Law firm Herbert Smith Freehills has attacked a lawsuit brought by a group of lenders against collapsed steel giant Arrium, rejecting claims that $430 million in loans was borrowed under misleading or deceptive representations.
A judge has found the lead applicant and funder in a discontinued class action against Pitcher Partners over its auditing of Slater & Gordon must pay the bill for the flurry of cross-claims brought in the proceeding, but has rejecting the accounting firm’s argument that its costs should be paid on an indemnity basis.
The former group treasurer of collapsed steel giant Arrium has hit back at claims brought by the company’s liquidators that it was trading while insolvent, arguing the case had been ‘infected’ by evidence from an expert who was also a plaintiff in the case.
Doomed iron and steel giant Arrium attempted to stave off its inevitable $2.8 billion collapse and put off negotiating with its lenders until the last minute despite warnings from its legal and financial advisors, liquidators for the company told the court.
Directors of steel producer Arrium continued to borrow money from “vulnerable” lenders in the months prior to the company’s $2.8 billion collapse and “bled cash” despite the inevitable end, a number of lenders have said on the first day of a 40-day trial in the NSW Supreme Court.
Professionsal services giant EY has added to the many cross-claims flying in the shareholder class action against Pitcher Partners over advice to law firm Slater & Gordon, and has alleged the accounting firm engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct and negligence and that it breached its retainer.
A judge has rejected Fonterra’s bid to restrain Bega from using the Bega trade mark on packaging for peanut butter and nut products as well as Bega’s counterclaim alleging Fonterra failed to invest, promote and develop new Bega products in breach of their trade mark agreement.
National rugby league team Melbourne Storm has brought legal action against former CEO Dave Donaghy seeking an injunction banning him from taking on the top post at the Brisbane Broncos until August.
Food and beverage manufacturer Freedom Foods and accounting giant Deloitte have been hit with a second class action by irate investors seeking compensation for “accounting errors” that led to a $590 million write-down in November last year.
A judge has signed off on a settlement in two shareholder class actions against clothing retailer Surfstitch, but has capped the legal costs and commissions sought by the litigation funders after finding the law firms behind the cases sent out notices to group members that were “misleading” and “understated” the risks of joining the class.