K&L Gates has lured three partners from rival firms to bolster its corporate, IP and real estate offerings across the country, including a former principal of Davies Collison Cave.
ANZ is set to acquire Queensland bank Suncorp, with treasurer Jim Chalmers signing off on the deal after the ACCC failed to block the $4.9 billion merger on competition grounds.
UK law firm DWF has acquired Melbourne claims management business Proclaim, expanding its insurance business in Australia.
The administrators for budget airline Bonza have found it likely traded while insolvent in the lead-up to its voluntary administration, suggesting the airline’s directors may have breached their duties under the Corporations Act.
A judge has expressed concern about the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s suspicion that a former director of Keystone Asset Management may have used investor funds to purchase a house in his wife’s name, calling it “alarming”.
The ACCC has raised concerns that Singaporean agricultural giant Olam Agri Holding’s bid to acquire ASX-traded cotton ginner Namoi Cotton could reduce competition and stick cotton farmers with higher prices, one month after flagging similar concerns with Louis Dreyfus’ competing takeover proposal.
A judge has scorned a bid by the directors of John Bridgeman and JB Markets to represent the companies in a case brought by investment fund Benjamin Hornigold, suggesting the companies seek pro bono or community legal assistance.
The ACCC has flagged competition concerns about drug supplier Sigma Healthcare’s proposed $8.8 billion reverse merger with Chemist Warehouse, saying the tie-up could harm independent pharmacies and lessen competition in pharmacy retail.
A judge has thrown out a shareholder’s case against Slater & Gordon over the firm’s takeover by private equity firm Allegro, after finding the firm was not the proper target for the claims.
A law firm that has gone after major banks and the federal government over their climate exposure has trained its sight on the National Australia Bank.