The solicitor behind the successful challenge to the claim for ill-gotten spoils by the Banksia Securities class action legal team says he draws little comfort from the conclusion by the judge who strongly condemned the misconduct that the legal system is capable of regulating itself. More needs to be done to root out the systemic causes of the arrogance on display in the case, he says.
Insurers are misleading policyholders about class actions which seek compensation for those denied business interruption coverage for COVID-related shutdowns, a court has heard.
New requirements that funded class actions be run as managed investment schemes will throw up myriad new questions for the courts, with lawyers predicting novel challenges by defendants and group members and an altered landscape for competing class actions.
Insurance broker JLT Risk Solutions has opposed an application by a group of NSW councils to add misleading and deceptive conduct allegations to a long-running class action, claiming the changes would force the vacation of a five-week trial due to start in October.
A judge has signed off on a proposal by two law firms to jointly run a consolidated class action against Allianz over add-on car insurance, shooting down the insurer’s argument that a beauty contest would promote competitive contingency fee rates.
Insurance giant Lloyd’s has rejected what it calls an “incomprehensible” class action pleading by Australian businesses that argue its business interruption policies should have indemnified them for losses stemming from COVID-19 lockdowns.
Insurers Lloyds Australia and QBE want class actions by policyholders who were denied business interruption coverage for COVID-related shutdowns stayed until a related test case in the Federal Court is decided.
Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting has avoided a discovery order that would cost an estimated $3 million to comply with, with a judge instead ordering that limited discovery be given to two Rinehart children in an ongoing family dispute over titles for the Hope Down iron ore mine.
A judge has grudgingly agreed to allow a law firm to run an investor’s case against S&P Global over ratings on toxic financial products separately from a class action that makes the same claims, but was warned of the “costs consequences” of the parallel proceedings.
Consolidation of two consumer class actions against Allianz would do away with competition in a contest to lead a single case that would force a drop in the contingency fee rates of the rival law firms, the insurance giant has told a court.