Christopher Mitchell

Australia's richest person Gina Rinehart could be on the hook for millions of dollars in royalty payments, in a long-running battle over lucrative iron ore mining tenements in Western Australia's Pilbara region.

Mining magnate Gina Rinehart is on the hook for royalties payable to the heirs of iron ore pioneers Don Rhodes and Peter Wright, a judge has held in a long-running battle over lucrative tenements in the Pilbara region.

The Commonwealth has appealed a ruling that found the ATO knowingly received millions misappropriated by a former Kupang Resources director in order to satisfy a tax debt against him and skewered the office's “policy of wilful blindness” in pursuit of the debt.

Insurer Marsh has successfully appealed a finding that it breached its obligation not to use documents discovered in litigation over the $7 billion collapse of supply chain finance firm Greensill in separate proceedings.

A judge has found the ATO knowingly received millions misappropriated by a former Kupang Resources director in order to satisfy a tax debt against him, with a judge skewering the tax office for instituting a “policy of wilful blindness” in pursuit of the debt.

The corporate regulator should not be immune from the risk of special costs for actions doomed to fail, says a judge who flayed ASIC last month for bringing a case against TerraCom directors it should have known was a dud.

A judge has said ASIC should have known that its case against four TerraCom directors over statements made to investors had no prospects of success, calling one of its submissions “unworthy of the corporations regulator”.

ASIC has told a court that a PwC report into allegations of inaccurate coal pricing found that 12 “inconsistent” invoices issued by TerraCom resulted in a $1.15 million benefit to the company, contrary to the company's claim that the audit found no wrongdoing.

Penalty proceedings in ASIC's case against coal producer TerraCom have been put on ice until the regulator’s suit against the company’s directors goes to trial. 

The judge hearing the ACCC’s price-fixing case against Downer EDI's Spotless and Ventia has proposed an initial hearing to determine if the companies are in competition, saying he won't let the case become “totally unwieldy”.