A recently appointed High Court judge has warned against state and federal courts competing to attract cases, expressing concerns the appearance of impartiality could be compromised if courts sought to “drum up business at the expense of defendants”.
A judge on the Supreme Court of Victoria says he is a ‘convert’ on group costs orders, which allow law firms running class action to earn a cut of any settlement or judgment, saying GCOs will give better returns to group members and that conflicts can be managed.
Courts have taken differing views on whether they should order class closure, which requires group members to register for a class action, and the “deadlock” may require High Court intervention or legislative amendment to be resolved, an expert has said.
The judge overseeing Bruce Lehrmann’s failed defamation case against Network Ten has slammed as misleading comments that his judgment vindicated the broadcaster, and questioned whether the remarks disentitled it to maximum defence costs.
Bruce Lehrmann has been given extra time to file any appeal of a ruling he raped colleague Brittany Higgins but in the meantime the former political staffer must hand over information on who funded his defamation case against Network Ten, which is likely to see him on the hook for millions of dollars in costs.
Workplace investigations involving unwitnessed, conflicting accounts are among the most difficult situations for an employer, but findings can still be made, despite the “common misconception” there is nothing to tip the balance, according to experts.
The litigation funder that bankrolled a patent infringement case by a vehicle monitoring systems manufacturer is on the hook for legal costs after technology company SARB succeeded in appealing a finding that it infringed the IP for a parking detection system used by the City of Melbourne.
Two law firms behind underpayments class actions against Kentucky Fried Chicken have dodged a contest to run the litigation, agreeing to join their cases alleging the fast food giant denied tens of thousands of workers rest breaks.
One Nation senator Pauline Hanson has been accused of lying under oath after claiming she did not know deputy Greens leader Mehreen Faruqi was Muslim when she wrote in a a tweet that the senator should “piss off back to Pakistan”.
Pauline Hanson’s tweet that Mehreen Faruqi should “piss off back to Pakistan” was not a fair comment on a post the deputy Greens leader made after Queen Elizabeth II died that was critical of the monarchy, Faruqi argued as trial kicked off in her racial discrimination case against the One Nation leader.