A judge has partially struck out mining magnate Clive Palmer’s defence to WA Premier Mark McGowan’s defamation claim over statements which allegedly accused the premier of corruption, abusing his position and lying about the decision to close the state’s borders at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic last year.
A Federal Court judge has ordered that a referee consider how junior barristers were used in assessing the legal costs in an insurance class action against Westpac which the bank has agreed to pay up to $30 million to settle.
The Commonwealth Bank of Australia is resisting a novel proposal by ASIC to use its CommBank app to notify 6.3 million customers of a $7 million fine against it for overcharging interest, saying the move would pose a “significant risk” to the public.
A judge has urged parties in a class action against Westpac over superannuation fees to hold an in-person mediation, saying that success rates have “plummeted” during the COVID-19 pandemic as more settlement talks are held virtually.
Westpac has agreed to pay up to $30 million to settle a long-running class action over allegedly excessive insurance premiums which included a trip to the High Court that resulted in common fund orders being struck down in the early stages of class actions.
A judge has found he has power to order that opt out notices be sent to a limited number of Boral shareholders eligible to join two class actions that faced off last month in a class action beauty parade.
The director of building company Modscape is fighting to access Gadens’ advice concerning an allegedly false and malicious letter sent to the Victorian Building Authority which questioned his financial probity.
The companies behind the top selling Abilify medication have lost their latest bid for documents from the Commonwealth in a multimillion dollar dispute over the delayed listing of generic versions of their drug, with a judge saying the material could be only “of the most marginal relevance”.
Building products supplier Wagners has been awarded $4.8 million from Boral after Wagners successfully challenged a ruling in a high-stakes cement supply dispute with the construction material giant.
Deloitte has failed to set aside a request for documents recording talks with partners about retirement after they turned 62, in a closely watched age discrimination lawsuit challenging the accounting firm’s mandatory retirement policy.