Construction

A second law firm has launched a shareholder class action investigation into James Hardie's alleged inadequate disclosures about troubles in its North American fiber cement unit in a market guidance for the 2026 financial year.

Defunct developer FSM must hand over transcripts of examination proceedings by its liquidators in a new case against Ray White Capital, Mallesons and others after the liquidators lost their bid for unreacted emails related to financing for an Ashfield development. 

Builder Watpac has won a battle with developer Romeciti over a final payment claim issued as part of an agreement to construct a $450 million luxury development in Sydney's Macquarie Park.

Engineering firm Monadelphous has lost a bid to suspend $3.3 million in adjudication judgments secured by contractor Aaro Group in a dispute over works at BHP's Eastern Ridge mine.

The word 'day' in thousands of building contracts at the centre of a class action against Perth builder BGC Housing Group refers to a calendar, not working, day, a judge has said in a ruling that may have a significant  impact on damages in the case.

A former Queensland minister allegedly threatened to trash a $1.6 billion contract for the Toowoomba Second Range Crossing unless a consortium led by Acciona continued to work with the CFMEU, an inquiry into the union has heard. 

The Western Australian premier has started talks with the federal government on a bilateral agreement to put an end to duplicative environmental approvals. 

A judge has hit a container systems company with indemnity costs for tendering hundreds of pages of irrelevant evidence in a trade mark dispute and warned "future litigants that fail to heed this caution" face costs risks.

James Hardie may soon face a second shareholder class action — this one over alleged inadequate disclosures about troubles in its North American fiber cement unit in a market guidance for the 2026 financial year.

New federal fuel cost pass-through laws are expected to generate uncertainty in the construction industry, according to partners in Corrs Chambers Westgarth's leading construction practice group, who say the reforms may apply more widely than anticipated.