A former financial advisor has pleaded guilty to charges that he falsified share applications to satisfy minimum spread requirements for four companies wanting to float on the Australian Stock Exchange, in the first criminal case of its kind.
The maker of Vagisil feminine hygiene products has appealed a ruling that denied its bid to stop a European competitor from registering Vagisan as a trade mark in Australia.
A Sydney-based childcare centre that sent an allegedly defamatory email to 35 people has won its appeal of a $238,000 damages award, with an appeals court calling the figure “manifestly excessive” and questioning the “fundamental approach to damages” in defamation cases in NSW.
A former executive of engineering giant Bechtel will be allowed to deduct over $11.8 million in share losses from his taxable income after successfully challenging a ruling to the Full Federal Court, in a decision that clarifies taxation law for income and capital regarding asset trades.
A former Piper Alderman partner is seeking to revive her unlawful discrimination case dismissed last year by the Australian Human Rights Commission, saying the seriousness of the allegations and the “public importance” of protecting women leaders from discrimination were powerful reasons to allow her claims to move forward.
A judge has signed off on a $2 million payout for Maddens Lawyers in a class action against electricity provider Powercor over a 2018 St Patrick’s Day bushfire in Victoria that settled last year for $17.5 million, despite finding that the law firm’s cost agreement with group members was void.
A judge has directed solicitors for deceased lawyer and funder Mark Elliott to search for his missing mobile phone, which is wanted for potential evidence by a court-appointed contradictor investigating alleged professional misconduct on the part of the legal team behind a settled class action against failed Banksia Securities.
A Federal Court judge has awarded combined damages of $2.6 million to the lead applicants in the Johnson & Johnson pelvic mesh class action, following a landmark ruling in November which found that the pharmaceutical giant did not adequately warn of the risks of the implants.
An individual claimant accusing AMP Financial Planning of ignoring multiple attempts to gain remediation for alleged insurance re-writing conduct was granted permission to voice his displeasure in court, while ASIC and AMP grapple with the details of a remediation program for insurance churn victims.
Two executives of car wash franchisor Geowash that were found to be knowingly involved in the company’s unconscionable conduct in its dealings with franchisees have lost their bid to void a costs agreement with law firm Thomson Geer, with a judge calling legal cost estimations “an inexact science”.
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