Barristers for the ACCC and online retailer Kogan have been asked to robe up at home as the previously in-person trial shifts to videochat in response to the COVID-19 health crisis.
The Chief Justice of the Federal Court says a system is needed to ensure parties don’t interrupt one another during virtual hearings, and noted the increase in online hearings brought on by the coronavirus may also free judges up to hear cases outside their registries.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has found Bunnings’ $30 million takeover of Adelaide Tools and Oaklands Mower Centre would not substantially lessen competition, but warned it would closely scrutinise future moves that would further cement the hardware giant’s dominant position.
Tasmanian state-owned ports company TasPorts has admitted to charging additional fees to the owner of a local port, but has denied the ACCC’s allegations that these actions constituted a misuse of market power designed to stymie competition.
Westpac is still locked in mediation with AUSTRAC over allegations that it committed over 23 million breaches of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws, with the bank’s hopes of moving to a penalty hearing in the early part of the year fading.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission will scale back its use of certain investigatory tools, such as compulsory examinations, amid the strain on Australian businesses from the spread of COVID-19.
The former directors of defunct financial advisory firm Storm Financial have failed in their appeal of a ruling that found they breached their duties to eleven vulnerable investors by providing a one-size-fits-all model of investment advice that was inappropriate.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission will allow Regional Express to coordinate with Qantas and Virgin on certain regional routines during the coronavirus pandemic.
A judge has ordered ASIC to wait 48 hours after making any decision to send a warning notice to investment conglomerate Mayfair 101 before publicly issuing the notice, despite the regulator’s call for urgent action amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
BHP has successfully appealed a Fair Work Commission decision that found the mining giant had unfairly dismissed a worker after she placed a sex toy in a co-worker’s baggage at airport security and posed for a revealing photo at work.