In The Media

Legal Practice Director Jeff Garrett joined 4BC Mornings to unpack the fallout from Telstra’s national outage, focusing on what compensation options are available to frustrated customers and businesses.

Jeff explained that while individuals and businesses can pursue a claim if they can demonstrate financial loss, proving that loss is often very difficult, particularly for commuters, tradespeople, and others whose time and money could be affected in less obvious ways.

He pointed listeners to the Telecommunications Ombudsman as the most practical avenue, noting it can handle disputes up to $100,000, while acknowledging that establishing Telstra’s fault is central to any claim.

To listen to the full interview, click here.

A five-hour Telstra outage disrupted mobile services for potentially millions of Australians this week, affecting triple-zero calls and public transport systems in NSW and Victoria.

Attwood Marshall Lawyers’ Legal Practice Director, Jeff Garrett, shared his expertise in the Daily Telegraph on the legal consequences for Telstra and the compensation options that may be available to affected customers and businesses.

Jeff told business reporter Sarah Perillo that the outage has the right ingredients to spark a significant claim, though he cautioned that proving loss won’t be straightforward for every customer.

“You have to prove financial loss is directly related to the breach or the outage. Sometimes you don’t know what that looks like until they do some sort of investigation into the outage and what caused it,” he said.

He also spoke about how individuals and small businesses could lodge a claim with the Telecommunications Ombudsman, which can handle disputes up to $100,000.

To read the article, click here

Proposed changes to how GPs bulk bill aged care residents were due to take effect on 1 July 2026, replacing verbal consent with signed documentation before every consult.

Attwood Marshall Lawyers Senior Paralegal and Accredited Aged Care Professional Bindy Marshall told Channel 7 Queensland news that the proposed changes, if introduced as planned, would have been “fraught with danger,” given “95% of our clients cannot sign or consent for themselves.”

If a client couldn’t give consent and was unable to pay privately for a GP visit, she said facilities would have had “no other choice but to bundle them into an ambulance and send them straight to hospital.”

The backlash from the aged care and medical sectors was significant enough that Canberra has since pressed pause on the reforms, introducing a 12-month transition period.

Watch the segment here.

And read Bindy’s opinion piece on the government’s reprieve here.

Legal Practice Director Jeff Garrett spoke to the Australian Financial Review about the history and future of discretionary trusts, as the Federal Government’s proposed budget changes look to impose a minimum 30 per cent tax rate on trust distributions.

Jeff traced the origins of trusts back to the Crusades and explained how they have evolved over centuries – from protecting the estates of knights to sheltering family business and investment income.

The wide-ranging piece looks at the more than 40-year legislative campaign the government has been running against trust-based tax planning.

Read the full article here.

Wills and Estates Partner Debbie Sage appeared on 9News Gold Coast, joining Dr Michael Pyne and presenter Paul Taylor to discuss how our Community Wills Days support Currumbin Wildlife Hospital.

Our lawyers donate their time to help individuals and couples get their Wills in order, with every cent of the fee going straight to Currumbin Wildlife Hospital and the important work it does treating over 16,000 wildlife patients a year.

Watch the segment here

The federal government’s budget proposes changes that could push the effective tax rate on discretionary trust distributions to bucket companies as high as 63 per cent, well above Australia’s top marginal rate.

Our Legal Practice Director Jeff Garrett spoke with the Australian Financial Review about the proposal, raising concerns that the full ramifications of the changes had not been thoroughly worked through.

A three-year window from mid-2027 has been announced to allow affected families to restructure. But the broader concern is the flow-on impact for the many Australians who rely on discretionary trusts as part of their long-term structuring and estate planning.

Read the full article here.

Queensland families who lose a loved one in a workplace or road accident are often left covering funeral costs out of pocket while investigations are still underway — even in cases where liability is not seriously in dispute.

Our Compensation Law Special Counsel, Claire Gibbs, reflects on 20 years representing families in fatal accident claims in a piece published by Lawyers Weekly, calling for the introduction of capped interim funeral payments in Queensland and urging lawyers and insurers to communicate earlier and more clearly with grieving families.

“Before there is a settlement, before there is a determination, before there is a cheque – there is a kitchen table and a family trying to fathom what just happened,” she writes.

Read the full piece here.

The Queensland government is set to introduce new laws to address the safety concerns around growing e-bike and e-scooter use, including licensing requirements and parental responsibility for the actions of children aged under 16.

Legal Practice Director Jeff Garrett spoke to Gold Coast Bulletin reporter Andrew Potts about the reforms, which are expected to come into force on July 1 and follow recommendations from a parliamentary inquiry. He said more police resources will be needed.

“The intention is there with the legislation and it is a start, but we will have to see how it goes,” Jeff said.

“It will be a bit of a stretch on police resources for officers to try and be everywhere and to catch people on these souped-up bikes.”

Read the article here.

When a Gold Coast father died after being struck by a car on his way home from work in January, his three adult children were left to crowdfund his funeral while waiting for compensation claims to be processed.

Our Compensation Law Special Counsel Claire Gibbs, who is assisting the King family, spoke to the Gold Coast Bulletin about the human cost of delays in Queensland’s insurance and workers’ compensation systems — and what could be done to fix it.

Claire called for the introduction of interim funeral payments in fatal accident matters, noting that an early, capped payment mechanism would bridge the gap between a family’s immediate needs and the time required to finalise claims.

“I understand why investigations take time, but even where liability appears clear, families are often required to fund funeral expenses upfront and await reimbursement after a coroner’s report,” Claire said.

Read the full article here.

In a recent interview with the Courier Mail, Legal Practice Director, Jeff Garrett, gave his views on a Queensland parliamentary inquiry’s sweeping 28-point plan for e-mobility reforms.

Recommendations included restricting use to riders aged 16 and over, holding parents liable for penalties incurred by younger riders, and empowering police to seize and destroy illegal devices.

Jeff noted that because children cannot be taken to court and these devices lack CTP insurance, there is currently no pool of money available for victims.

He highlighted that tying parental liability to device ownership (similar to the rules for unregistered vehicles) could prompt families to think more carefully about the consequences of buying these devices for their children.

Read the full article here.