Information Technology

Bolden Law have a wealth of active experience and involvement in the area of Information Technology (“IT”). We have been involved in the website development and internet consultancy business, and we have assisted many clients with legal advice, contract negotiation and drafting in this area. We can help you to resolve the full range of problems and opportunities that can arise in this complex area, including website development, software development and licensing.

The ongoing pace of technological change means that the law in this area is changing rapidly in an effort to keep up with new developments in technology. Bolden Law is uniquely placed to advise and assist you in the area of IT law.

Some of the developments in this area include:

  • Amendments to the Copyright Act 1968 now allow consumers to “format shift” and “time shift” television programs and music files.
  • Amendments to the Copyright Act 1968 contained in the Copyright Amendment (Digital Agenda) Act 2000: -: introducing a new technology-neutral right of “communication to the public”, -: enabling Internet Service Providers (“ISPs”) to make temporary reproductions in the course of their business without infringing copyright, -: introducing criminal sanctions for altering management rights information or dealing in copyright circumvention devices, and -: modifying the definition of “computer programs”.
  • Introduction of the Electronic Transactions (Commonwealth) Act 1999 and similar legislation in Victoria and NSW, designed to facilitate e-commerce by enabling use of digital signatures and electronic communication for online transactions.
  • The Privacy Act dramatically affects the way businesses with a turnover of $3 million or more store, manage and use personal information relating to staff suppliers clients and contacts.
  • The Cybercrime Act 2001 (Cth) amended the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth) to create a whole range of new computer offences and electronic communication offences (including hacking, denial of service attacks and virus propagation).
  • The Spam Act 2003 (Cth) prohibits unsolicited commercial electronic messaging, and now requires a person sending emails and other electronic messages to have the consent of the person to whom they are being sent.

Whether you are doing transactions online, creating software or a website, are active in telecommunications, or are developing new technologies, Bolden Law can help you with advice, negotiation or drafting agreements.

Bolden Law can help you to maximise the benefit you can get from Information Technology. Our aim is to help you to take advantage of opportunities in a manner that is commercially effective that you might not otherwise have been able to, and by doing that, add value to your business.

If you need assistance or advice on any of these matters, please do not hesitate to contact our office.