Law Firms

The NSW Independent Planning Commission’s decision to approve an extension for Whitehaven’s Narrabi coal mine was “legally illogical” amid current knowledge of the “extraordinary and deadly” impact of climate change, a court has heard.

The High Court has thrown out laws that banned unions and other third parties from spending more than $20,000 on political campaigns ahead of a New South Wales state election in March.

Pitcher Partners has failed to stay a Federal Court suit alleging the accounting firm failed to properly advise former Zap Fitness owner Bective Enterprises on a troubled share buy-back scheme, in light of a Supreme Court bid by another key player to shut the case down.

The High Court killed off all common fund orders, not just the kind sought at the start of a class action, a judge has said as he cut in half the payout for a litigation funder bankrolling two franchisee class actions against 7-Eleven.

A judge has blessed a law firm’s $16.6 million legal bill for running two franchisee class actions against 7-Eleven despite a contradictor’s argument that it had a “troubling” practice of deferring its fees to benefit the funder that bankrolled the cases. 

The applicants in a shareholder class action against KPMG and former directors of defunct mining company CuDeco might press for clarity on the question of common fund orders in light of a ruling Tuesday morning that further split the Federal Court on the issue.

The applicants in a consolidated investor class action against Blue Sky Alternative Investments and auditor EY will be applying for a so-called solicitors common fund order, and will move to transfer the case to the contingency-fee friendly Victoria Supreme Court if the groundbreaking application fails.

The law firm running the Montara oil spill class action, which has settled for $192.5 million, is looking for a new lead applicant after the first one defected over concerns group members would lose half the settlement amount to legal costs and a funding commission.

Facing defamation claims by well-known surgeon Dr Munjed Al Muderis, Nine will call at least 27 witnesses and argue for the public interest of its coverage of allegations by patients of inadequate post-surgery care, a court has heard.

Asset Energy has won Federal Court review of former Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s decision not to grant a two-year extension of a controversial offshore exploration license, after the government conceded that Morrison’s decision was “infected by apprehended bias.”