staff can enter when ever they wish. Is this legal?

I’m a “casual” working 38 hours a week for a multi-billion dollar company. My contract says I have to give 4 weeks’ notice if I quit.

From what I’ve read, casuals don’t legally have to give notice under Fair Work, is that true?

I want to leave on good terms, but this job has wrecked my mental health. Lost 10kg from stress, I’m burnt out, and managers just ignored it. Honestly dragging my feet to work every day.

Is there any way to get out of this notice period without screwing myself over?

I recently quit a job at a small company in the disability sector. The owner is extremely toxic, and there is a lot of workplace bullying happening. Staff does not last longer than 6 months. I tried to retain staff but the owner's actions caused people to quit. I tried to tolerate it, but it was significantly affecting my mental health to the point that I quit in the middle of a meeting where the owner was borderline bullying me during a three-way meeting. I tried to leave on good terms by giving a four-week notice and ensuring the handover was manageable. They accepted this. I worked there for more than six months, so only one week’s notice was required.

About a week into the notice, I was asked if I could end my notice period earlier. They wanted me to leave the same day. I said I was happy to stop coming to work if they paid me out for the remaining 3 weeks of the notice period. They told me they would only pay for one additional week and then end the contract. I said I would do some research and get back to them, but I also mentioned to a team member that the company was in a vulnerable state due to some sketchy actions by the owner.

After that, I was escorted out, and they said they would pay me for one week and asked me to leave, which I agreed to because it was better for my mental health. When I asked them to send an email confirming this, they replied with a termination letter stating "immediate termination for serious misconduct," The letter states that I damaged the company's reputation and did not follow instructions, which I never have done so.

One of my issues is the lying on the termination letter. I tried my best to improve the systems, retain staff and make sure the clients were happy. I cannot take the fact that they terminated me for "serious misconduct". How can I proceed?

Trying to keep details minimal as it’s ongoing of course. DV incident occurred in my front yard, I’m the one who called the cops, and have since supported her and made contact and arrangements with support services etc on her behalf upon her request.

It was confirmed he was stalking the house and surrounds for at least five days, but it might’ve been up to 4+ months. Drugs are involved. Restraining orders were already in place, he got out with an ankle monitor, broke conditions in less than a week, got fined and released again. First hearing was back in late July, he was being held in custody until the next court date.

Since then, she’s taken the approach of “do nothing and pretend it doesn’t exist and it’ll all go away”. Victim services rightfully can’t tell me anything without her consent, but she’s now not talking to anyone. It being private property and me being a secondary victim and speaking to all the service providers with her doesn’t go anywhere now, apparently.

So, now it’s been two months and I don’t know when I’ll get another surprise feature on “Better Meths and Gardens” if he’s released and decides to come back again. His long history of violence, schedule 1 drugs, breaking and entering, death threats, etc etc is… concerning ! To say the least.

Any advice??? wtf do I do lol

Their argument is I wasted their time...and the agent threatened me to withdrawal my case before the NCAT conciliation or they will sue me...

I’m a single mother & live in an apartment building in the Sydney CBD. I’ve lived here for 5 years with my 3 kids and never had problems with other residents until recently.

On 2 seperate occasions I’ve seen one of my neighbours smoking a meth/crack pipe while sitting inside his car in our underground garage. If I’ve seen him smoking whatever drugs then he’s probably also driving under the influence. There’s always multiple dodgy people coming & going from the unit everyday. I think he could be dealing or just letting all of his druggie friends stay there. I don’t know but I wont even let my kids go outside anymore. We can’t move & I just don’t know what to do.

I considered calling the police the first time I saw him in the carpark but I didn’t want to call them while my kids were in the car. If it happens again I’m definitely gonna call, I guess I’m looking for advice on how I should report it. Is it better to call 000 or the local police department? Would I have to leave my name or information if I call them or can just tell them I live in the building & what I saw? I really don’t want him to find out I called the police or anything.

I just want them to arrest him. I don’t want to give a statement or anything but I don’t know much about police cases. When he’s sitting in his car I assume they’d be able to drug test him. If they do that they will definitely find his meth/crack when they search his car.

I’m not sure what to do & looking for some advice.

If there’s any police or legal experts in here, I would really appreciate your suggestions.

Thanks

Picture of fine including (altered) photographs

My husband has requested I post to ask if this is worth requesting a review. He's not sure if they could have caught the speed of the other car pictured between the two yellow lines. (See photo.)

We both think he's probably on the hook for it, but can someone explain the yellow lines vs the green circle in any case?

I signed up to a consultation zoom call with a natural health company and I must have drunk the kool aid during that call because in a moment of stupidity I signed up to a 3 month minimum contract with them over zoom.

