A judge has railed against insurer QBE after it sent an email to brokers saying it could “in effect ignore” the court’s request that they notify clients about a class action on behalf of businesses that were denied business interruption coverage for COVID-19 related shutdowns.
Suncorp subsidiary AAI has asked a court to order soft class closure in a group proceeding over allegedly worthless insurance, saying it was “passing strange” that over 200,000 group members “don’t know they’re even group members” three years into the case.
A judge has signed off on a 27.5 per cent group costs order in a consolidated shareholder class action against Medibank over a cyberattack that affected 10 million customers, noting the “significant risk” taken on by the two plaintiff law firms running the action.
Still in the dark about insurance coverage and seeking to stem the flow of cash, two class actions against Heritage Care and St Basil’s over COVID-19 outbreaks have been shelved pending the outcome of criminal cases against the Victorian aged care providers, in a decision the judge said “wouldn’t gladden the hearts of group members”.
The judge overseeing a suite of cases brought by holidaymakers who were seriously injured in a fatal bus collision in Vanuatu has hit out at QBE for ignoring queries about an insurance policy, as the defendants in the case scramble pass the buck for the crash.
The federal government has used its cyber sanction powers for the first time against a Russian individual identified as responsible for an attack against private health insurer Medibank that exposed almost 10 million customer records.
A judge has discontinued a class action by Victorian councils against insurer JLT Risk Solutions, but has departed from the decisions of two other judges by ruling the suspension of the time limit for bringing the councils’ claims will immediately be lifted.
Over three years into a class action against failed asset finance lender Axsesstoday and auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers over a $50 million prospectus, the applicant has won the green light to add four insurers to the case.
In a victory for Zurich Australia, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission has lost its first-ever civil penalty case alleging an insurer failed to act with utmost good faith during claims handling.
An investor class action against Virgin Australia has mounted a new challenge to a contentious indemnity clause, which the airline claims entitles it to receive periodic payments for its legal costs in defending the claims.