A judge overseeing a cartel case over a $2.5 billion ANZ share placement has granted ANZ’s bid for unredacted documents which the bank says will support its claims that the case should be permanently stayed because of improper dealings between whistleblower JPMorgan, ASIC and the ACCC.
It has been described as the darkest chapter in Victoria’s legal history, an exemplar of all that is terrible with class actions in Australia. A case of greedy lawyers who found their golden egg in a group of retirees who had lost their life savings, never thinking the chickens might come home to roost. Until now.
Dick Smith’s former CFO will appeal a $43 million judgment in favour of National Australia Bank over his role in the retailer’s collapse.
Two shareholders of failed steel giant Arrium have told the High Court that granting their bid to grill former directors of the company would not be an abuse of process because it was in the public interest to “expose” the management of the defunct business.
Two former Honda dealers have won a bid for preliminary discovery against Honda Australia to pursue a potential consumer lawsuit over the car maker’s decision earlier this year to abandon a dealership model in Australia.
A judge has issued a stern warning to litigation funders seeking to take a “gamble” on pending court proceedings, ruling they could be held liable for costs if their intervention proves critical to the advancement of the case.
A judge has refused a bid by accounting firms Pitcher Partners and EY to access share trading data of unregistered group members in a securities class action over advice to Slater & Gordon, despite claims upcoming mediation will be “pointless” without the information.
A judge has rejected an application by the plaintiffs in two class actions against Freedom Foods and Deloitte to run their cases side-by-side, but said she would have granted a bid to consolidate the proceedings had that been sought.
A defamation case brought by former footy show host Sam Newman and AFL veteran Donald Scott against sports photographer Wayne Ludbey over comments made about a historic image of indigenous AFL footballer Nicky Winmar has settled.
Recent changes to the law requiring funded class actions to be registered as managed investment schemes have complicated the question of how best to resolve the multiplicity issue in two class actions brought against Freedom Foods and Deloitte.