An average of 23 class actions have been filed every year in Australia since the class action regime was introduced in 1992, a number that belies recent claims of an explosion in litigation, a new report by a leading class action expert says.
A unit of staffing company Programmed has become the latest target of a litigation blitz over casual workers, with the company facing a $45 million class action for allegedly failing to pay workers accrued annual leave and other entitlements.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s high-stakes case against Google is the first of its kind worldwide targeting the tech giant’s data collection practices. The ACCC is in familiar territory in bringing a front-page legal challenge under the consumer laws that will require it to prove misleading conduct by silence, but if recent losses by the regulator are any guide, it could face an uphill battle.
A groundbreaking class action ruling by the Federal Court on Thursday that found Myer misled shareholders and accepted the applicant’s market-based causation theory is the only judgment in an Australian securities class action since the first shareholder case was brought 20 years ago, and it might be the only one for years to come.
The High Court has granted a Nigerian agent tricked into terminating his contract with international bank note manufacturer CCL Secure special leave to appeal a Full Federal Court judgment slashing a $65 million award in his favour.
Kraft Foods can amend its patent application for a chocolate that doesn’t melt in the summer months, after a delegate found many of the claims of the patent lacked clarity and support.
A judge’s decision refusing to approve a $42 million settlement in a shareholder class action against Murray Goulburn because of a “too high” funder’s commission has set the stage for a showdown over the power of courts to alter funding agreements, a battle potentially more consequential than the fight over common fund orders now before the High Court.
A former general manager of Manpower Services has settled a lawsuit brought against the international recruitment company alleging he was unlawfully terminated for complaining about the performance of the company’s Experis brand.
Justice David Hammerschlag of the NSW Supreme Court has a way with words that readily lends itself to dramatic courtroom headlines. The “Hammer,” as he is known, also pulls no punches and is quick with one liners that keep counsel on their toes. Here, Lawyerly looks at some of the recent best moments inside courtroom 7D.
The careful, methodical approach of 20-year class action veteran and Allens partner Jenny Campbell is in demand in the fast-changing class action world, where the only certainty is uncertainty.