Barristers

A court has appointed receivers to two entities of collapsed asset manager Australian Fiduciaries amid concerns by the corporate regulator that $167 million in funds have been misused, including to buy $600,000 in luxury cars.

A judge has hacked Maurice Blackburn’s promised cut of an $87 million settlement in a class action against Hino Motors, saying the 24.66 per cent group costs order previously approved by the court would result in a “disproportionate return” to the firm.

Meta has lost its latest bid to strike out the consumer regulator’s case alleging it failed to put up “reasonable safeguards” to prevent scam cryptocurrency ads on its Facebook platform.

A judge has criticised the “unacceptably complex” trial of two regulatory cases and two underpayments class actions against Coles and Woolworths, delivering a ruling whose significance for the workers is not yet clear.

The High Court has been asked to clarify the jurisdictional reach of the Victoria Supreme Court to hear planning disputes, in a spat between the state and supermarket operator IGA.

Japan-based Mitsui has sued Esso Australia and Woodside Energy, its partners in the Kipper gas field in the Bass Strait, disputing their claims that it owes $298 million in taxes and alleging it overpaid fees to the tune of $20.3 million. 

Eastlink operator ConnectEast has lost its bid for restitutionary interest after a judge found CityLink's operator overcharged tens of millions of dollars in toll roaming fees.

The applicant in a class action by former RAMS franchisees can't intervene in proceedings by ASIC against the defunct Westpac mortgage unit, with a judge finding the outcome of the ASIC case will not affect the class action.

A judge has questioned why group members in a shareholder class action against Crown Resorts must wait until mid-2026 to receive the first slice of a $73 million settlement, which has already been paid by the casino operator.

A judge has hit Mayfair Group director James Mawhinney with 15-year injunctions, after finding he took a "cavalier attitude to compliance" in marketing notes tied to Mission Beach properties in Queensland.