All bets are off: Bell’s Star hunt misses the mark
The lack of hard facts means the ‘Bell II’ inquiry increasingly looks like nothing more than a vanity exercise.
Legal Affairs
Likely insolvent Keystone ‘brought in administrator over receiver’
The tussle over private investment fund Keystone and a former director’s spending habits has taken a twist after it emerged an ASIC court win appears to have been trumped by the company.
NAAJA board in mass resignation, chair stands down
The head of Australia’s largest Aboriginal legal service, who stood on his pregnant partner’s stomach and slammed her arm in a door, will step down from his role as four other directors leave.
Sovereign Indigenous nations ‘is an Australian myth’
Will the cognoscenti in the law and elsewhere face the facts about Indigenous Australia or will they continue to pay homage to a bucolic past that never really existed?
Under fire: super funds going for class action profits
Australia’s largest super funds are investing millions of dollars in both litigation funders and companies they are targeting in court, amid calls for a crackdown on ‘vulture’ firms reaping huge profits from the government’s ‘light-touch’ to class actions.
Victorian govt’s venture capital fund fight heats up
A court fight involving the Victorian government’s venture capital fund, a medtech start-up and its founder is heating up with Seer Medical’s co-founder being blamed for the company’s ‘severe financial difficulties’.
‘Class actions have strayed from their original purposes’
Scrapping the contingency fee model for class actions would fight the ‘increasing commercialisation’ of class action ‘lawfare’, amid calls for Labor to crack down on litigation funders.
‘Grave concerns’ about how property developer spent millions
A Melbourne property developer allegedly spent $6.8m of investor money on personal expenses including appearances by celebrity sport stars, the corporate watchdog has claimed.
BlueScope seeks to scrap $57.5m fine
The steel manufacturer is trying to have a multimillion-dollar fine handed down for cartel conduct thrown out on appeal.
Firms must be ‘proactive’ on right-to-disconnect laws
New right-to-disconnect laws come into play from Monday but are employers prepared for when workers just say no?
Judge on outer for rape-case criticism
NSW Judicial Commission recommended Robert Newlinds, who accused the prosecution office of making ‘lazy’ referrals of baseless rape accusations to court, be stood aside from criminal trials.
Plea due in long-running $38.5m mining fraud case
Mining entrepreneur Dr Bob Johnson is expected to soon enter a plea in his $38.5m alleged fraud case, which has its origins in secret federal police raids almost a decade ago.
‘Sex is changeable’, judge rules
Justice Bromwich also found that ‘sex is changeable’ and non-binary as experts discuss the legal implications of the finding of discrimination against transgender woman Roxanne Tickle.
Ex-Fortescue staff were spied on for up to 17 hours a day
More details have been revealed in the Federal Court about the extraordinary surveillance efforts undertaken by Fortescue to spy on its former executives.
US judge a potential Supreme Court Trump card
Amul Thapar, on a speaking tour here, is one of America’s most senior judges and, if Trump returns to the White House, the son of Indian immigrants may be destined for the Supreme Court.
Monash IVF settle ‘faulty genetic test’ lawsuit for $54m
Former Monash IVF patients who may have destroyed otherwise healthy embryos due to a faulty genetic test have secured a record settlement, as the group’s bottom line was hit by the legal fight.
Meta steps up fight against Forrest over scam ads
The social media giant has hired a lawyer who is helping Kamala Harris battle Donald Trump for its appeal against a win for Andrew Forrest in his war on scam advertisements.
Pratt siblings fight for love child case to be scrapped
Visy magnate Richard Pratt’s children Anthony, Fiona and Heloise say their half siblings’ legal claim for a slice of the family fortune should not go ahead in their latest court filings.
EDO bid to delay Santos release
The Environmental Defenders Office has sought an extension to hand over documents related to the failed legal attempt to block Santos’ $5.7bn Barossa LNG development.
Fortescue insists spying on rival’s families wasn’t inappropriate
Ex-Fortescue executives have heard that spying on their families and their ‘green iron’ start-up was part of a regular court requirement to grant raids.
Former BBY exec convicted after nine years
The corporate regulator has secured a second criminal conviction relating to the dishonest conduct of key employees at stockbroker BBY, nine years after it collapsed.
Fortescue ‘portrayed former execs as dishonest’, court told
Andrew Forrest’s Fortescue tried to paint former executives who started a rival business as shady actors in order to persuade a judge to allow the company to raid their homes.
Barristers debate wearing legal robes at religious ceremonies
The Victorian Bar has discussed whether judges, magistrates and lawyers should end the wearing of their robes at religious ceremonies to avoid potential conflicts of interest.
‘Cattle baron’ faces bankruptcy over $52m court ruling
Hong Kong-based lenders have won a NSW Supreme Court ruling against would-be cattle king Sam Mitchell, finding that he owes about $52m.
The ‘total cluster’ that led to power station blast
Workers brought in to fix a power station battery have described inheriting a total cluster as the company gambled with using ‘the cheapest sh..’, a court has heard.
All that’s wrong with Labor’s rights approach
The real problem with human rights is about drawing boundaries. Sooner or later most rights come into conflict with other rights and someone has to decide which right prevails.
Melbourne property developer court case may be delayed
The Federal Court has approved Deloitte’s plan to pay Keystone’s investment management fees to CF Capital, despite a dispute about how the fees are calculated.
Revealed: Super Retail secret whistleblower who warned board
Amelia Berczelly can be revealed as the second Super Retail whistleblower, as she claims she informed the board and its external auditor of ‘serious’ corporate governance issues at the company.
Former DPP seeks rethink on drug laws
A former head prosecutor has called for an expansion of the drug courts and an overhaul of possession laws as NSW lags behind the country.
Home epilepsy support device recalled amid court case
Seer Medical has revealed it will recall one of its key services used to support people at home with epilepsy, after the company’s co-founder launched legal action against it.
Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/legal-affairs/page/16