MinterEllison

Bill Papas’ girlfriend Louise Agostino has hit back at Westpac’s lawsuit accusing her of involvement in the Forum Group director’s alleged $294 million fraud, denying all allegations and arguing that the bulk of the bank’s claims against her should be struck out.

CEO and founder of Euro Pacific Bank Peter Schiff says Nine is refusing to meet his case “head on” in its defence to defamation claims over a 60 Minutes episode accusing the bank boss of endorsing tax evasion and helping figures in organised crime.

Former One Nation senator Brian Burston has resolved court proceedings brought by a former staffer Wendy Leach accusing him of sexual harassment and discrimination.

A judge has signed off on a $125 million settlement to resolve a shareholder class action against Crown Resorts over disclosures relating to its Chinese gambling operations, but has shaved $1 million from the funder’s proposed commission.

US institutional shareholders who joined a class action against Crown Resorts that settled on the eve of trial for $125 million are urging the Federal Court to slash the funder’s commission by $4.65 million.

The High Court has ordered the building and construction union to pay a maximum fine of $63,000 for telling workers they could not be on a job site if they were not union members, saying its serial offending showed it had no “regard for the law”.

A lawyer for Forum Finance director Bill Papas has argued the alleged fraudster should be able to shield documents held by his former lawyer under a claim for legal professional privilege despite being a “fugitive” from contempt charges.

Real estate giant CBRE Group has won its appeal in a dispute with defunct fund manager City Pacific, which claimed the company negligently valued a Queensland marina at $27.3 million in 2006 and caused millions in losses.

The maker of the popular Invisalign dental aligners may soon face a cross-claim from competitor SmileDirectClub, which it sued for allegedly misleading consumers about the cost and efficacy of its direct-to-consumer teeth alignment kits. 

A judge has rejected an application by training provider Captain Cook College to postpone the hearing of its appeal in a case won by the ACCC, saying the company’s inability to fund the appeal was “largely a problem of [its] own making.”