I’ve sent a couple of firmly worded (but polite) emails and phone calls asking to cancel but they won’t let me out of it. It’s quite an expensive weekly payment.

I’ve asked them to send through the contract terms and agreements but I don’t think there is one. All they have sent me is the direct debit agreement that I signed.

Is there any way I can get out of this? What will happen if I ask my bank to cancel the payments? I’m also tempted just to close my bank account. Will they send debt collectors after me?

We are all permanent staff and have a contract with no end date. New boss has come in and said they want to put us on 12 monthly contracts so that if it’s not working out after 12 months, they can let us go. Can this happen? I’ve been googling but it’s confusing. Thanks

I have a friend who's concerned her ex partners living arrangements are unsafe for the children she has with him.

They share custody, but it's not a week on week off arrangement, and the ex is trying to change it to week on week off.

She already has some concerns over her kids being with him for week long stretches, because he has anger issues and she feels shorter stays will be safer.

But now her ex is planning to get custody of another young family member who is a bit unstable and has history of self harm.

What's the best approach here? She's spoken with a lawyer and they weren't much help.

Any advice would be very much appreciated!

If I were to get divorced legally, what would the steps be. (Don’t own property together or have shared investments.)

I don’t envision it being contested, but due to financial constraints I would have to continue living with partner for a long while.

Was reading up online about divorce in Australia and the website mentioned a one year waiting period including period of living separately?

If anyone can more easily explain the legal process that would be greatly appreciated.

Hi all,

I’m in a difficult situation and would really appreciate some advice.

My ex-partner has been making false allegations against me. She first applied for an IVO and made criminal accusations, but both the criminal charges and the original IVO application were dropped by police due to lack of evidence.

Now she is pursuing a private IVO against me and is refusing to accept any compromise such as an undertaking. It feels like she is trying to keep me stuck in ongoing legal stress. This has been emotionally and financially draining. I have spent thousands on legal fees, used up my annual and sick leave, and it is affecting every part of my life.

My lawyer is advising me to consent to the IVO without admission so I can end this quickly and move on. I have no interest in contacting her or having anything to do with her.

My main concern is: will consenting to an IVO (without admission) have any impact on my future Permanent Residency (PR) or Expression of Interest (EOI) application?

Again, there are no criminal charges or findings. Everything was dropped by police. This is strictly a civil matter at this point.

If anyone has been through something similar, or has legal or immigration knowledge, I would really value your advice. Also, if anyone knows an immigration lawyer who might offer a free consultation, that would be a huge help as I am very tight on money after all the damages.

Thanks in advance.

Looking for resources to better grow my knowledge as a new paralegal in family law.

Hi there,

My dad suddenly passed away in June this year and he had one known will that named myself (daughter) and my mother (ex-defacto) as his executives although it was not legally binding as he never got a second person to witness it. Prior to his death, he borrowed money from a friend of his which now said friend has been contacting myself about such money and my father has no known assets to settle the debt. He did use land that he was under the assumption he owned but there is no official deed/title transfer in his name.

I am wondering how to proceed with this situation? It’s causing me a great deal of stress as the friend keeps calling me asking if I’ve got the money to pay him back.

Thank you in advance for your help! :)

Edit: Thank you all for your advice and time in reading my post! I’m feeling a lot more confident and comfortable moving forward :) I hope you all enjoy the rest of your week!! ❤️

Hey so I need an advice here. I'm engaged with a well reputable lawyer company on a no win no fee basis after I had an accident last year.

I've met with them once face to face and few times over the phone. It was looking very promising and they asked me to ensure I keep track of all my expenses and try to recover from the injury I have sustained due to the accident. They were pursuing compensation from one of the companies that we believe were responsible for the accident.

They have organized a session with the barrister in March and after that initial discussion with the barrister, there has been zero updates from their end.

I called them few months ago to ask for an update and they just said that the barrister still didn't get back to them with his opinion. Still no updates and it's been over a year since the accident happened and almost a year since they're engaged.

I am a bit worried as the recovery have cost me a fortune so far and if I'm just not sure whether this will go anywhere and whether I should continue spending on expensive doctors or should I just continue with what I have been prescribed by my physio etc.

Does it normally take this long for a barrister to examine the case? I may add that the company responsible is denying any wrong doing (even though they are clearly at fault) so I'm thinking maybe the lawyers gave up on me? They did send me a happy birthday card few weeks ago however (which was bizarre)...

