The Morrison government has released draft legislation claimed to “promote a fair and reasonable distribution of class action proceeds” that includes a proposed 30 per cent cap on the amount funders and lawyers can recoup.
Legal challenges to the New South Wales Health Minister’s orders mandating COVID-19 vaccinations for certain workers have already entered a third wave and cannot all be heard together, a court has heard.
The NSW Environment Protection Authority must develop policies to protect the environment from the threat of climate change, a judge has found in a significant victory for climate advocates.
Reforms by the Morrison government passed earlier this month weakening continuous disclosure obligations will spur corporate defendants to engage in “expensive interlocutory warfare” to shut down class actions right off the bat, and plaintiffs lawyers are waiting to see how the courts interpret the new laws to determine these early strike-out fights.
The Australian Bar Association has criticised “flawed” methodology used to analyse the competency of judges, weighing in on controversy over the Australian Law Reform Commission’s handling of a submission to its judicial impartiality inquiry.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is investigating whether new legislation is needed to address the impact of dominant digital platforms such as Google and Apple, as the regulator’s overseas counterparts usher in bills aimed at cracking down on anticompetitive behaviour.
Controversial legislation advanced by the Morrison government that will weaken the country’s continuous disclosure laws and make it harder to bring shareholder class actions has cleared the Senate.
Combatting “opportunistic” class actions is one of the main drivers behind proposed legislation to reform Australia’s continuous disclosure laws, but the federal treasury department has brushed off a Senate committee’s request for a list of cases apparently deserving of the derogatory tag.
Reported plans by the Morrison government to continue its class action reform efforts by legislating a minimum gross return to group members was roundly knocked by experts who spoke to Lawyerly in the wake of the latest class action inquiry report.
Judges and members of Parliament will be liable for sexual harassment in the workplace under an overhaul of sex discrimination laws, the Morrison government said Thursday, but the proposed reforms were criticised by the ACTU as falling short.