With bated breath class action litigators and funders have waited for this day, when the Full Federal Court decides the question of power to make common fund orders at settlement. They aren’t the final arbiters, but the judges’ ruling may be no less important for that.
A class action against the AFL on behalf of players who allegedly suffered brain injuries will expand its group definition to include family members and dependents, while a competing case by the widow of Shane Tuck has been dropped.
Two law firms that were able to “work cooperatively” to join their cases have been awarded carriage of a shareholder class action against mining firm Downer EDI. The judge overseeing the proceedings also approved a group costs order application that proposed a “reasonable rate” of return to the firms.
The law firm representing the wife of the late AFL player Shane Tuck in a class against the Australian Football League on behalf of players who allegedly suffered brain injuries is seeking court approval to discontinue the case for lack of litigation funding.
A judge has approved a common fund order awarding $6.88 million to the funder behind a class action against Fonterra that settled for $25 million, opting not to wait for a much-anticipated appeals court ruling on the power to make CFOs at settlement.
The field of competitors in a four-way contest to run a shareholder class action against Downer EDI over a $40 million profit overstatement has narrowed with the consolidation of three cases, leaving one firm to face criticism over its comparative inexperience running group proceedings.
Deloitte may seek confidentiality orders over the amount it agreed to pay to settle a shareholder class action over its audits of collapsed construction group Hastie.
Deloitte has settled a shareholder class action over its audits of collapsed construction group Hastie, a case which dragged on for six years as the accounting firm unsuccessfully fought to shield its audit reports.
A judge has refused a lead applicant’s novel bid for financial information to use at settlement discussions in a group proceeding against Dixon Advisory.
A judge has signed off on a 25 per cent group costs order in a class action against Suncorp subsidiary AAI, after accepting that the back-up plan of law firm Maurice Blackburn was not artificially uncertain.