New South Wales

The NSW Court of Appeal has said it has no power to exclude group members who do not sign up to a class action from participating in a settlement, upholding a controversial decision that the Full Federal Court said was “plainly wrong”. 

A Sydney solicitor has lost his bid to summarily dismiss the legal watchdog’s case alleging he set up misleading crowdfunding pages seeking funding for class actions over government orders requiring mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations, as well as another class action that was never filed.

A tribunal has found prominent barrister Charles Waterstreet guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct for sexually harassing three women, but declined to find he was unfit to practice after accepting expert evidence that undiagnosed mental illness “was the dominant causal factor” behind his actions.

A class action seeking to hold a regional NSW law firm liable for the actions of a former employee who was sentenced to a term of imprisonment for fraud offences in 2021 has reached a settlement. 

A class action against the New South Wales government alleging it discriminated against Indigenous communities on the south coast for engaging in cultural fishing practices will include up to 15,000 people, a court has heard.

Property developer Thirdi has rejected the claims of a class action brought by the owners of lots in an allegedly shoddy townhouse development in Sydney, and has filed a cross-claim seeking an indemnity from its builder.

Law firm HWL Ebsworth has successfully appealed a decision finding that its negligent advice over property in Paramatta’s ‘Auto Alley’ cost a client $2 million, with an appeals court finding the commercial opportunity lost by the client had no value.

The New South Wales government has been hit with a class action alleging it discriminated against Indigenous communities on the south coast by prosecuting them for engaging in cultural fishing practices.

Small businesses that allegedly suffered losses from interference caused by the construction of Sydney’s $3 billion light rail will have to wait before receiving any damages while Transport for NSW appeals its loss in a class action over the project’s construction.

KPMG has won its application for the High Court to weigh in on the relevance of a contingency fee order in determining a bid to transfer a shareholder class action from Victoria to NSW.