Matthews Folbigg
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COVID-19 Update on Witnessing Queensland Land Titles Documents

By Chloe Howard of Matthews Folbigg Lawyers, a lawyer in our Insolvency, Restructuring and Debt Recovery Group

In our earlier blog, COVID-19, self-isolation, and witnessing documents, we looked at the difficulties in executing and witnessing documents in isolation or quarantine. NSW has published legislation which may fix this however no regulations have been made as to how this fix will work. Now in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Queensland Government has just released new guidelines with respect to the witnessing of documents under various pieces of Queensland legislation, being the Land Title Act, Land Act and Water Act Titles, if eConveyancing is not available. [...]  READ MORE →

Matthews Folbigg
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COVID-19, self-isolation, and witnessing documents

By Chloe Howard of Matthews Folbigg Lawyers, a lawyer in our Insolvency, Restructuring and Debt Recovery Group

Whilst there have been leaps and bounds in recent years when it comes to the merging of law and technology, properly executing legal documents has escaped this evolution. Even though NSW and some other states have an Electronic Transactions Act, this does not assist with present difficulties imposed with executing Deeds and other formal documents during self-isolation.  Whilst Zoom, Skype and FaceTime can make it seem like you are in the same room as someone else, ultimately the law is clear – this technology cannot replicate the requirements needed for the valid witnessing of formal documents. These requirements include that a witness must be physically present when the document is signed. [...]  READ MORE →