Competition & Consumer Protection
ACCC accuses Aldi produce suppliers of engaging in cartel conduct
The ACCC has accused four produce suppliers and three senior executives of fixing prices on vegetables supplied to discount grocery chain Aldi over a six-year period.
AI
‘A practice that must be stopped’: Judge fed up with use of AI in pleadings
A judge wrongly cited as the author of an AI-hallucinated judgment has struck out at the AI-assisted statement of claim filed by a self-represented litigant in a defamation case, saying the use of generative AI to prepare pleadings is “a practice that must be stopped”.
Professional Negligence
Knowmore Legal suffers preliminary loss in negligence case
A judge has handed Knowmore Legal an early loss in a negligence case by a former client, finding the client was barred from bringing further sexual abuse claims by accepting an offer under the national redress scheme.
Financial Services
SocGen hit with $3.88M fine for market gatekeeper failures
French bank Societe Generale has been hit with a $3.88 million fine for allowing two clients to place suspicious orders on the electricity and wheat futures market, following an investigation by ASIC.
Securities
‘Worst of all possible worlds’: Judge rejects Blue Sky shareholder’s bid for novel split trial
The shareholder leading a class action against failed fund manager Blue Sky Alternative Investments has lost a bid for a split trial it accepted was novel, despite arguing the usual course for trials in securities cases was "misconceived".
Tax
Uber files High Court challenge in $81M payroll tax dispute
Uber wants the High Court to weigh in on its dispute with the NSW State Revenue Office over five years of payroll tax, after an appeals court found payments made to drivers were taxable.
Class Actions
Class action probe targets Queensland over youth detention centres
Queensland is facing a class action investigation on behalf of detainees who were allegedly subjected to isolation, excessive force and other harmful conditions at five youth detention centres in the state.
Construction
NRW acquires Fredon Industries in $200M takeover deal
Perth-based construction and mining contractor NRW Holdings will acquire engineering company Fredon Industries in a $200 million takeover bid.
Financial Services
Mastercard can’t shield in-house counsel’s communications in ACCC case
Mastercard has lost its claim for legal professional privilege over communications between its chief financial officer in Singapore and in-house counsel about merchant agreements the ACCC alleges were anti-competitive.
Energy & Natural Resources
Conditions for Ark Energy’s Tassie wind farm tweaked after activists’ challenge
A Tasmanian community group has lost its appeal against a decision by a local council to grant a permit for Ark Energy’s proposed St Patricks Plains Wind Farm, but a tribunal has ordered the wind farm to tweak its plans.
