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A judge has upheld findings from IP Australia that South Korean biotech ToolGen’s genome editing technology CRISPR is not patentable, but given the company one more chance to seek to amend its application.
Insurer Vero dragged into class action over combustible cladding
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A judge has ruled insurer Vero can be added to a class action over allegedly combustible cladding, finding removal of the cladding could be considered “property damage” under the wording of an insurance contract with cladding manufacturer Fairview.
Top Robodebt bureaucrat suspended in wake of withering report
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A senior public servant behind the Robodebt fiasco is one of the first heads to roll following the findings of a royal commission into the illegal debt recovery scheme devised by the previous federal government to claw back welfare overpayments.
ACCC flags concerns with Coles acquisition of Saputo dairy plants
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The ACCC has raised concerns about Coles plans to acquire milk processing plants from Saputo, with the regulator saying the transaction — marking the first time a supermarket chain has ventured into the processing market — would be a “major structural change”.
ACL’s $1.5B tie-up with Healius rings alarm bells for ACCC
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The proposed $1.5 billion merger of Australian Clinical Labs and Healius — two of Australia’s largest pathology services providers — is likely to substantially lessen competition, the ACCC has warned.
Norton Rose snags class action ace from US, elevates arbitration expert
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Norton Rose Fulbright has snagged a class action lawyer with decades of US legal experience and elevated an arbitration expert who worked at a New York white shoe law firm to be partners in its Sydney and Perth offices.
NSW government on hook for damages in light rail class action
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A judge has found the state of NSW liable to compensate the lead plaintiffs in a class action brought on behalf of small businesses over the “substantial and unreasonable” interference caused by the construction of Sydney’s $3 billion light rail network, but he flagged “significant problems” in applying his findings to thousands of potential group members.
Equal pay rules don’t apply retrospectively, FWC says in Peter Rowland chef’s case
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A former chef of catering company Peter Rowland Group has lost her fight for gender pay equality, with the Fair Work Commission accepting the merits of her claim but ruling the legislation that covers equal pay can apply only to current employees.
Doctors class action won’t take precedence over union-backed cases
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A union representing 54 junior doctors alleging they were systemically underpaid has defeated a bid by NSW Health to stay its case until the determination of a related class action on behalf of tens of thousands of medical officers.
Jury finds for AFP in childcare operators’ defamation case over press conference
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The operators of a childcare business have failed to persuade a jury that a press conference by the Australian Federal Police about an alleged multimillion dollar government benefit fraud was defamatory.