A Federal Court judge has slapped Volkswagen with a record $125 million penalty over its emissions cheating scandal after expressing outrage at a “manifestly inadequate” $75 million settlement agreement reached with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
A judge has vacated an upcoming trial date in a criminal cartel proceeding against mobile equipment provider Country Care Group and two individuals, and allowed the defendants to appeal a first-of-its-kind ruling on jury directions in criminal cartel cases.
A planned class action by Shine Lawyers, pegged as “Australia’s largest class action,” over allegedly toxic firefighting foam at eight Commonwealth military bases won’t be filed this month and has turned to bookbuilding following a landmark High Court ruling striking down common fund orders at the outset of class actions.
A Federal Court judge has ordered Westpac to pay a $9.15 million penalty after one of its financial advisers breached the best interests duty by giving customers bad advice that resulted in millions in losses.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has raised preliminary competition concerns about Bauer Media’s planned $40 million acquisition of Pacific Magazines, a deal that would combine Australia’s two largest magazine publishers, saying competition needs to be preserved even in declining markets.
A six-week trial scheduled for February in a criminal cartel case against mobile equipment provider Country Care Group could be vacated a second time as lawyers for the defendants seek to appeal the judge’s planned directions to a jury in the groundbreaking case.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has taken legal action against National Australia Bank alleging thousands of violations of the law through its fees for no service conduct, exposing the bank to the risk of significant penalties.
Google has come out in defence of its privacy disclosures to Android mobile users in the face of landmark legal action by the ACCC, saying the consumer regulator’s allegations of misleading conduct rely on an “artificial and incorrect” account of the way it informs users of the collection and use of personal location data.
A magistrate has dismissed a bid to expand the cross examination of a JPMorgan witness in the closely watched criminal cartel case over a $2.5 billion ANZ share placement, calling it a “back door” attempt to bypass a prior court ruling.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has raised concerns about Asahi’s proposed $16 billion acquisition of Carlton & United Breweries, saying the deal would likely reduce competition in the cider market and could also impact on the beer market.