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Commercial Disputes AU
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September 16, 2026
Plus500 Fails To Stop Class Action On Void Arbitration Clause
The Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia has dismissed an appeal by online trading platform Plus500 and upheld the refusal to stay a consumer class action with the court holding that an arbitration clause was an unfair contract term and therefore void.
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September 16, 2026
Justice Rowena Orr To Lead Victorian Court of Appeal
Victorian Court of Appeal Justice Rowena Orr, known for her role as senior counsel in the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry where her performance earned her the nickname 'Shock and Orr', has been appointed as the court's new President.
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September 16, 2026
Ex-Keystone's Chiodo Files $200M Construction Fraud Suit
Paul Chiodo, the embattled former Keystone director, launched a lawsuit by his property development firm seeking more than $200 million from construction company City Built, its director Robert Filippini, family members of Filippini and three related businesses over an alleged years-long scheme of falsified and inflated invoices from subcontractor and suppliers with money allegedly off-loaded to family members to buy luxury cars and property.
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September 16, 2026
RAMS Strikes Deal To End Ex-Franchisee Class Action
Former Westpac subsidiary RAMS Financial Group has reached an in-principle settlement in its class action suit brought by ex-franchisees in the Federal Court of Australia in Sydney.
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September 15, 2026
Major Docs Ignored in Brew Gear Share Row, Ex-Director Says
A former director of a home-brewery equipment company urged a Victorian Court of Appeal panel on Tuesday to overturn a ruling that his claimed half-share belonged to the firm's founders, arguing the trial judge wrongly ignored central documents.
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September 15, 2026
Takeovers Panel Wins More Time For DGR Global Share Probe
A Federal Court judge has given the Takeovers Panel until the end of September to decide whether Tenstar Trading Ltd's off-market purchase of DGR Global Ltd shares amounted to unacceptable circumstances.
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September 15, 2026
'Cautious Letting In' Of Women To Bar Persists, Justice Says
A High Court of Australia Justice has said that the "cautious letting in" of women persists at the bar as she called for greater diversity in the legal profession.
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September 15, 2026
ACCC Merger Rules Spur Early Deal Reviews: Holding Redlich
The ACCC's new merger rules are pushing businesses to consider potential regulatory issues much earlier in the deal process without slowing down transactions, according to a report by commercial law firm Holding Redlich.
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September 15, 2026
CBA Appoints New Chief Of NZ Subsidiary ASB Bank
The Commonwealth Bank has appointed Sinead Taylor as the new chief executive officer and managing director of New Zealand subsidiary ASB Bank Limited, replacing Vittoria Shortt who will step down in December after almost nine years in the role.
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September 15, 2026
Pengana Asks Court To Halt WAM PIA Buyback Over Conflicts
Investment manager Pengana Capital said it is suing subsidiary Pengana International Equities Limited (PIA) over alleged conflicts of interest in a buyback scheme involving PIA's board and shareholder WAM Global arguing shareholders "will be materially worse off" in a NSW Supreme Court hearing on Tuesday.
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September 14, 2026
Australia's First Female High Court Justice Mary Gaudron Dies
Justice Mary Gaudron KC, the first female High Court Justice who ruled on the landmark Mabo case, has died at the age of 83, the court has announced.
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September 14, 2026
Esso Says Emperor Shoehorning NY Law Into Royalty Row
An ExxonMobil unit and two Woodside Energy subsidiaries have urged Australia's highest court to reject an appeal by Emperor Energy, arguing that it wrongly seeks to import New York law into a royalty dispute sent to arbitration.
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September 14, 2026
Grand Prix Corp. Can't Escape $2.8M Axed Concert Award
A Victorian Court of Appeal panel refused Monday to revisit a ruling that the Australian Formula 1 grand prix operator owed a concert promoter $2.8 million for a Robbie Williams concert cancelled shortly before the 2020 Australian Grand Prix amid the COVID-19 pandemic, saying the operator wrongly based its appeal on an argument it hadn't raised at trial.
