Judges

A judge has slapped payday lenders BSF, Cigno and their directors with a combined $7 million in penalties for engaging in unlicensed credit activity, finding a lower penalty was appropriate given they had relied on legal advice from Piper Alderman.

A judge has rejected a bid to amend a shareholder class action against Beach Energy, saying the way the applicant had articulated its case on loss by reference to an expert report was “apt to lead to confusion”.

Accenture has lost its bid for summary judgment in a former HR exec's case alleging she was booted from her role after raising concerns the company could be liable for $40 million in backpay.

A judge has bawled out lawyers in a case against water treatment firm Phoslock and auditor KPMG for putting forward a High Court ruling for the mistaken proposition that he had power to make the class closure order sought.

APAC issued a default notice to Dexus' infrastructure fund manager for a purported breach of a shareholder agreement during a share sales process to "get rid of" it, a trial has heard.

Glencore has failed on appeal in a case against Port of Newcastle, with an appeals court finding the coal company could not rely on submissions in litigation leading up to a final determination of the port's access charges.

A Toorak developer has been barred from calling on nearly $500,000 in security, with a court finding an allegation against contractor Kronstruct was “irrational and misconceived" and did not result in the alleged $1.6 million loss. 

Previewing Monday's closing arguments in its legal tussle with the operator of Melbourne Airport, co-owner Dexus says it won't deny a long-term model given to potential share purchasers was confidential. But here's the kicker -- the disclosure didn't run afoul of its shareholder agreement, it says.

The former lawyer for Broken Hill Council, who was ordered to return over $2 million in unauthorised fees, has been socked with a $1 million order for indemnity costs for “exceptional” conduct in a case over his firm's rates.

A former client of a Sydney law firm has lost his bid to up a $300,000 damages award against the firm over a defective notice in a proposed $7.8 million land sale.