The Murray Goulburn class action has been cited repeatedly in the current parliamentary inquiry into class actions and litigation funding. For some, the return generated by Omni Bridgeway, which funded the action, is Exhibit A in the case that litigation funders make too much money. To others – including the one person in the best position to judge – it is nothing of the sort, says Clive Bowman of Omni Bridgeway.
Online odd jobs platform Service Seeking has been fined $600,000 for falsely representing that reviews on its platform were written by customers when in fact they were written by the businesses themselves.
The law firm at the centre of a coronavirus outbreak linked to its Melbourne headquarters is still expecting its Sydney partners to work from the office despite warnings from NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian that the state had reached a “critical point”.
Working with barristers can be inspirational or infuriating, according to the solicitors who brief them. While regular communication and mutual engagement will see the relationship between barrister and solicitor flourish, poor time management and a lack of respect can cause frustrations to bubble to the surface.
Stepping into his role just as COVID-19 began its rapid spread across the globe, Herbert Smith Freehills’ recently appointed CEO Justin D’Agostino faced what he called a “baptism of fire”.
An increase in the number of unfair dismissal cases and the addition of JobKeeper disputes has seen the general caseload of the Fair Work Commission jump by 30 per cent as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, FWC President Justice Iain Ross AO told Lawyerly.
When it comes to briefing barristers, solicitors lie on a spectrum of awesome to irksome. In a series of interviews with Lawyerly, some of Australia’s top counsel reveal what they like and what they don’t like about their instructing lawyers.
A litigation funder’s average rate of return on its investment in shareholder class actions was one of a number of factors weighed by a judge in approving a 25 per cent funding cut from the $42 million settlement in a class action against dairy cooperative Murray Goulburn.
It is entirely possible that the first effective SARS-CoV-2 vaccine is developed in Australia, with an Australian firm securing patent rights to the vaccine. If that occurs, it is important to remember that a patent is not an impenetrable fortress. Patent laws already contain mechanisms to enable “special access” to patented pharmaceuticals and other technologies, including (perhaps especially) in times like this, say James Neil and Richard Hoad of Clayton Utz.
Hall & Wilcox has lured an insolvency ace from McCullough Robertson to bolster its insolvency and commercial litigation team in Brisbane.