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September 14, 2026
Ashurst Adds HSF Kramer Lawyer To Private Capital Team
Ashurst Perkins Coie has lured Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer special counsel Ben Plotnik as a Melbourne-based partner in its corporate practice team.
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September 13, 2026
Ashurst Guides Healthscope Sale To Calvary-Led Group
The lenders of indebted private hospital operator Healthscope have sold its remaining assets to a group of hospital and healthcare operators led by Calvary Health Care, with law firm Ashurst Perkins Coie advising Healthscope's receivers.
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September 14, 2026
ACCC Makes Realestate.com Scrap Agent All-In Listing Rule
REA Group, owner of Australia's largest online residential real estate listing portal realestate.com.au, has agreed to remove contract restrictions requiring agencies to list all or most of their properties on the platform as part of court-enforceable undertaking by the ACCC over competition concerns.
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September 14, 2026
McPherson's, Ex-CEO Appeal Misleading Investors Finding
Skincare company McPherson's Ltd has filed for leave to appeal a Federal Court ruling that the company misled investors over late disclosure of sales forecasts and that its former CEO breached his duty of care.
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September 11, 2026
ASIC Moves To Block Lawyers, Media From Director Details
ASIC on Friday said it was considering changes to the agency's company register, seeking to provide additional public data for free, while proposing to block access to "sensitive" information about company directors, such as their dates of birth, from lawyers and journalists.
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September 11, 2026
Tabcorp's $1.4B Tax Deduction Appeal Rejected By High Court
The High Court of Australia has rejected Tabcorp's application for special leave to appeal a ruling that denied it a $1.49 billion tax deduction over alleged entitlements linked to the termination of gaming licenses in Victoria, based on there being "no financial arrangement" at the time the licenses expired.
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September 11, 2026
Johnson Winter Slattery Opens NY Office For US Investors
Australian commercial law firm Johnson Winter Slattery has opened its first overseas office in New York in a bid to help US clients gain regulatory approvals to invest in Australia.
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September 10, 2026
Victorian Criminal Bar Rebuts 'Wrong Judges' Critique
The Criminal Bar Association of Victoria is defending the state's judges and magistrates after an opinion piece by former Victorian Chief Crown Prosecutor Gavin Silbert KC criticised the state's judicial appointments and warned against election-driven "law-and-order promises".
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September 10, 2026
Equity Trustees Exec Blames Super Losses On 'Other Parties'
The executive director of Equity Trustees told a parliamentary joint committee on Thursday that the firm has not compensated investors for their losses in the collapsed First Guardian and Shield funds because "other parties are responsible."
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September 10, 2026
HSF Chair Says ASIC Over-Regulation Pushing Directors Away
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer Chair and senior partner Rebecca Maslen-Stannage has struck out at ASIC for excessive regulation arguing Australian-listed company directors want to move to private firms as they feel "the ever-growing burden" of over-regulation alongside securities class action threats, in a Bathurst Lecture speech on Thursday evening.
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September 10, 2026
Maurice Blackburn Plans Rival Corporate Travel, PwC Suit
Maurice Blackburn is investigating a class action proposal alleging misconduct by Corporate Travel Management and its former auditor PwC Australia, setting up a potential carriage dispute with Phi Finney McDonald.
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September 10, 2026
KPMG Procurement Ban Extended To End Of October
The Department of Finance has extended the current ban on KPMG Australia bidding for government contracts until the end of October as the deadline for the government's review of the auditing giant's governance, culture, ethics and integrity frameworks is pushed back.
Judge Adopts Class' Questions In JB Hi-Fi Warranty Case
A Victorian Supreme Court judge has sided with plaintiffs in a class action over how to characterise key questions in an upcoming trial against retailer JB Hi-Fi that alleges misleading or deceptive conduct in the sale of extended warranties for consumer goods.
Reddit Tells High Court Teen Social Media Ban 'Ineffective'
Reddit and advocacy group The Digital Freedom Project have urged the High Court of Australia to invalidate legislation barring social media accounts for under-16s, arguing it steps on their right to political communication, is ineffective and doesn't address the harms it is meant to address.
