PricewaterhouseCoopers

A former PricewaterhouseCoopers partner has settled his defamation claim against the firm over public statements that allegedly falsely linked him to its tax leaks scandal in 2023.

The ATO has won the nod from the High Court to appeal a finding that a royalty withholding tax did not apply to payments from Schweppes to PepsiCo under agreements to sell brands like Pepsi and Gatorade in Australia.

The High Court will not review a Full Court ruling that backed the ATO’s rejection of over $894,000 in tax deductions related to SingTel’s $14.2 billion acquisition of Optus.

The tax office has asked the High Court to overturn a decision which found that payments made by Asahi Breweries-owned Schweppes to PepsiCo under agreements to sell brands such as Pepsi and Mountain Dew in Australia were not subject to a royalty withholding tax. 

In a loss for the Australian Taxation Office, the Full Federal Court has found that payments made by Asahi Breweries-owned Schweppes to PepsiCo under agreements to sell brands such as Pepsi and Mountain Dew in Australia were not subject to a royalty withholding tax. 

Lendlease has hit back at a lawsuit by a former Greenwoods & Freehills partner who alleged he was sacked for complaining about the company’s “aggressive taxation position”, claiming the partner reached out after he left the firm welcoming the chance to work with the company again.

Approving a settlement between insurers and group members in an investor class action against lender Axsesstoday, a judge has aired his frustration with expansive confidentiality provisions and deeds that “misapprehend the nature of the court’s role” in dealing with group members’ claims. 

Four insurers have agreed to fork over $1 million to settle an investor class action against lender Axsesstoday over an allegedly misleading prospectus for a bond offering, while claims against PricewaterhouseCoopers will move forward.

PricewaterhouseCoopers has struck back at claims in a Fair Work suit brought by a graduate associate, denying liability for the alleged sexual harassment by the woman’s manager at multiple Sydney bars.

PricewaterhouseCoopers has been sued by an employee who alleges the accounting firm is vicariously liable for an alleged sexual assault by a co-worker after an end-of-financial-year work party.