Cindy Cameronne

Under pressure from parliamentary committee members, KPMG said late Friday it would waive privilege and hand over investigation reports from Allens and Ashurst, after initially resisting orders for documents.

ASIC’s chair says the corporate cop is investigating individuals at KPMG for alleged misuse of confidential information belonging to Lendlease and Optus to win new work, but says it is hamstrung by current law from undertaking a broader probe. 

A senator has criticised KPMG for claiming a commitment to transparency while also maintaining legal professional privilege over advice from Allens and Ashurst into the alleged misuse of confidential information.

Facing the hotseat over KPMG's treatment of a whisteblower, the accounting giant's former CEO Andrew Yates told a parliamentary committee hearing on Friday he took accountability and was not a "bad apple".

Lendlease chair John Gillam has said the company's board was “deeply discontented” with KPMG’s alleged misuse of its confidential information but was stuck with the accounting firm until the end of the financial year. 

A judge has approved a $35 million penalty against HSBC in ASIC’s novel case over the bank's scam protection failures, despite questioning whether the punishment was severe enough given how long the case took to settle.

A judge has refused a bid by the director of property developer Vantager to stay orders to sell his property while he appeals a decision finding him liable for a “brazen fraud” after a $45 million sale was negotiated for a Denham Court property that was only worth $10.8 million. 

HSBC has agreed to pay a $35 million penalty in ASIC proceedings after it admitted to serious failures in protecting customers from scams, but a judge is questioning whether the penalty is high enough. 

The High Court has slashed by 75 per cent the exemplary damages won by former youth detainees in Darwin who were unlawfully sprayed with tear gas, despite finding the conduct was "reprehensible". 

Former directors of failed clothing retailer Mosaic Brands are claiming privilege over retainer letters between Deloitte and the company as special purpose liquidators investigate potential insolvent trading and directors duty breach claims.