BHP Faces Union-Funded Class Action Over Holiday Work
BHP faces a class action in the Federal Court of Australia funded by the Mining and Energy Union and led by former employees of the miner's in-house labour hire company who allege they were unlawfully required to work public holidays including Christmas without providing a right of refusal, according to law firm AEN legal and court filings.
Judge Adopts Class' Questions In JB Hi-Fi Warranty Case
A Victorian Supreme Court judge has sided with plaintiffs in a class action over how to characterise key questions in an upcoming trial against retailer JB Hi-Fi that alleges misleading or deceptive conduct in the sale of extended warranties for consumer goods.
Reddit Tells High Court Teen Social Media Ban 'Ineffective'
Reddit and advocacy group The Digital Freedom Project have urged the High Court of Australia to invalidate legislation barring social media accounts for under-16s, arguing it steps on their right to political communication, is ineffective and doesn't address the harms it is meant to address.
BHP Faces Union-Funded Class Action Over Holiday Work
BHP faces a class action in the Federal Court of Australia funded by the Mining and Energy Union and led by former employees of the miner's in-house labour hire company who allege they were unlawfully required to work public holidays including Christmas without providing a right of refusal, according to law firm AEN legal and court filings.
Editor's Picks
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High Court Rules Orica Employees Entitled To Long Service
The High Court of Australia ruled Wednesday that commercial blasting provider Orica must contribute to the coal industry's portable long-service-leave scheme for its shotfirer employees, holding that excluding them based on Orica's broader non-mining business would "undermine the fundamental conceptual underpinning" of the scheme.
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Non-Profit ACCR Drops Santos Greenwashing Appeal
The Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility has withdrawn its appeal against a Federal Court of Australia judgment dismissing a landmark greenwashing case the non-profit brought against oil and gas company Santos Ltd over its voluntary climate disclosures in 2021.
Expert Analysis
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Microsoft Defence Tests Disclosure Rules For Subscriptions
Microsoft recently filed its defence against the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s claim that the company misled consumers about subscription options, setting up a significant contest about disclosure obligations, the nature of subscription software models, and when silence in a sales context amounts to misleading conduct, says Shaun Temby at Maddocks.
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Practice Leader Insights From Phi Finney's Joel Phibbs
Joel Phibbs, Phi Finney's anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing practice lead, discusses the approach of banks when dealing with compliance, the challenges of delays in getting cases to trial, and why financial bodies' regulatory burden and the desire to lower costs using artificial intelligence seem like a recipe for major problems in the future.
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Practice Leader Insights From HSF Kramer's Andrew Bradley
Andrew Bradley, leader of HSF Kramer's financial services regulatory practice in Australia, discusses managing mental health while working on a complex matter, the glaring need for further reform in the financial advice sector, and why this practice area may be the most dynamic and intellectually stimulating.
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Blue Star Shows Why Liquidators Need Approval Rule Reform
The recent Queensland Supreme Court decision in Blue Star Care v. Rimcroft highlights the uncertainty surrounding Section 477(2B) of the Corporations Act court approvals regime, meaning that until outright reform is implemented liquidators must make unsatisfactory choices between what is safe and what is in creditors’ best interests, says Robert True at Quinn Emanuel.
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Australia's Computer Patent Ruling Will Aid Global Companies
While courts around the world have struggled to articulate a technology-neutral test for patentability of computer-implemented inventions, a recent decision by Australia's top court offers a decisive answer, creating strategic opportunities for overseas applicants, say attorneys at Mallesons.
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Decoding Arbitral Disputes: ICSID Enforcement In Australia
The Federal Court of Australia recently ruled for award creditors in Blasket Renewable Investments v. Spain in a judgment that explains how Australia's statute book operationalizes the promise of depoliticized enforcement under the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes Convention while accommodating, without yielding to, the centrifugal forces of European Union law, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.