Judges

The Commonwealth has urged the court to strike out the "inconsistent" pleadings of pharmaceutical firms Otsuka and Bristol-Myers Squibb in a patent case over the antipsychotic drug Abilify, calling them a "scandal" which could bring disrepute to the administration of justice.

Maurice Blackburn stands to walk away with $5.8 million for its work on a consumer class action against Cash Converters that resulted in a $16.4 million settlement.

Defending against a fourth trade mark infringement lawsuit by the UK's Scotch Whisky Association, Australian liquor retailer D'Aquino Bros has told a court all of its Scotch Whisky was distilled in Scotland, and it has the paperwork to prove it.

The corporate cop's case against Westpac over allegedly irresponsible lending practices will go to trial after the Federal Court rejected the bank's $35 million settlement.

A shareholder class action led by Bannister Law against sandalwood oil producer Quintis will be absorbed by rival law firm Gadens in a consolidation agreement that ends a battle over the competing cases.

The NSW Government is mulling cross-claims against construction firms ALTRAC and Acciona in a class action alleging the government failed to minimise disruptions from the Sydney light rail project.

And then there were four. Plaintiffs law firm Slater & Gordon wants to consolidate its AMP shareholder class action with Maurice Blackburn's case and hand over the reins to its rival, a deal signed the day the Full Federal Court affirmed the power of judges to shut down competing class actions.

Hastie Group's liquidators have offered to drop their $124 million case against two dozen major builders if the companies agree to pay an undisclosed sum toward their unpaid bills, a court heard Friday.

Quinn Emanuel has hit global insurance broker Jardine Lloyd Thompson with a class action for allegedly charging local councils in NSW hundreds of millions of dollars in excessive premiums over the past nine years, and the firm says there may be more lawsuits on the horizon.

The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy union has lost its bid to be heard by the High Court of Australia after an appeals court upheld a $306,000 fine for the illegal conduct of its former Queensland president and warned of the prospect of deregistration.