Judges

Insurer Lloyd’s in not on the hook for losses arising from a cancelled 2019 music festival, with a judge finding the Black Summer bushfires did not render cancellation necessary as was required for coverage under the relevant insurance policy.

Proceedings are capable of being determined by the act of filing a discontinuance, a judge has said in approving an application for the discontinuance of a class action over Fire Rescue Victoria’s COVID-19 risk management practices. 

Sydney barrister Gina Edwards has been awarded $150,000 in damages in her defamation case over Channel Nine’s coverage of her battle for custody of famed social media pooch Oscar the cavoodle, with a judge finding she relied on a bad legal advice from a fellow barrister and genuinely believed she was Oscar’s co-owner.

AMP has lost its bid for soft class closure in a class action over allegedly excessive superannuation fees, with a judge finding the court should exercise “real caution” when class closure is opposed by the applicant. 

A judge has ruled that media monitor Isentia did not infringe the copyright of Sky News, despite the “wholesale copying” of content for its government clients, because its actions were done for the “services of the Commonwealth or State”.

Bruce Lehrmann has agreed to pay author Peter FitzSimons’ costs of complying with a subpoena in the former Liberal staffer’s failed defamation case against Network Ten and FitzSimons’ wife Lisa Wilkinson.

A Kurdish refugee has lost his appeal seeking compensation for being kept in makeshift hotel detention centres for 14 months after a judge found the detention lacked “human decency” but was not unlawful.

The corporate regulator is seeking to stay proceedings brought by Clive Palmer challenging the lawfulness of a seven year-old compulsory examination being used in a criminal case against him, arguing the billionaire’s litigation is an abuse of process.

The eSafety commissioner has won a 16-day injunction against X after telling a court the social media platform had not complied with court orders to hide several posts that allegedly included videos of a stabbing at a Sydney church last week. 

Five passengers who were forced off a Qatar Airways flight and strip searched at Doha International Aiport have appealed a ruling summarily tossing their claims against the airline.