James Arnott

Real estate asset manager Dexus has won access to advice given by the lawyers of two shareholders of airport operator APAC over an alleged breach of a shareholder deed. 

Dexus has claimed legal professional privilege prevents fellow owners of airport operator APAC from accessing tens of thousands of documents as they prepare for trial over an alleged breach of a shareholder deed.

Airport operator APAC has won access to Q&A logs in a data room set up by shareholder Dexus for prospective buyers, in a dispute over whether the real estate asset manager breached a confidentiality deed.

Airport operator Australia Pacific Airports Corporation has won its bid to delay an upcoming trial in a dispute with Dexus over alleged breaches of a shareholder deed, after the real estate asset manager discovered 20,000 documents only last week. 

Mastercard can pursue an appeal of a ruling for the competition regulator requiring the credit card giant to hand over communications about its agreements with retailers, which are at the centre of a misuse of market power case.

The trustee for shareholders that want to retain their Dexus-managed stake in Australia Pacific Airports Corporation can't be separately represented from the selling group, a judge has ruled in a case that pits APAC's investors against each other.

Facing allegations that it misused its market power with major retailers, Mastercard is challenging a ruling for the ACCC that lays bare discussions about merchant agreements involving inhouse lawyers.

Mastercard has lost its claim for legal professional privilege over communications between its chief financial officer in Singapore and in-house counsel about merchant agreements the ACCC alleges were anti-competitive. 

A judge has found that Mastercard can maintain legal professional privilege over a document that was inadvertently sent to the ACCC in 2020 after lawyers at Baker McKenzie had to review 100,000 documents in less than two months.

A judge has signed off on a $59 million settlement in a class action accusing five banks of foreign exchange rate-rigging, while bemoaning the failure of successive attorneys-general to advance reforms clarifying the court’s power to make class closure orders.