Class Actions

An investor class action against RCR Tomlinson has reached a walk-away settlement agreement with two former directors of the failed engineering company.

The NSW government has struck back at a class action over allegedly unlawful police strip searches at 50 music festivals, saying the state is immune from personal injury claims because police officers had a reasonable suspicion group members were in possession of illegal drugs. 

Cruise operator Scenic Tours has made a bid to dramatically narrow the scope of a second class action brought over a series of European cruises that went ahead in 2018 despite a record-breaking drought that saw river levels drop so low they became impassable.

Hyundai and Kia are facing “massive compensation claims” by hundreds of thousands of car owners over allegedly defective anti-lock braking systems said to render some of the manufacturers’ most popular models potential fire hazards.

Monash IVF has hit back at a class action brought on behalf of hundreds of men and women demanding damages for the alleged destruction of potentially viable embryos, saying patients “were made aware of the risks” of a novel testing technique.

Group members in a class action against Fonterra are set to reap about $13 million from a $25 million settlement reached with the dairy company, following deductions including the costs of the litigation funder’s after-the-event insurance.

Three class action law firms have joined forces to run a landmark data breach complaint against Medibank, seeking compensation for up to 9.7 million affected customers. 

In reasons for approving a $41 million deal to settle one of three shareholder class actions over Slater & Gordon’s acquisition of a UK firm and awarding the funder 28 per cent, a judge has challenged a persistent notion that the interests of litigation funders and group members are at odds.

A judge has dismissed a class action brought by a pensioner against the Department of Social Services over its real estate asset testing for pensions, citing his lack of legal representation.

After initial qualms, a judge has signed off on a $29.5 million settlement in a class action against recycling company Sims that includes a “staggering” $8.5 million in legal costs and an insurance policy buffering the funder from adverse costs.