Dairy supplier Murray Goulburn has agreed to pay $42 million to settle one of two shareholder class actions over a 2016 profit forecast revision that sent the co-op’s unit price falling more than 40 per cent in five days.
Shareholders of troubled sandalwood producer Quintis who are eligible group members in two consolidated class actions against the company can bet on which of the two cases will give them the best returns, if any, and the Federal Court has appointed an independent lawyer to help them make the choice.
A court has trimmed 10% off a $300,000 penalty against the former CEO of failed Gold Coast finance company MFS Group, after he successfully argued his role in the misappropriation of $147.5 million in trust funds was not as an officer of the company.
Retail Food Group is the target of a possible class action by franchisees in the wake of a parliamentary report that called on three government agencies to probe the franchise giant and its top executives for potential insider trading, tax evasion and other unlawful conduct.
A court has taken an ax to the final bill by liquidators of three failed subsidiaries of multi-national agribusiness SK Foods Group, lopping off 30 per cent after a successful intervention by the corporate regulator, which called the more than $5.7 million claimed by the liquidators excessive.
Ernst & Young, which has been named in a class action over its auditing of sandalwood producer Quintis, has filed cross-claims alleging Quintis should pick up the tab for any liability it may face in the proceedings.
The Federal Court has approved a $14.6 million class action settlement with private training company Ashley Services, auditors Deloitte and Grant Thornton, and Holmes Management Group, with IMF Bentham set to pocket around $4.8 million for funding the litigation.
Failed sandalwood oil producer Quintis has agreed to hand over insurance policies showing any coverage for potential liability it or its former CEO may have in two class actions brought against them.
Piper Alderman has urged a judge to excuse its “obviously accidental” breach of legal profession costs regulations in its Discovery Metals investor class action against KPMG, warning that group members could suffer detriment if its $3.5 million legal bill was not approved quickly.
The court has blocked a unit of Fortescue Metals Group from accessing emails sent by Squire Patton Boggs about a now disputed power purchase agreement, saying the communications are privileged.