Education

Captain Cook College and its COO will attempt to reach an agreement on penalty with the ACCC after the High Court knocked back their appeal of a systemic unconscionable conduct finding.

A judge has signed off on the first-ever settlement allowing a law firm to earn a contingency fee, approving a $12.8 million cut for Slater & Gordon in a shareholder class action against G8 Education.

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.

A fair work claim against the University of Canberra by the former deputy general counsel of Australian National University has been dismissed, with the Fair Work Commission finding she had no reason to think her fixed contract would not terminate at the agreed date, especially considering her legal background. 

A judge has set aside a decision upholding misconduct findings against a former Australian National University PhD student, who was concerned the decision could affect his career prospects in the law.

A former maths teacher at exclusive Sydney school Cranbrook who alleges she was blackmailed by a student has filed proceedings alleging breaches of the Fair Work Act by her former employer.

The former headmaster of exclusive Sydney school Cranbrook has settled a dispute with his former employer after it admitted a public statement concerning his management of misconduct allegations against a teacher “may have caused confusion”, but will press on with a complaint against the ABC over the Four Corners episode that sparked the controversy. 

Global Payments’ plan to acquire Sydney software company School Bytes Learning may substantially lessen competition, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has said in outlining preliminary concerns with the deal.

The University of Sydney has succeeded in a challenge to a finding that an academic was unfairly dismissed after posting to social media a controversial slide of a Nazi swastika superimposed on the Israeli flag, with a majority appeals court finding his union failed to prove the “incendiary” conduct accorded with the standards that entitled him to intellectual freedom.

Slater & Gordon has won the court’s nod to be separately represented at an upcoming settlement approval hearing where it will seek a $12.8 million group costs order for running a shareholder class action against G8 Education.