Security briefing: liens and the PPSA

Abstract

This month’s column coincides with the six-month anniversary of the commencement of the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth) (PPSA). The Australian courts have, apart from the very recent Federal Court consideration of unclaimed personal property owned or in the possession of a company subject to administration in the Hastie group been otherwise dormant with respect to the PPSA. This is hardly surprising, especially given another 18 months 'grace period' remains to protect transitional security interests. Even for new security interests, litigants may be waiting for others to dip their toe in the judicial waters; this is only a matter of time, particularly given the size and nature of some recent retail and construction insolvencies. But this curial vacuum should not lull us into a false sense of security after the early cases addressing conceptual issues under the Personal Property Securities Act 1999 (NZ) (PPSA NZ), its courts are now in the second phase, interpreting more intricate points. Over the coming months, this column will explore some of those and other points, but in this issue we are focusing on a security interest that is not governed by the PPSA.