A judge has tossed an application for a common fund order in a class action over the use of toxic foam on a RAAF base near Katherine, NT after a barrister for the lead applicants said the bid would be withdrawn if the judge appointed an independent “contradictor” to scrutinise the proposed funding structure.
By putting its name on allegedly defective vaginal mesh implants, American Medical Systems held itself out as the manufacture of those devices, according to an amended class action pleading that addresses the medical device maker’s assertion that a subsidiary made the devices after May 2012.
A judge has refused an application by horse vaccine maker Zoetis for $450,000 as security for costs in an unfunded class action alleging misleading claims by the pharmaceutical company, saying while he had the power to make the order sought, the “principled exercise” of his discretion was to reject the bid.
A judge overseeing three toxic foam class actions against the Commonwealth of Australia has said he’s not comfortable approving a common fund order which does not detail specific remuneration amounts for funder IMF Bentham.
The Chief Justice of the Federal Court wants four referees to weigh what’s expected to be voluminous expert evidence in three class actions against the Commonwealth of Australia over exposure to allegedly toxic foam used on a government military bases, saying with 60 class actions pending in the Federal Court, devoting a single judge to the case for months on end should be a “mechanism of last resort”.
A product liability class action has been filed against the manufacturers of Alucobond PE cladding, the first of what’s expected to be several lawsuits over the combustible cladding, believed to be in the majority of buildings in Australia.
Maurice Blackburn has dropped its investigation of a possible class action on behalf of owners of units in Sydney’s faulty Opal Tower, but Corrs Chambers Westgarth is still pursuing a potential case.
The judge overseeing a class action against Ethicon over allegedly faulty pelvic mesh implants has shot down the device maker’s bid for a class closure order.
The cracks that led to the evacuation of Sydney’s Opal Tower and threats of litigation have been blamed on design and construction issues, but the building is structurally sound and not in danger of collapse, according to an interim report commissioned by the NSW Government.
Two law firms have launched formal investigations into possible class actions over Sydney’s defective Opal Tower, inviting owners of units in the “crumbling” building to register their interest in joining legal proceedings.