Companies

A patent battle between Juno Pharmaceuticals and Bristol-Myers Squibb over the blockbuster drug Revlimid has seen both sides suffer early losses, with a judge dismissing strike out and summary dismissal applications by the drug makers.

Qantas has appealed a decision that found its dispute with former executive Nick Rohrlach over his defection to competitor Virgin Australia should be heard in Singapore, saying the exclusive jurisdiction clause in his contract did not “bite”.

Construction company Clough Limited has appealed a ruling that found it cannot claim over $15 million paid to employees for cancellation of their shares and options as a tax deduction.

A judge has questioned why ASIC is still pursuing its case CBA unit Colonial First State over statements made to 12,000 fund managers during the transition to MySuper accounts, after the bank admitted it misled members in 61 of the 80 phone calls at the heart of the case.

Qantas has hit back at a lawsuit by a 64-year-old long haul pilot that has flown with the airline for 40 years accusing it of age discrimination for only providing voluntary redundancy to employees under 63 years old.

A former financial advisor employed by an IOOF unit accused of taking hefty commissions for steering investors towards risky investments contravened the financial advice provisions of the Corporations Act, a judge has found.

The judge overseeing a class action against Bayer-owned Monsanto has suggested a hearing by the end of the year on the cancer risks of the company's Roundup products, saying judgment on that question would either encourage the proceedings to settle or end the case.

The judge considering the $50 million settlement reached in the shareholder class action against failed training company Vocation and auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers has signalled his likely approval of the deal, but wants a senior lawyer to tell the court why the funding commission is reasonable.

Boston Scientific has been hit with second class action on behalf of women who were implanted with allegedly defective pelvic mesh devices, just two weeks after the Full Court tossed an appeal to a landmark ruling that put Johnson & Johnson on the hook for millions in damages for failing to adequately warn patients about the risks the products carry.

The Australian unit of Greensill Capital is heading for liquidation owing creditors in excess of $1.75 billion, administrators revealed Friday.