Judges

The Victorian government has elevated a female judge to the role of president of the state's Court of Appeal, marking the first time a woman has been appointed to the position in the court’s history.

Appealing a $13 million damages judgment for negligent advice to a former client that allegedly led to a botched sale and administration, law firm Maddocks told a court Monday the business had “miniscule” chances of surviving even if the sale had been successful.

A judge has signed off on a $56.3 million settlement in a class action against wealth manager Colonial First State that will see Maurice Blackburn earn $14.5 million in costs, saying it was a good example of the class action regime in operation.

Opposition leader Peter Dutton has asked the High Court to overturn an appeals court judgment that found a tweet labelling him a "rape apologist" was not defamatory.

A judge has granted a litigation funder for two franchisee class actions against 7-Eleven an interim payment to cover its costs ahead of a ruling on how much it can pocket from a $98 million settlement.

The federal government said Friday it would consider the implications of an appeals court's finding that the managed investment scheme structure was unsuited to class actions, a ruling it said was a victory for ordinary Australians and a vindication for Labor.

A judge has ruled that a senior Queensland police official waived legal professional privilege during cross examination, allowing the plaintiffs in a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination challenge to see legal advice about the jab direction by the Crown Solicitor.

Owners of Sydney’s Mascot Towers are facing a “parlous situation” as they file an urgent court bid to sell the two buildings after $16 million was spent to repair structural cracks that made the apartments unliveable.

The ruling by the Full Federal Court that funded class actions are not managed investment schemes marks the end of an ill-considered regime enacted by the Morrison government to rein in class actions, but the debate over regulation of litigation funders is not over yet.

In a significant victory for litigation funders, the Full Federal Court has found that funded class actions are not managed investment schemes subject to regulatory oversight, gutting the legal basis for reforms enacted by the Morrison government in 2020.