AIS Support Group Australia Inc. (AIS) was a Victorian incorporated association and registered charity supporting people with androgen insensitivity syndrome, together with their families and carers, through information, advocacy and community connection. Intersex Human Rights Australia (IHRA) is a leading national body by and for people with innate variations of sex characteristics, with a focus on human rights, psychosocial and peer support, bodily autonomy, self-determination and evidence-based, patient-directed healthcare.
The amalgamation of AIS and IHRA brings together two organisations with closely aligned purposes and a shared commitment to supporting people with innate variations of sex characteristics. The clients described it as a decision to “unite” the two organisations. G+T assisted AIS with the legal steps and all corporate actions required to effect the amalgamation, including the implementation of the steps for the cancellation of AIS’s incorporation in Victoria.
The matter required careful navigation of Victorian (State) Associations legislation, and a detailed calibration of all of the actions and steps required to wind down or transfer all of the activities, assets and affairs of AIS to IHRA, including ensuring that all requirements for cancellation of incorporation were satisfied. It is significant as a solvent amalgamation of two Victorian charitable incorporated associations, supporting an orderly transition of AIS’s work into a national organisation with an established advocacy, support and human rights platform.
The G+T team was led by Partner Orla McCoy, with support from Mikhail Glavac and Jing Zhang.
Orla commented:
We are proud to have supported AIS Support Group Australia Inc. on a matter that reflects the strength and importance of community-led organisations. This amalgamation provides a clear pathway for AIS Support Group Australia Inc.’s legacy and support work to continue within Intersex Human Rights Australia’s national platform. It was a privilege to assist with the corporate actions and legal framework needed to bring the organisations together and reflect their decision to unite in a careful and considered way.
