The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has scored a victory before the High Court, with the court unanimously finding that the term “officer” under the Corporations Act is not limited to those that hold official positions within a company.
An individual claimant accusing AMP Financial Planning of ignoring multiple attempts to gain remediation for alleged insurance re-writing conduct was granted permission to voice his displeasure in court, while ASIC and AMP grapple with the details of a remediation program for insurance churn victims.
The Australian Stock Exchange has denied claims by ISignthis that it suspended the fintech company’s shares without warning and at the direction of ASIC, but has admitted that it told the company it would consult with the securities regulator before lifting the ongoing suspension.
ASIC has notched up a win against derivative issuer AGM Markets and two of its authorised representatives, with a court finding they engaged in misleading, deceptive and unconscionable conduct that caused investor losses of over $30 million.
Deloitte has lost its appeal of a ruling in a shareholder class action over the collapse of Hastie Group that compelled the production of audit files taken by a partner from the accounting giant’s litigation room, in a ruling that described the actions of the partner as “bordering on contempt” and slammed Deloitte for “cynically” exploiting the situation.
Former AMP general counsel Larissa Cook, who is suing the financial services giant for alleged bullying, wants her former employer to provide details of claims in its defence that senior executives raised concerns about her conduct and that her performance was being “managed”.
A Pacific Current shareholder has won court approval to bring a derivative lawsuit against certain current and former directors of the funds management company for allegedly breaching their duty of care and diligence in relation to the company’s 2014 merger with US-based Northern Lights Capital Group.
ASIC has criticised a Federal Court judge for his ‘thought experiments’ around prospective home loan applicants feasting on Wagyu beef and shiraz, as the regulator challenges the judge’s dismissal of its responsible lending case against Westpac.
Financial services provider IOOF may have beaten back regulatory action, but it still faces the wrath of shareholders, with a new class action claiming the firm engaged in corporate misconduct that includes insider trading, front running and breaches of trustee duties.
Baker McKenzie has nabbed former King & Wood Mallesons special counsel Charlie Detmold for the law firm’s key banking and finance practice in Melbourne.