A judge will appoint an independent barrister to determine the allocation of settlement proceeds between insured group members and their insurers from two St Patrick’s Day bushfire class actions, finding that the ‘overly combative’ conduct of law firm Maddens warranted the appointment despite the extra costs involved.
A settlement has been reached in a class action against a Sydney-based financial advisory firm by a group of Chinese investors over a property investment and visa scheme that allegedly saw group members lose $14.5 million in funds.
A judge has signed off on a $10.5 million settlement in a class action over the 2015 Scotsburn bushfire in Victoria, but slashed the costs of the law firm that brought the case by over $1 million.
A recent decision in ASIC’s case against ANZ has highlighted the potential risks of waiver of client legal privilege, with the Federal Court observing that the distinctions can be “fine”. While ANZ avoided having to disclose its legal advice to the regulator, the decision is a reminder of the potential pitfalls of referring to legal advice in correspondence, and that pleading a state of mind in litigation carries risks from a privilege perspective, says Hall & Wilcox partner Jacob Uljans.
Hall & Wilcox has lured an insolvency ace from McCullough Robertson to bolster its insolvency and commercial litigation team in Brisbane.
Law firms are increasingly encouraging men to take paternity leave, with benefits to both the well being of staff, and the bottom line.
The widow of mining billionaire Ken Talbot has been denied a separate trial to answer questions of privilege in her negligence lawsuit against law firms Arnold Bloch Leibler and Boyd Legal for their handling of her late husband’s estate, which she claims resulted in tens of millions of dollars in losses.
The reopening of law firm offices in Melbourne and Sydney may still be months away but firms have given Lawyerly a glimpse of what it might look like when staff do return to the office, from split workforces to strictly enforced health and safety rules. One thing is for sure, COVID-19 has changed the way lawyers will work from now on.
The widow of mining billionaire Ken Talbot has filed a negligence lawsuit against law firms Arnold Bloch Leibler and Boyd Legal for their handling of her late husband’s estate, which she claims resulted in tens of millions of dollars in losses.
Lawyers can kiss goodbye to the daily commute because working from home, which has become the new normal during the coronavirus pandemic, is here to stay, according to several leading law firms.