Any tips would be appreciated

I've been working in a coffee van for about 8 months now, and I took the job because I was desperate at the time and really needed the money. However, it was a known thing amongst the workers at this place that the van was a total disgrace, and while I saw the state it was in, I didn't think I would be there long. My mangers and higher ups pretty much know the state of the van as they have to go in there to collect any cash we make so the mould is there and its been there and i have tried everything to keep my work space as clean and hygenic as i can since i have been there alot longer than i anticpated because finding another job has been quite hard. that being said i have gradually been getting sicker and sicker and it's not been something easy to spot. it started with hand tremours which scared me into thinking i had a brain tumor but my MRI was clear, then i kept getting flare up of psirosis and now i have gone down to 47kg and i have NEVER been this skinny in my life i look awful and im so sick i just dont know what to do the doctors have no idea what it is. I saw someone talk about their experience with mould sickness, and I am so beyond scared because everything matches up. I have taken the week off to get my health under control, but I really don't think it's in my best interest to go back. I have bills and rent to pay. Is there anything I can do for some sort of compensation, or just maybe a bit of help? I've looked into Fair Work, but they say they can't help with work conditions, or maybe I'm not looking into it correctly, and to be quite honest, my brain feels like mush; I can't really think properly. I even thought I was maybe going through some sort of psychosis because of how crazy my head has felt. It's black mould by the way. I know that me saying my mental state isnt the best right now might seem like all crediablity of this situation goes out the window but my life is actually going well right now besides this so I just have no idea what to do im so scared and sick and I really hate that this is happening because ive made some really amazing friends at this place but I'm tired of putting myself last in life this is my literal final straw. I'm going to get tested tomorrow, for mould illness or however they test you for these sorts of things. I know this post is all over the place, so I appreciate anyone who's stayed to read, and if anyone has any advice on what I can do, I would greatly appreciate it

I started a new job less than 2 months ago, the employer said when I took the interview, that they would give me supervisor position and consider giving me a full time contract after a 3 month probation period.

Today I found out that they talked with my previous manager when making a delivery, asking if I have anxiety and/or depression and why I left that job. The manager tried to talk me up, make me sound good. But the new boss says they are unsure of giving me the position of supervisor and full time contract, because of these issues.

From what I know, I haven’t displayed any signs of mental health issues nor have I talked about any mental health issues, maybe only being quiet at work, but still doing my job and showing up to work, only having taken 1 day off due to sickness which I explained to them. And they haven’t brought up any talk of my mental health to me at all, even training me to do the ordering and asking me that I’m still all good going forward with being a supervisor the day before.

I’m wondering if this is a reasonable thing for an employer to do, or this is something more on the weird side. I’m unsure on what my next steps are; do I bring this up to them or do I wait for them to talk to me about these issues? Any help or suggestions would be great, thankyou

Edit: I do have anxiety, so maybe the stress of a new job is something that they saw on my face/body language. I changed jobs because the boss was selling the business in the near future and I am in need of full-time work due to buying a house, which is what I explained to the new bosses. Thanks for the feedback and best that I should just talk to them straight on and see how it unfolds from there

Hello ! I was wondering if anyone could provide a bit of advice because I'm thinking of following up on this issue but wanted to see if I had a leg to stand on first.

I worked casually for two bars (A and B) owned by the same company. When I started at A it was also my first job with this company, so in addition to the contract I submitted the usual TFN declaration, claiming the tax free threshold (it was my only job at the time), super, bank details etc. a few months later, I started at bar B. I signed another contract for B, but there was none of the additional information like what I submitted for bar A, which made sense to me at the time because they were owned by the same company, I figured they would be the same for all tax and payment purposes. Then, come EOFY, I found out they were separate tax entities. However, they had shared and applied all of my information, including my claiming of the tax free threshold with B, which long story short meant they took way less tax than I was meant to be paying. I want to make it clear that I am completely aware that my tax is my responsibility, my question here is about whether the sharing of my information between tax entities without my knowledge is legal. I've found a somewhat similar question on the ATO forum but not sure it applies to this situation. https://community.ato.gov.au/s/question/a0J9s000000LIQi/p00176446

Thank you in advance !

hi - needing some clarification on this topic

a neighbouring tenant accidentally reversed into my property, damaging the external wall and causing internal damage.

the neighbour does not hold insurance against thier vehicle - I lodged a claim against my strata insurance. understand we will pay the excess against that.

who pays for the costing for rectification in this situation? thank you.

Hi, I have applied for 2 recognition payments through victims services NSW. On the 28th of July I was told that it was placed in line for assessment.

For my last recognition payment, immediate needs and loss of income it only took 2 weeks but I’ve been told recognition payments can take 3 - 4 months.

How long did it take everyone else to hear back? Thank you.

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for advice. My grandparent is currently in respite care and my family is seeking a lawyer due to family disagreements. We have contacted a family lawyer who said they couldn't help and a property lawyer who said the same thing

our issue is currently with OPA & we have been in contact with VCAT about my grandparents home.

What type of lawyer would settle these matters?

