By Mike Worsnop - 26 Jan 2012
The Australian Personal Property Securities Act 2009 will
commence on 30 January 2012 introducing a new regime
regulating interests in personal property. Readers
may recall the introduction of similar legislation in New Zealand
in 2002 and the changes that it brought in terms of the
registration and enforcement of security interests in this
country.
As in New Zealand, the Act creates a single register for all
security interests in property other than land and buildings.
Charges over companies that were previously registered on ASIC will
now be registered on the PPSR. Some existing charges will be
automatically transferred. Holders of other security interests will
have a transitional period within which to re-register.
Businesses selling products under retention of title
arrangements or in the business of leasing or bailing equipment
will now be able to register the security interest created by those
arrangements. Those who don't may lose priority to general
security holders. It will therefore be crucial for those
businesses to review and update their terms of trade and customer
contracts and implement processes for registering their
interests.
If you believe your business might be affected or you have any
queries in this area, please contact your usual Martelli McKegg
contact or one of our commercial partners, Mike Worsnop , Andrew Nicoll or Melissa Higham.