A settlement reached in a lawsuit by the liquidators of collapsed steel giant Arrium against 10 former company directors accused of insolvent trading has been approved by a judge, who noted that while the settlement amount was “substantial”, the deal involved a “substantial compromise”.
Global resources giant BHP Group is seeking special leave from the High Court to appeal a ruling that rejected its bid to exclude foreign investors from a shareholder class action over the 2015 Fundao dam disaster.
After winning a three-way contest to lead a shareholder class action against construction giant Boral, Maurice Blackburn is seeking to stay a competing class action by Phi Finney McDonald that was allowed to continue as a closed class action.
Energy generator Stanwell has filed a lawsuit seeking to shut down the funding for a class action brought on behalf of 50,000 customers accusing it of gaming Queenland’s energy pricing system, alleging funder LCM lacked the required licence to back the case and did not register the class action as a managed investment scheme.
A dozen group members can opt out of Maurice Blackburn’s Roundup class action against Monsanto and switch to a competing class action being run by Sydney-based LHD Lawyers that was closed and temporarily stayed in May last year.
The Full Federal Court has upheld US biotech company Sequenom’s patent for a noninvasive prenatal genetic test, rejecting rival Ariosa Diagnostic’s argument that the patent merely described a way to extract incorporeal genetic information.
National Australia Bank has urged a court to impose a $15 million penalty for its five-year failure to adequately disclose its adviser fees, and has argued ASIC’s push for a steeper penalty goes too far.
Switzerland-based Biogen has sued generic drug maker MSN Laboratories for allegedly threatening to infringe the patent for its top-selling oral MS drug Tecfidera.
A judge has extended an injunction barring a former manager of non-bank lender Liberty Financial from working for a unit of Wingate Group until after trial in a case over a restraint clause in the executive’s contract.
A Victoria Supreme Court judge weighing for the first time an application by a law firm for a percentage cut of recoveries in class actions has been told to reject the bid because group members would fare better under the firm’s current no win, no fee funding arrangement.