Part C: Corporations Law question (10 marks)

Read the questions below on Corporations Law, specifically on Companies and Incorporated Associations.

A minimum of 3 genuine and relevant Australian legal references are required for this part of the report. Examples of relevant references for this question include the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth); the Australian and Securities and Investment Commission's (ASIC) website (www.asic.gov.au), the website of the Australian Business Register's (ABR) website (www.abr.gov.au).

The full citations for all sources cited in your answer must be listed in a Reference list at the end of your report.

In addition, any online sources cited in your answer and listed in your Reference List must include a valid hyperlink that allows access to the full text of the source.

Bluff Solutions Pty Ltd ("Bluff") owns 50% of the shares of Life Electronics ("Life Electronics") Pty Ltd. Last year, Bluff was contacted by Alphacoms Pty Ltd ("Alphacoms"), which owns the other 50% of bluff. Alphacoms wanted to invest a large sum of money in Life Electronics, to allow it to research and develop a potentially valuable software application. The directors of Bluff at the time hired a team of consultants, which included a software applications expert, and instructed them to research the technical aspects of the proposed application and future possibilities involving the technology. The team of consultants worked for three months researching for and writing the report. The report they presented to Bluff's directors showed that the proposed investment in the software application could very likely prove successful. Jerry Robinson is one of Bluff's directors. He holds a Masters of Computer Programming degree from a well-known university. Jerry's fellow directors asked him about the consultants' positive projections. Jerry told them that the report is accurate. In reality though, some of the information in the report was not well-researched and supported by up to date data. As a result, when Bluff's directors rely on the report and invest the company's money in the new software application, the investment will not be as lucrative as the consultants predicted.

Citing specific common law and Corporations Act directors duties, critically analyse and discuss whether the directors of Bluff Solutions Pty Ltd (or any of them) breached their duty of care?