Class actions throw up all manner of ethical conundrums, but a recent Federal Court decision has shined a light on the question of whether funders and law firms should take out loans to run class actions and whether they can charge the costs to group members.
Ben Roberts-Smith has argued a judge should recuse himself from deciding if the Office of the Special Investigator can access his defamation court file, arguing the public might think he was biased and wanted to “further” his findings that the former SAS corporal committed war crimes. In a case management hearing on Monday, Arthur Moses…
A judge overseeing a class action against Suncorp subsidiary AAI has questioned whether the “uncertain” plan B of a law firm seeking a 25 per cent group costs order was artificially uncertain to increase the relative appeal of its contingency fee bid.
ASIC is seeking penalties against Dixon Advisory & Superannuation Services director Paul Ryan for allegedly failing to consider clients when executing a deed that affected the financial advice firm’s ability to recoup a $19 million debt from its holding company.
Shine Lawyers has lost its bid to recover $32 million in interest on a loan it took out to run two pelvic mesh class actions against Johnson & Johnson, with a judge finding it would make a “marginal settlement less than reasonable”.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has filed its first action alleging breach of obligations in designing and selling financial products, accusing online investment platform eToro of inappropriately exposing clients to high risk CFDs.
A judge overseeing the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s case alleging auto mechanic Ultra Tune failed to comply with court orders has labelled its managing director Sean Buckley as “one of the more dreadful witnesses” he had seen.
A judge has questioned an ABC journalist who is the target of a defamation case by ex-commando Heston Russell if he should have treated a key source who another source called a “showpony” more cautiously while reporting on alleged war crimes in Afghanistan.
Fairfax can see 8,600 emails that passed between Seven’s commercial director and Ben Roberts-Smith’s legal team as it seeks significant defence costs in the accused war criminal’s unsuccessful defamation case, a judge has ruled.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation has defended its reporting of alleged war crimes in a defamation case by ex-commando Heston Russell, saying the debate over whether its stories were in the public interest “rises well above truth”.