Victoria

Multi-million dollar claims of sexual harassment by two associates of a former Victoria Supreme Court judge have been settled by the state out of court.

A class action on behalf of businesses claiming harm from the 2020 hotel quarantine debacle has fought back against the state of Victoria’s bid to push the case off until a criminal action against the state’s Department of Health has been heard.

A judge has pulled up legal teams in a class action against the state of Victoria on behalf of businesses that allegedly suffered loss from the 2020 hotel quarantine debacle, saying progress in the case has been “extremely slow”.

Insurer Allianz has lost its bid to claw back millions in performance bonds provided to collapsed building company Probuild in relation to works at a $1 billion development in the Melbourne CBD.

A judge has signed off on a group costs order in a shareholder class action against food company Noumi and auditor Deloitte guaranteeing group members a return of at least 78 per cent, but noted the law firms’ cut may need to be reviewed to avoid a “disproportionate return”.

Twenty-three barristers have joined the ranks of senior counsel in Victoria, including lawyers who have helped secure hundreds of millions of dollars in class action settlements.

Melbourne restaurant College Dropout Burgers has been hit with a lawsuit by Kanye West for allegedly using the controversial rapper’s name and likeness without permission.

The Supreme Court of Victoria has been called out in a report into sexually inappropriate behavior and bullying by judges as an “extremely hierarchical” workplace that has all the risk factors for harassment.

A judge has dismissed the majority of Microsoft’s six-year-old intellectual property suit against a Melbourne computer retailer over its Windows 7 software, which previously netted the Silicon Valley giant a $2.8 million payout from Judge Sandy Street that was slammed as a “regrettable” judicial failure.

The University of Melbourne has hit back at the Fair Work Ombudsman’s allegations that it took adverse action against two casual academics to prevent them from claiming payment for extra hours worked, but admitted a supervisor penned an email referring to one of them as a “self-entitled Y-genner”.