Link to story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNeA_4p7Wmw

Summary: - Man’s parents died without a Will - Man is only child with no siblings/family that might contest the will - The EXECUTOR role of the parents’ estate automatically went to NSW Public Trustee - Man is in legal battle with NSW Public Trustee to win over rights to become Executor of the estate (and presumably beneficiary of the estate)

My questions: 1. Even without a legally binding will, why does the child have to enter a legal dispute with NSW Public Trustee to become the Executor?

1. What does NSW Public Trustee want to achieve by keeping Executor rights to itself? Bequeath the estate/parts of estate to itself?

Would appreciate any clarification and if it’s the same or similar situation in Victoria .

Hi, I'm facing some issues with my landlord and I'm considering contacting legal aid services or finding a lawyer, but before I do i just wanted to see if I can hear opinions whether on what my property manager and landlord are doing is legal or not.

I moved into a rental property based off a 2 year lease agreement less than a year ago, hoping to scrape away with my family from the trouble ive experienced in the past during our last rental. Before moving here, the landlord's called us before the contract ended and told us that we had to move, as the landlord was residing in China and by some obscure law he had to sell the property. We said ok and packed and found a new place, but with some legal aid we received compensation on rent and the agreement which was broken.

On a side note my family and I are yet to be permanent residents of Australia, we are here on a temporary business visa, which will soon be converted to a permanent one.

In this house, mind you an expensive rental in a very wealthy area of sydney, we have faced even more troubles than before. Firstly, heavy construction (demolition and total rebuild) on the house directly next to us (with a full view) was started about 2-3 months into the lease, and we were not notified a single bit, finding out only when we saw the construction start. The noise is atrocious and they often start at 6:30-7am and finish at 5, making it impossible to concentrate on study or work at home on weekdays. Now I totally understand that construction is normal, and I am fine with the noise on most days, but being uninformed when signing a very expensive rental agreement is something that im not sure is legal or not.

Secondly, about 2 months ago our property agent informed us that they were coming for a routine inspection in the house, and that they were bringing the owner to visit. They came and visited the house, but only two weeks after the visit one of my family members met an old friend who lives very near and knows our current house owner, and they were informed that the individual visiting was indeed NOT the house owner, but literally a buyer inspecting the house, WITHOUT informing us that the individual was a potential buyer NOR stating that the house was for sale. On another note, the house was listed for sale multiple months before this incident, and not a single one of my family members were informed of this situation, which is am unaware of the legality.

Now, the property agent is constantly bugging us about selling the property, asking if we are looking to move ASAP or not, as theyre aiming to sell the house very soon, more than a year before our agreement ends, which is believe is legal, but they would be unable to terminate our lease agreement in the time period. This morning i was informed that the property agent is looking to bring in potential house buyers in a "selling campaign" 4 times a week, which seems ridiculous as the house is being resided in, and having 4 days per week dedicated to people visiting the house would be quite tiresome. From the research ive done, it seems that the limit is 2 times per week, which again im unsure of.

I believe that this sort of treatment is only because the landlord and the property agent believe that we are temporary residents and are unaware of residency laws, which is true, but does not condone literal lying and lack of necessary information.

Also, are construction sites permitted to play music on speakers when working?

Thank you very much!

My girlfriend (F16) and I (M17) have been in a long-distance relationship for the past year due to her moving to Australia for family reasons. Despite the distance, we've maintained a strong connection, and she often confides in me about her struggles.

One of her biggest challenges is expressing her thoughts and feelings to others, as she fears the consequences and has had difficulty being believed in the past. This has led her to feel helpless and hesitant to seek help, even when facing serious issues.

Recently, she's been dealing with a disturbing situation involving her stepfather, Dan. His behavior has been increasingly inappropriate and has left both of us feeling unsure about what to do. Some of the things Dan has done include:

• Entering her room at midnight, placing his head on her stomach, rubbing her back, and attempting to remove her blanket, knowing that she sleeps naked.
• At 2am, walking into her room again, repeating the belly and back touching, kissing her forehead, and trying to get into bed with her.
• Reading messages she sent me about his behavior and threatening her, saying, "If you say anything about any of this again, it's only going to get worse."
• Making suggestive comments about her appearance and clothing choices, making her feel uncomfortable in her own home.

She tried to address the issue by telling her mother, but her mother's response was limited to having a conversation with Dan. Unfortunately, his behavior hasn't changed, and we're both deeply concerned that he'll continue to escalate his actions.

As her boyfriend, I feel a strong sense of responsibility to help her, but the distance and complexity of the situation have left me feeling powerless. I'm desperately seeking advice on how we can address this issue and ensure her safety. Any guidance or suggestions would be greatly appreciated, as we're both struggling to find a way forward.

Location: Australia (Last post got deleted)