A class action on behalf of businesses claiming harm from the 2020 hotel quarantine debacle has fought back against the state of Victoria’s bid to push the case off until a criminal action against the state’s Department of Health has been heard.
A judge has pulled up legal teams in a class action against the state of Victoria on behalf of businesses that allegedly suffered loss from the 2020 hotel quarantine debacle, saying progress in the case has been “extremely slow”.
The judge whose ruling against the legal team behind the Banksia class action fraud helped redeem the battered reputation of the civil justice system may be asked to disqualify himself from the final fight in the drawn out case.
A judge has signed off on a group costs order in a shareholder class action against food company Noumi and auditor Deloitte guaranteeing group members a return of at least 78 per cent, but noted the law firms’ cut may need to be reviewed to avoid a “disproportionate return”.
In a boost to shareholder class actions, the High Court has dismissed an application by engineering services firm Worley to appeal a finding that companies should disclose to the market forecasts that ought reasonably to have been held.
BHP Group has lost its High Court battle to keep foreign investors from an Australian shareholder class action over the devastating collapse of a Brazilian dam.
The state of Victoria has brought criminal action against the DHHS over its handling of the hotel quarantine debacle in 2020 and wants to push off separate class action proceedings until the charges are heard.
The state of Victoria can’t duck class action claims that failures in its hotel quarantine program caused businesses to suffer losses when stage three and four restrictions were put in place during the state’s second wave of COVID-19 cases in 2020.
Despite noting that a class action trial and appeal were “unusual”, a judge overseeing a long-running class action against Ford has refused an application to send a notice to group members about a coming appeal in the case.
A judge has criticised the Andrews government for withholding information about the alleged transmission of COVID-19 to a security guard working in hotel quarantine in a class action claiming lapses in the program caused Victorian businesses to suffer losses.