Class Actions
Kmart hit with underpayments class action
Kmart has been hit with a class action on behalf of thousands of salaried managers who allege they were systematically underpaid.
Crime
Ben Roberts-Smith arrested, to face war crimes charges
Former SAS soldier Ben Roberts-Smith has been arrested and will be charged with five war crimes following a years-long joint investigation by the Australian Federal Police and the Office of the Special Investigator.
Class Actions
a2 Milk to pay $62M to settle shareholder class action
Dairy giant a2 Milk has agreed to cough up $62 million to settle a consolidated shareholder class action over a 2021 guidance.
Article
Chemist Warehouse must bargain with SA workers after failed FWC appeal
The Full Fair Work Commission has rejected Chemist Warehouse's appeal of orders requiring it to negotiate a multi-employer agreement with its South Australian workforce under new bargaining laws.
Competition & Consumer Protection
In Mastercard case, judge says suppression bids ‘spiralling out of control’
A judge has said he will not be able to decide all the suppression applications in the ACCC’s misuse of market power case against Mastercard ahead of trial, saying the court was facing an “unreasonable, if not oppressive” burden.
Intellectual Property
AstraZeneca probes Pharmacor’s delayed defence in Forxiga patent fight
Pharmacor is resisting AstraZeneca’s notice to produce in an intellectual property fight over diabetes drug Forxiga, claiming privilege over material evidencing its consideration of a new claim challenging the validity of a patent extension.
Securities
ASX ‘lacks aspiration’ to oversee critical markets infrastructure, ASIC says
The corporate regulator has delivered a scathing report on exchange operator ASX, finding it has significantly under-invested in technology in favour of delivering short-term dividends to shareholders.
Financial Services
RAMS franchisee doesn’t want to be ‘swept into’ class action trial
A former RAMS franchisee has raised concerns about a joint trial of its case with a related class action against the defunct Westpac home loan subsidiary, saying the overlap between the cases may be “much less than advertised”.
M&A
ACCC taps keg supplier’s acquisition of rival for in-depth review
The competition regulator will further probe US keg company MicroStar's proposed acquisition of the assets of rival keg pooling service Konvoy, saying the transaction could substantially lessen competition.
Employment
Aged care provider to backpay staff $11M under deal with FWO
Non-profit aged care provider Southern Cross Care has agreed to pay over $11.7 million to 5,500 underpaid staff as part of a court-enforceable undertaking with the Fair Work Ombudsman.
