EDITORIAL

Anumberofpaperspublishedinearliereditionsofthisjournalhavefocusedonthemannerinwhichlongtermcontractual mechanismsmightoperatetoreplacetraditionalbureaucraticsystemsofcontrol.Therecoursetocontractualsolutionsisoften motivated by a desire for increased operational flexibility and material cost savings in comparison to other competing management models. However,thereareconsiderablerisksattendanttothepursuitofastrategyofcontractualisationasameansofoptimising organisationalperformance.Theseincludeuncertaintyastotheinterpretationandenforcementofcontractualarrangementsin the context of a dispute, and the manner in which control and accountability systems can be configured to assist with effective managementincontractualisedsettings.Inthisedition,SureshCuganesan,JimRooneyandRiccardoSilvimakeahighlyvaluable contribution by examining the operation of outsourcing contracts in the context of theAustralian financial services industry. Continuing this edition's focus on the financial services industry, Pelma Rajapakse provides a detailed review of law and practiceissuespertainingtomortgageoriginationinthecontextofsecuritisationprograms.Thisarticleincludesparticularfocus ontheimportantquestionoftheconceptofsecurityasitrelatestothemortgagesecuritisationprocessandoftheimpactofAPRA capitaladequacyguidelinesonvariousstakeholdersinthemortgageoriginationchain. Finally,TomValentineprovidesathoughtprovokingexaminationofsharereturnparityrelationshipsbetweentheAustralian andU.Sequitymarkets.

TyroneMCarlin&GuyFord Sydney,June006

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