Generator said:
I only know a little corporations law but I believe, since 2001, the states have referred their state power to make laws for the incorporation of companies to the Federal government under s51(xxxvii) of the constitution on the condition that the Commonwealth not use this referral to make laws for the regulation of industrial relations. This condition is found within the
The corporations Agreement 2002 within clause 505(1).
Previously the states had refused to give up their power to make laws for corporations and as such the corporation law existed on a co operative system whereby each state enacted the same legislation. However this just resulted in messy jurisdictional problems to do with cross vesting. In
Re Wakin (1999) the High Court found that the cross vesting legislation (enacted by the states), in which certain corporation law matters could be heard in the Federal court rather than the State Supreme Courts, was unconstitional. This eventually resulted in the referral of the corporations power to the Commonwealth under s51(xxxvii) and the adoption of a uniform national Corporations law enacted by the commonwealth and not the States which has been up and running since 2001.
In 1989 the the Hawke Labor governments tried to take away the corporation law making powers from the states which had been given to the states based on older interpretations, of s51(xx) - the coroporations power. The NSW Liberal government challenged in the High Court and won in
NSW v the Commowealth (1990)
I'm not really sure how the govrernment is attempting to legislate for IR. Whether they are forcing the states to refer their IR law making powers or not? If they are referring then all this corporations stuff may be relevant.