March
Childcare giant G8’s $46m ‘no admission’ settlement
Even with insurance, shareholders will still take a hefty hit after the board decided to settle for “commercial” reasons.
- Updated
- Liam Walsh
NAB, Virgin Money prevail in British lawsuit
National Australia Bank and its former UK unit, Virgin-owned Clydesdale, have fended off what could have become a potentially costly class action.
- Hans van Leeuwen
- Updated
- Accounting
Court actions against Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC
The big four consulting firms face a range of court actions over their auditing and advisory work. The list was last updated on March 18, 2024.
- Updated
- Edmund Tadros and Hannah Wootton
ASX extends rout; Markets’ big test; Uber pays taxi drivers $272m
Read everything that’s happened in the news so far today.
Uber pays Aussie taxi drivers $272m in class action settlement
Lawyers behind one of the top five class actions in Australian legal history say the US giant will pay compensation for initially operating illegally.
- Paul Smith
KPMG knew AusNet contract was a ‘risk,’ Downer claims
The firm had flagged the agreement with the utilities group and should have discovered revenue was overstated, the contractor had alleged.
- Jenny Wiggins
Downer EDI sues KPMG for failing to detect accounting irregularities
The contractor has sought to blame its auditor for the scandal, which wiped some $500 million from its valuation, forcing the firm to quit as auditor.
- Jenny Wiggins
February
Class action juggernaut with $800m war chest is here
Global class action law firm Pogust Goodhead is chasing BHP over its role in the Samarco mine disaster in Brazil, and the firm says it has more local companies in its sights.
- Maxim Shanahan
January
The week that put ‘green lawfare’ in the dock
Claims against fossil fuel projects based in Indigenous cultural heritage suffered a setback after the emphatic dismissal of a case blocking Santos’ Barossa project.
- Ben Potter
December 2023
Judge slams law firm for class action
Justice Bernard Murphy slashed the fees Levitt Robinson can charge plaintiffs, which soaked up the entire $11 million settlement with retirement village provider Aveo.
- Hannah Wootton
November 2023
AMP share price jumps after $100m class action settlement
Analysts previously predicted the financial services giant could be on the hook for even more than this amount over the case, which related to its controversial adviser payout policy.
- Hannah Wootton
E&P, Dixon Advisory settle class action over alleged conflict
E&P agreed to a $16 million settlement, which will also resolve claims against former Dixon CEO Alan Dixon and executive Christopher Brown. None will admit liability.
- Carrie LaFrenz and Jonathan Shapiro
Optus crisis to shake up telco market
The telco has offered some mobile phone customers 200 gigabytes of extra data – estimated to be worth between zero and $70 depending on usage.
- Jenny Wiggins and Paul Smith
October 2023
Ruby Princess liner negligent, misleading in COVID-19 trip
Justice Angus Stewart found the cruise company knew, or ought to have known, about the heightened risk of COVID-19 infection.
- Updated
- Maeve Bannister
Retiring judge lashes long-running live export case
Cattle farmers have been suing the federal government over a live export ban since 2014 and Justice Steven Rares has described one of the claims in the case “absurd”.
- Ronald Mizen
- Exclusive
- Legal industry
‘Aggressive’ litigation funder Omni Bridgeway accused in UK fee fight
A lawsuit against the Perth-based firm is the first major challenge after a UK Supreme Court judgment effectively nullified most litigation funding agreements.
- Ronald Mizen
Angry British business customers drag NAB to the courtroom
An 11-week trial, six years in the making, could open the gates for a class action against the bank and its former British unit Clydesdale, now known as Virgin Money.
- Hans van Leeuwen
Court ruling nears on Optus cyberattack report
A Federal Court justice is expected to rule shortly on whether Optus can stop a report by Deloitte on its 2022 cyberattack from being released.
- Jenny Wiggins
September 2023
Directors in Labor’s sights with sharemarket disclosure probe
Coalition-era reforms aimed at stymying shareholder class actions face the axe under the Albanese government, but first there will be a review.
- Ronald Mizen
RCR had ‘two sets’ of books, lawyers say after $40m settlement
The engineering group had dual accounts showing different pictures of its finances before it collapsed, lawyers said after settling a long-running class action lawsuit.
- Jenny Wiggins