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End of the road for AI inventions, as High Court rejects patent appeal

The High Court will not wade into the global debate over whether artificial intelligence inventions should receive patent protection, letting stand a Full Court judgment that overturned a landmark victory for AI pioneer Dr Stephen Thaler.

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Pitcher Partners’ $41M class action settlement gets nod

A judge has approved a $41 million settlement in a shareholder class action against Pitcher Partners but has reduced the funder’s cut to $11.5 million after resolving a feud with the lead applicant over how much it should receive for taking the case to trial.

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Law firm gets $14.5M in fees, after judge trashes ‘distorted’ referee’s report in Woolworths class action

The law firm that secured a $44.5 million settlement in a class action against Woolworths has won its full $14.5 million in costs, with a judge tossing the report of the referee he appointed to examine the fees, which he said appeared double what they should be.

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Judge nudges AMP to seek dismissal of class action claims

A judge has suggested that financial services giant AMP bring an application for summary dismissal of part of a class action over allegedly excessive insurance premiums, questioning the basis for the claims.

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Pitcher Partners to pay $41M to settle class action over Slater & Gordon audits

Following a three-week trial, Pitcher Partners has agreed to pay $41 million to settle a shareholder class action alleging the firm, along with Ernst & Young, approved an overly rosy year-end financial report related to Slater & Gordon’s disastrous $1.2 billion acquisition of UK business Quindell.

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‘Tear it up’: Judge censures silk in $650M Mercedes-Benz dealer lawsuit

A court has directed a senior barrister acting in a $650 million lawsuit against Mercedes-Benz to “tear up” a letter his instructing solicitors sent concerning the judge’s ownership of a Mercedes vehicle, and said he was “surprised” the counsel signed off on it.

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$44.5M Woolworths class action settlement OKd but firm’s fees yet to be approved

A judge has signed off on a $44.5 million settlement of a shareholder class action against Woolworths, which includes a $4.73 million funding commission, but the amount of fees to be paid to the law firm running the case remains to be decided.

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EY settlement in class action over Slater & Gordon audits approved

A judge has blessed Ernst & Young’s settlement with shareholders in a class action alleging the firm, along with Pitcher Partners, approved an overly rosy year-end financial report related to Slater & Gordon’s disastrous $1.2 billion acquisition of UK business Quindell.

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Mercedes bullied car dealers, called them ‘baby piglets’, court told

Officials at the Mercedes-Benz Australia head office referred to car dealers as “baby piglets” in internal communications and threatened and bullied the retailers, a trial court has been told in a $650 million lawsuit over the car maker’s decision to move to a fixed-price agency model.

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Full Court finds class actions are not managed investment schemes

In a significant victory for litigation funders, the Full Federal Court has found that funded class actions are not managed investment schemes subject to regulatory oversight, gutting the legal basis for reforms enacted by the Morrison government in 2020.

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