Ford has lost its bid to delay an upcoming virtual trial in a class action over allegedly defective PowerShift transmissions, with a judge saying the parties must try to make a virtual trial work because the current “unsatisfactory” circumstances caused by the coronavirus pandemic could continue for a year or more.
Arguing that the court should not be “baulking at problems that have the potential to occur”, counsel for a class action against Ford is pushing back against a bid by the car maker to put the brakes on an upcoming virtual trial the company says will be too difficult and costly.
Personal healthcare giant PZ Cussons is seeking indemnity costs from the ACCC, claiming the regulator unreasonably rejected a settlement offer in its case over an alleged laundry detergent cartel.
The Federal Court has updated guidance on its response to the coronavirus outbreak, saying it is working with lawyers to ensure as many hearings listed for the coming months can proceed. And Monday’s calendar, while perhaps lighter than usual, shows multiple matters will be heard as planned — by telephone.
The Full Federal Court has thrown out an appeal by a former special counsel of HWL Ebsworth, ruling the senior practitioner was reasonably fired for violating the firm’s media policy in press interviews and not because of his political views.
Personal healthcare giant PZ Cussons is seeking $4.7 million in indemnity costs from the ACCC, claiming the regulator’s much hyped spoke and hub case over an alleged laundry detergent cartel was always “overwhelmingly likely” to fail.
Calling the complex intellectual property dispute a “total war” between the tech giants, a judge has dismissed a proposed amended defence by Hytera Communications to Motorola’s allegations of copyright infringement, finding that the “wholly new case” would derail an upcoming trial in May and push it back by at least a year.
The ACCC has asked for an interim stay of an appeal by Indonesian airline Garuda, which has yet to pay a $19 million penalty for airline price fixing, telling the court it wanted to give the company another chance to explain its “entirely exceptional” non-compliance.
ASIC has criticised a Federal Court judge for his ‘thought experiments’ around prospective home loan applicants feasting on Wagyu beef and shiraz, as the regulator challenges the judge’s dismissal of its responsible lending case against Westpac.
The ACCC claims it was not required to prove Kimberly-Clark’s flushable wipes caused actual harm to sewers, as it challenges a ruling that disposed of its consumer law case against the personal care giant.