Practice Areas

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has expressed concerns that France-based Louis Dreyfus’ proposed acquisition of ASX-traded cotton gin operator Namoi Cotton could substantially lessen competition and lead to higher prices for ginning services.

A judge that tossed two shareholder class actions against the Commonwealth Bank of Australia has found the bank did not have to alert investors to the possibility of AUSTRAC proceedings, saying investors did not expect to be apprised of the “toings and froings” of regulatory investigations.

The High Court has been asked to overturn a NSW Court of Appeal decision finding it had no power to exclude unregistered group members from a settlement, which conflicted with Federal Court precedent, hearing the divergence of the important issue “can only be resolved by the High Court”.

A judge has expressed concerns about the plaintiff’s proposed group costs order rate in a shareholder class action against fleet management company FleetPartners, saying the purpose of the GCO regime was to lower costs to group members.

A barrister who had a “close personal relationship” with a judge presiding over her case has been suspended and fined $10,000, after the High Court ruled their communications gave rise to the appearance of bias and justified recusal. 

A class action against ANZ and former subsidiary OnePath has been given the green light to “significantly expand” its case against the big four bank, over three years after the case was first filed.

Activist organisations are seeking to challenge orders to hand up communications with the Environmental Defenders Office in its failed case against Santos over the $5.6 billion Barossa gas project, arguing there was no legitimate forensic purpose for the material sought. 

Sky News has taken its fight with Isentia to the Full Federal Court, after a judge found the the media monitor was not liable for copyright infringement despite the “wholesale copying” of content distributed to government clients.

Optus has denied that it ‘cloaked’ the true dominant purpose of a Deloitte report into a major data breach in 2022, arguing on appeal that the report was privileged and that a class action should not have access to it. 

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission is investigating ANZ’s dealings in its role as risk manager of 10-year government treasury bonds worth $14 billion.