The Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions has pared its criminal cartel case against Country Care Group and two individuals, cutting over 100 charges in an indictment that details two alleged cartel agreements the Australian mobility equipment provider entered into in relation to bids on NSW government tenders.
The High Court has granted ASIC special leave to appeal a judgment that let a former director of Gold Coast finance company MFS Group partially off the hook for $147.5 million in misappropriated funds, after ASIC argued the High Court should intervene to clarify the scope of the word “officer” under the Corporations Act.
US hedge fund Oaktree Capital has placed fund manager Blue Sky Alternative Investments into receivership, following a tumultuous period marked by the loss of senior executives and three shareholder class action investigations amid concerns about the company’s method for valuing its assets under management.
Nine Entertainment Company has resolved a defamation lawsuit brought by a prominent Sydney cosmetic surgeon over an article that appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald about the death of a criminal figure during a nose job procedure.
GlaxoSmithKline has defeated claims by the ACCC that revised packaging for its now-discontinued pain killer Osteo Gel misled consumers. The drug maker will face penalties for earlier violations it admitted to, but the court hinted the damages will be nowhere near the $6 million competitor Reckitt Benckiser faced in a similar case.
Chemicals giant BASF has dragged an Australian pest control company to court for allegedly violating its patent for an underground termite control system.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has apologised for botching the announcement of its plan to block the $15 billion merger of TPG and Vodafone, blaming a computer glitch for the error.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has dropped its probe into Blue Sky over possible violations of its continuous disclosure obligations, but the fund manager still faces three active shareholder class action investigations.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission wants ASX-listed diamond mining company Merlin Diamonds wound up, expressing concerns about the company’s solvency and over $13 million in loans made to companies associated with Merlin’s director, Joseph Gutnick, without shareholder approval.
A judge has sent a dispute between oil giant Viva Energy and a Panama-based oil transporter over petroleum allegedly contaminated during transport into arbitration.