The stage is set for a beauty parade of two shareholder class actions against Freedom Foods and Deloitte, and the judge overseeing the cases has embraced the recommendation of the High Court to appoint an independent barrister to represent group members in the contest.
The lead applicant in a class action against Bayer over its allegedly defective Essure contraceptive devices has won court approval to drop her consumer law claims against the German drug maker, with a judge agreeing that the plaintiff’s defect and negligence claims had a better chance of succeeding.
Costly add-on therapies sold by Monash IVF to thousands of women undergoing IVF — including pre-implantation genetic testing — are the targets of a new class action investigation.
A judge has urged parties in a class action against Westpac over superannuation fees to hold an in-person mediation, saying that success rates have “plummeted” during the COVID-19 pandemic as more settlement talks are held virtually.
The trustee of Mayfair Group’s collapsed IPO Wealth Fund has denied claims in a class action that it misled investors who lost $86 million when the fund was wound up, and says it is fully indemnified for the class action’s claims under an agreement with the fund.
Slater & Gordon has argued discovery is becoming āunduly onerousā in a cross-claim filed by Arnold Bloch Leibler in a class action accusing the law firm of breaching its duty of care by greenlighting Slate & Gordonās $1.2 billion acquisition of Quindell.
A judge has ordered the lead applicant in a shareholder class action against G8 Education to disclose a previously redacted clause of a costs agreement to the childcare centre operator, saying he failed to show how supplying the information would give G8 a tactical advantage in the case.
A former Slater & Gordon lawyer has been reprimanded by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal for “disgraceful and dishonourable” conduct in falsifying client affidavits but has avoided having her practicing certificate wholly suspended because of past mental health issues and current efforts at rehabilitation.
The judge considering the $50 million settlement reached in the shareholder class action against failed training company Vocation and auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers has signalled his likely approval of the deal, but wants a senior lawyer to tell the court why the funding commission is reasonable.
A judge has allowed Treasury Wine Estates to apply for security for costs before a group costs order application is decided, in a class action accusing the wine maker of breaching its continuous disclosure obligations.