If enacted, the latest class action reform bill before federal parliament will significantly alter the conduct and the outcomes of group litigation across all courts of Australia, and affect access to justice by creating a risk that worthy class actions won’t run, say Law Council of Australia class action committee members Lachlan Armstrong QC and Dr Peter Cashman.
Thirteen Victorian silks have expressed “deep concern” over a bill proposed by the Andrews government giving the health minister power to make “pandemic orders”.
The Queensland Supreme Court has ruled it does not have the power to make declarations regarding the validity of COVID-19 vaccination mandates for Queensland health workers and police officers.
Legislation capping litigation funder returns in class actions to 30 per cent and requiring group members to sign up to funding schemes has been introduced to federal parliament despite widespread criticism.
The president of the peak body for barristers in Victorian has slammed the Andrews government’s proposed pandemic laws as “appalling”, and says claims that the bar association was consulted were not true.
A recent High Court ruling that condemned communication between trial judges and barristers outside of court could have dire consequences, including further isolation for members of the bench, experts warn.
A climate change activist can continue her lawsuit alleging the federal government failed to disclose the impact of climate change to investors in sovereign bonds, with a court rejecting the Commonwealth’s strike-out application.
The International Legal Finance Association has slammed the Morrison government’s proposed class action reforms, saying Australians were “systematically being stripped of their ability” to obtain relief through class actions by a “wish list of procedural hurdles” that would make the lawsuits unviable.
Class action reforms proposed last week by the Morrison government would lead to the “rapid abandonment” of open class actions by law firms and litigation funders, two leading barristers have argued.
Individuals challenging public health orders mandating COVID-19 vaccinations for certain workers in New South Wales have told a court “the line was crossed” when the state government threatened their livelihoods.