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$12.8M payday for Slater & Gordon as judge blesses first class action contingency fee
A judge has signed off on the first-ever settlement allowing a law firm to earn a contingency fee, approving a $12.8 million cut for Slater & Gordon in a shareholder class action against G8 Education.
Repped by firm on winning streak, Boral takes shareholder class action to trial
Buoyed by the recent trial success of CBA and other companies facing shareholder ire, building materials giant Boral is taking its chances at a hearing in a class action alleging disclosure breaches linked to its US windows business.
Class closure split to be resolved by High Court
The High Court has agreed to step in to resolve division among Australia's courts on the question of power to make orders that exclude unregistered group members from class action settlements.
Quintis class action settlement sum revealed, rival funder wants piece
A $13.5 million settlement has been reached in a Gadens-led class action against former Quintis director Frank Wilson, and the funder of a rival class action is preparing to seek a chunk of the sum in what a judge has called a “most unusual circumstance”.
High Court says duty of care for economic loss can arise only if company assumes responsibility
A class action has lost its appeal to the High Court in a case alleging Advanta Seeds owed damages to farmers for the economic loss resulting from its negligence in producing contaminated grain sorghum seed, with the justices clarifying that a duty of care may be established only if responsibility is assumed.
High Court appeal seeks total knockout of common fund orders
The High Court has been asked to overturn a Full Court decision finding lawyers can take a cut from a class action settlement under a solicitors’ common fund order and to finally settle the question of whether the court has the power to issue common fund orders at all.
High Court to rule on force of disclaimer to shield manufacturers from economic loss claims
The High Court is scheduled to hand down a judgment in a class action on Wednesday on the power of a product disclaimer to protect manufacturers from claims they owe a duty of care to protect purchasers from pure economic loss.
Class action against Quintis founder settles, but law firm fight looms over ‘parasitic’ claim
A Gadens-led class action against former Quintis director Frank Wilson has settled, but a second class action filed by a rival firm has flagged a potential claim on the settlement funds over a cause of action said to have been “picked up parasitically”. 
Law firm’s bid for $12.8M cut of G8 class action needs more evidence, court told
In the first-ever settlement approval hearing involving a group costs order, a contradictor has argued that Slater & Gordon should have provided the court with more information on legal costs and internal rate of return as part of its bid for a $12.8 million contingency fee.
3A cladding class action wins spat over issues to be canvassed at two-month trial
Building materials manufacturer 3A Composites has lost a challenge to questions for a judge at an initial trial of a class action over combustible cladding, with a judge finding the issue of whether the company's Alucobond panels were of acceptable quality was common to all group members.