Unions have called for urgent legislative reform after the Fair Work Ombudsman declined to take compliance action against Uber, finding that the ride-share giant’s drivers were independent contractors, not employees, under Australian law.
A Federal Court judge has apologised for “upsetting the applecart” and taking “too long” to publish his judgment in the consumer regulator’s case against GlaxoSmithKline and Novartis over packaging for now discontinued painkiller Osteo Gel.
Sirtex Medical has reached a mid-trial agreement to resolve a shareholder class action that centred on the biotech company’s sales forecasts of its radiation treatment.
Rugby player Israel Folau, who was sacked after sharing a homophobic Instagram post, has brought unfair dismissal proceedings alleging Rugby Australia and the NSW Waratahs terminated him because he is a Christian.
Failed sandalwood oil producer Quintis has agreed to hand over insurance policies showing any coverage for potential liability it or its former CEO may have in two class actions brought against them.
A former partner expelled from HWL Ebsworth has been awarded $450,000 in damages after the NSW Supreme Court found the reasons for the termination were “irrational and wrong”.
The long-running dispute between Kraft Foods and Bega over who owns the rights to use the signature Kraft peanut butter trade dress in Australia is not over, with Kraft appealing a ruling that found Bega had acquired the rights to the trade dress when it purchased Kraft unit Mondelez’s Australian and New Zealand business in 2017.
The former CEO of Radio Rentals, who has been dragged into a class action against the company, claims he can’t properly defend himself because his former employer has asserted privilege over legal advice the company received regarding its ‘Rent, Try, $1 Buy’, which he says is crucial to his case.
The Fair Work Commission has dismissed an appeal by the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union challenging a decision by a commissioner to not recuse herself from hearing a construction site dispute with Watpac after commenting that the union’s complaint about safety concerns at the site appeared to be a “smokebomb”.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission is pushing back against an application by ANZ Bank to stay the regulator’s civil penalties case over disclosures related to a $2.5 billion equity capital raising while it defends against criminal charges related to the controversial share placement.