Senator the Hon Nick Sherry, Minister for Superannuation and Corporate Law, has welcomed today's release of the Corporations and Markets Advisory Committee's report on Long Tail Liabilities.
A long-tail liability is a potential liability by a company for personal injuries that might arise in the future due to the company's past actions. As long-tail liabilities are only expected future claims which have not yet occurred, current mechanisms in the Corporations Law to protect the interests of creditors may not apply to them.
"A typical example of a long-tail liability is a possible claim for personal injury resulting from past asbestos exposure, such as in the James Hardie case.
"The legacy of the tireless campaigner on this issue Bernie Banton remains fresh in our minds," Minister Sherry said.
"The Rudd Government is concerned to ensure that companies are not able to avoid their obligations so I welcome CAMAC's report which we will consider closely."