Settlement

A judge has approved a "modest" $8.7 million settlement in a class action against medical device maker Exactech over allegedly defective joint replacements, saying the settlement was fair and reasonable given the limited assets of the company, whose parent has filed for bankruptcy in the US.

A class action on behalf of thousands of victims of the December 2019 Cudlee Creek bushfire has reached a confidential settlement with two individuals, while claims worth $200 million against SA Power Networks have proceeded to trial. 

A class action over alleged inflated insurance policy premiums charged by advisers of two Commonwealth Bank wealth management licensees has settled, the second class action over CommInsure to resolve this week.

The parties in a class action against agricultural giant GrainCorp over alleged noise and odour pollution from a factory in rural Victoria have failed to seal the deal on a settlement reached last month.

Wealth manager Colonial First State Investments and insurer AIA have reached a $140 million settlement in a long-running class action alleging 700,000 superannuation members were charged inflated premiums on insurance products linked to former owner CBA.

The funder and law firms that ran a shareholder class action against BHP over the collapse of the company's Samarco Fundão dam in Brazil will seek approval for deductions that will see half of the $110 million settlement go to group members. 

A judge has adjourned a hearing seeking approval of a $37.35 million settlement in a shareholder class action against EML Payments over concerns about the exclusion of late registrants and claims.

The funder of a class action over the Morrison government’s Robodebt scheme will seek a 15 per cent commission at an upcoming settlement approval hearing, a court has heard, after the case settled for a record $548.5 million. 

The court will not get a chance to rule on the design and distribution obligations in the marketing of contracts for difference, after the Australian Securities and Investments Commission reached an agreement with eToro to resolve the first case of its kind. 

Brookfield Properties has admitted that it failed to follow procedures on consultation and redeployment when it made a senior manager redundant when she was on parental leave.