The Federal Court of Australia has put a stop to all hearings listed up to June 30 and the High Court will not be sitting in April, May or June, the latest moves by the courts to reduce the risk to staff and visitors of exposure to the new coronavirus.
An employee in Allens’ Brisbane office may have been exposed to the coronavirus, according to the firm, which has ordered that all staff begin working remotely as of Wednesday.
The Federal Circuit Court and Family Court in Sydney shut down on Tuesday after a family law practitioner advised of a positive COVID-19 test, but the courts said they would re-open on Wednesday.
The number of lawyers working at home continues to grow as the coronavirus spreads in Australia, with four law firms ordering staff to pack up and work from home, and more expected to follow their lead.
The corporate watchdog has brought two post-Hayne Commission proceedings against the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, alleging it upped the credit limit of a known problem gambler and overcharged more than $8 million in fees on its agricultural lending products.
Australia’s second largest debt recovery agency has been ordered to pay $500,000 after the company admitted breaching Australia’s consumer laws by unduly harassing and misleading three people over debts they did not owe.
The former boss of Sydney’s 2GB and Melbourne’s 3AW radio stations, Adam Lang, has resolved his defamation case against the publisher of the Daily Telegraph over articles he claimed portrayed him as an incompetent, sadistic executive who created a toxic work atmosphere.
If contingency fees are really so bad that they should be opposed as a matter of principle, why did each of the Productivity Commission, the Victorian Law Reform Commission, and the Australian Law Reform Commission recommend their introduction? The answer is that on close analysis, the arguments against contingency fees do not bear scrutiny, says NSW barrister Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz.
Two law firms have mandated that staff begin working from home to limit the spread of the new coronavirus, while others begin shifting their workforce offsite as firms test their ability to weather what is expected to be a prolonged public health crisis.
A settlement has been reached in a lawsuit against ‘Underbelly’ actor Damien Walshe-Howling alleging he sexually harassed an extra on the set of Channel Ten’s ‘Bikie Wars’ when he grabbed the actress and forced his tongue into her mouth.
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