A New Zealand appeals court has ruled that common fund orders can be made in class actions, even at the early stages, departing from the High Court of Australia in finding the commercial viability of a proceeding enhances access to justice.
The ACCC has secured $6 million in penalties against wealth education company DG Institute and its CEO Dominique Grubisa, as well as orders that the company refund $14.7 million in course fees to customers who enrolled in its ‘Master Wealth Control’ program.
Building materials manufacturer 3A Composites has lost a challenge to questions for a judge at an initial trial of a class action over combustible cladding, with a judge finding the issue of whether the company’s Alucobond panels were of acceptable quality was common to all group members.
The number of new class actions so far this year has fallen short of recent years, and not a single shareholder proceeding has been lodged in 2024 to date, according to a new report.
The judge who presided over ASIC’s successful case against payday lender Sunshine Loans has recused himself from deciding on penalty in the matter, saying a new court protocol might be needed for when a judge makes an adverse credit finding during the liability phase of a case.
Online auction site Grays has been ordered to pay $10 million in penalties after it admitted to making misleading statements in the descriptions of at least 750 cars listed for sale on its website.
Telstra has been hit with a $1.5 million penalty from the communications regulator for failing to perform the requisite costumer ID authentication on over 150,000 “high-risk” interactions, such as SIM card swaps.
Aristocrat Leisure has hit back at a class action over its allegedly illegal ‘social casino’ apps, saying that playing is optional and that the lead applicant should have deleted the games.
Major building insulation supplier CSR Bradford has been hit with a lawsuit by a leading home energy company seeking information on price increases as part of a potential lawsuit alleging misuse of market power.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has brought proceedings against retailer The Good Guys, alleging it made misleading statements about store credit.