Labour hire company Workpac is seeking to stay two class actions over leave entitlements allegedly owed coal miners, amid a looming judgment from the Full Federal Court that will clarify the definition of casual employees.
A judge has thrown out the NRMA’s consumer case against the maritime union over its Sydney fast ferry campaign, ruling that a verdict in favour of the motoring body would have brought the “the entire field of industrial relations within the operation of consumer legislation”.
Two Westpac units have been hit with a class action over allegedly excessive superannuation interest rates, the third class action filed as part of Slater and Gordon’s $1 billion ‘Get Your Super Back’ campaign.
Insurance company Watchstone Group, which is facing a lawsuit by Slater & Gordon UK over a botched acquisition that brought the law firm to its knees, has secured approval to file a counterclaim alleging auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers engaged in “secret meetings” with the firm’s corporate finance adviser to gain leverage leading up to the deal.
Concerns about duplicative costs in multiple class actions are better addressed by case management decisions aimed at cutting excessive expense, not by limiting the amount lawyers representing group members can spend, the Full Federal Court has said in dismissing an appeal by baby food maker Bellamy’s.
Bellamy’s has lost its appeals court battle to limit the costs incurred by lawyers jointly running two shareholder class actions against the baby food maker.
A class action against National Australia Bank over allegedly worthless consumer credit insurance could be referred to the Full Federal Court just three months out from trial, amid concerns that the class action was not validly commenced.
The CFMEU will fund a landmark multi-million dollar class action against labour hire company Workpac seeking repayment of leave entitlements it claims are owed to more than 600 coalminers, in the latest casual employee challenge to hit the courts.
A judge overseeing competing class actions against AMP over allegedly excessive superannuation fees has signed off on an agreement by two rival law firms to consolidate their cases, avoiding a potentially costly and drawn out beauty parade.
AMP has added two law firms to separately represent its subidiaries in one of two class actions alleging it charged its superannuation members excessive fees.