As states across Australia grapple with lockdowns and rising COVID-19 cases, lawyers practising in a range of areas, from employment to insurance, are bracing for a fresh wave of pandemic-related litigation before the year is out.
A shareholder class action against defunct fund manager Blue Sky Investments and others will be filed by the end of the year, Lawyerly has learned.
A judge has dismissed two cases brought by the Commonwealth Bank, Westpac and other lenders against directors of the failed steel giant Arrium, saying he was not satisfied the directors’ representations on loan drawdown notices were false or that the company was insolvent when it went into voluntary administration in April 2016.
While employers cannot force employees to get a COVID-19 vaccine, law firms are launching campaigns to encourage staff to sign up for the jab.
A judge has allowed a key US-based witness in ASIC’s case against former Quintis director Frank Wilson who will not submit to 14 days in hotel quarantine to give evidence by video link.
Two shareholder class actions against sandalwood producer Quintis that reached an in principle settlement over a year ago are moving forward following a protracted dispute over insurance, with the lead applicants getting approval to file proposed amended pleadings.
A settlement reached in a lawsuit by the liquidators of collapsed steel giant Arrium against 10 former company directors accused of insolvent trading has been approved by a judge, who noted that while the settlement amount was “substantial”, the deal involved a “substantial compromise”.
Law firms are ordering staff in their Sydney offices to work from home if possible and avoid face-to-face meetings as the state’s new rules requiring masks at all indoor workplaces takes effect.
The director of building company Modscape has lost his bid to access Gadens’ advice concerning an allegedly false and malicious letter sent to the Victorian Building Authority that questioned his financial probity.
A mid-trial settlement has been reached in a lawsuit brought by the liquidators of collapsed steel giant Arrium against 10 former company directors and officers for allegedly engaging in insolvent trading.