Appeals

General Motors has failed to overturn a decision that put it on the hook for the applicant’s full costs in a partial settlement in a class action on behalf of Holden dealers, with an appeals court finding GM could not “walk away” from the ordinary meaning of the phrase ‘the plaintiff’s costs of the proceedings’.

A judge has granted a limited stay of an injunction against US sports merchandise Fanatics after AFL merchandise maker FanFirm won its case alleging the US company knew about its ‘Fanatics’ trade marks.

The High Court has rejected an appeal by Captain Cook College of a finding that it engaged in systemic unconscionable conduct by enrolling thousands of unsuitable students, finding courts are not constrained by factors the consumer law says it “may consider” in deciding if conduct rises to the level of unconscionability.

The High Court has rejected an appeal from a joint venture that provided work on Chevron’s Gorgon liquified natural gas project that argued the Western Australia appeals court lacked power to uphold a ruling that set aside an arbitration ruling in a $130 million dispute over the project.

The High Court has issued a ruling that significantly alters the playing field in domestic commercial arbitration, finding that proportionate liability defences can apply despite limitations on claimants joining third parties to disputes.

The tax office has asked the High Court to overturn a decision which found that payments made by Asahi Breweries-owned Schweppes to PepsiCo under agreements to sell brands such as Pepsi and Mountain Dew in Australia were not subject to a royalty withholding tax. 

The High Court has agreed to step in to resolve division among Australia’s courts on the question of power to make orders that exclude unregistered group members from class action settlements.

The High Court has taken up the ACCC’s boycott case against builder J Hutchinson and the controversial construction union, an appeal that gives the court the chance to clarify the standard for proving an anti-competitive arrangement.

The High Court has denied the special leave application of a Sydney concert promoter seeking a cut of the profits earned by Nine unit TEG Live for promoting a 2013 Australian tour with English-Irish boy band One Direction. In orders handed down on Thursday, the High Court declined promoter Mark Filby’s bid for review of…

A class action has lost its appeal to the High Court in a case alleging Advanta Seeds owed damages to farmers for the economic loss resulting from its negligence in producing contaminated grain sorghum seed, with the justices clarifying that a duty of care may be established only if responsibility is assumed.