M6931 Legal Services

Lawyer fined for 16-year delay in case

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Original article by Amanda Banks
The West Australian – Page: 5 : 6-Feb-15

Western Australia’s Legal Professional Complaints Committee has fined Perth lawyer Carmelo Grasso $A5,000 for professional misconduct. Grasso had commenced a compensation claim on behalf of a dog attack victim in June 1998. However, the application for compensation was not filed until March 2014. The client was subsequently awarded $A2,246 in compensation. Grasso will also pay his client $A27,000

CORPORATES
WESTERN AUSTRALIA. LEGAL PROFESSION COMPLAINTS COMMITTEE, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. STATE ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL

Law firms consider listing

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Original article by Luke Malpass
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 33 : 30-Jan-15

Shares in IPH Limited have peaked at $A3.80 since debuting on the Australian sharemarket at $A2.10 in November 2014. IPH is the holding company for law firm Spruson & Ferguson, and its success has prompted other intellectual property and patent law firms to consider IPOs. Graham Cowin, the managing partner of Phillips Ormonde Fitzpatrick, says the firm is looking at a range of options, while Griffith Hack chairman David Hughes says his firm has ruled out in IPO at this stage

CORPORATES
IPH LIMITED – ASX IPH, SPRUSON AND FERGUSON LAWYERS, PHILLIPS ORMONDE AND FITZPATRICK, GRIFFITH HACK LAWYERS PTY LTD, DAVIES COLLISON CAVE, MORNINGSTAR PTY LTD

Class actions: firms warned

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Original article by Marianna Papadakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 23-Jan-15

The Australian class actions market is likely to grow. Herbert Smith Freehills partner Jason Betts says the profitability of the funding model makes the sector attractive to foreign litigation funders. Andrew Watson, the head of class actions at Maurice Blackburn, expects more such suits on behalf of investors

CORPORATES
IMF BENTHAM LIMITED – ASX IMF, AUSNET SERVICES LIMITED – ASX AST, LITIGATION FUNDING PARTNERS, HERBERT SMITH FREEHILLS PTY LTD, ALLCO FINANCE GROUP LIMITED, MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD, KING AND WOOD MALLESONS, HARBOUR LITIGATION FUNDING LIMITED, COMPREHENSIVE LEGAL FUNDING LLC, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION

Commonwealth legal services spending rises

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Original article by Nicola Berkovic
The Australian – Page: 23 : 16-Jan-15

New figures show that the Australian Government’s expenditure on legal services increased by around $A6m in 2013-14, to $A688.6m. There was a $A10m blowout in the cost of the Government’s in-house legal teams during the financial year, although there was a slight decline in the amount paid to private law firms. Clayton Utz accounted for about 11 per cent of the government legal work that was outsourced to private firms

CORPORATES
CLAYTON UTZ, ASHURST AUSTRALIA, DLA PIPER, MINTER ELLISON, SPARKE HELMORE, NORTON ROSE FULBRIGHT AUSTRALIA, CORRS CHAMBERS WESTGARTH, MADDOCKS LAWYERS, KING AND WOOD MALLESONS, AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT SOLICITOR, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT

The brightest and the best

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Original article by Joanna Mather, Misa Han
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 7 : 17-Dec-14

Sydney barrister Katrina Dawson is one of two victims of the man who held 17 people hostage at the Lint Chocolate Cafe in the Sydney CBD. The cafe’s manager, Tori Johnson, also died in the siege at Martin Place. New South Wales Bar Association president Jane Needham has described Dawson as one of the legal profession’s "best and brightest". Muslim extremist Man Haron Monis was shot dead by police after a 17-hour standoff

CORPORATES
LINDT AND SPRUNGLI (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, NEW SOUTH WALES BAR ASSOCIATION, EIGHT SELBORNE CHAMBERS, TENTH FLOOR CHAMBERS, KING AND WOOD MALLESONS, ROYAL SYDNEY GOLF CLUB, ARNOTT’S BISCUITS LIMITED, BANCO CHAMBERS, NEW SOUTH WALES POLICE FORCE, ADRIA RYBAR AND GRILL, COCKLE BAY WHARF, RYDGES JAMIESON, LINKEDIN LIMITED, TWITTER INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION

Injured giving up on compo claims

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Original article by Anna Patty
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 4 : 15-Dec-14

New South Wales (NSW) Small Business Minister John Barilaro says the State Government’s workers’ compensation system changes have been a success, with a decline of 15% in claims. Insurance premiums are also down 17.5%. However Law Society of NSW president Ros Everett argues that the new rules, under which claimants can no longer seek the help of lawyers in appealing assessments, have simply shifted the burden to the federal Medicare and Centrelink services. This is as many injured workers are now unable to rely on court action

CORPORATES
NEW SOUTH WALES. WORKCOVER AUTHORITY, NEW SOUTH WALES. WORKERS’ COMPENSATION COMMISSION, THE LAW SOCIETY OF NEW SOUTH WALES, NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF FINANCE AND SERVICES, NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF COMMERCE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HUMAN SERVICES. CENTRELINK, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HUMAN SERVICES. MEDICARE AUSTRALIA

Chairman Dawkins vacates Vocation

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Original article by Kylar Loussikian
The Australian – Page: 21 : 28-Nov-14

Ex-Minter Ellison partner Mark Elliott, notorious for launching class action law suits against companies in which he has marginal shareholdings, has joined law firms Maurice Blackburn and Slater & Gordon in bringing such a case against Vocation. The Supreme Court of Victoria will hear allegations of misleading or deceptive conduct, after the Victorian Department of Education & Early Childhood Development cancelled funding worth $A20m for Vocation off-shoots BAWM and Aspin. Meanwhile John Dawkins has stepped down as chair of the private education services provider

CORPORATES
VOCATION LIMITED – ASX VET, SLATER AND GORDON LIMITED – ASX SGH, MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD, SUPREME COURT OF VICTORIA, VICTORIA. DEPT OF EDUCATION AND EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT, BAWM GROUP PTY LTD, ASPIN PTY LTD, DUET GROUP – ASX DUE, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX, BSL LITIGATION PARTNERS LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN SKILLS QUALITY AUTHORITY, BANKSIA SECURITIES LIMITED, LEIGHTON HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX LEI, TREASURY WINE ESTATES LIMITED – ASX TWE, WORLEYPARSONS LIMITED – ASX WOR, DOWNER EDI LIMITED – ASX DOW

Being female doesn’t pay

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Original article by Misa Han
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 36 : 28-Nov-14

Data from Australia’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency shows that the average pay gap between men and women across the economy is 24.7 per cent. However, this rises to 37.8 per cent in the case of women employees in the finance sector and 35.6 per cent in the legal sector. King & Wood Mallesons’ managing partner Sue Kench says women lawyers need to more actively "put themselves forward" in pay discussions

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. WORKPLACE GENDER EQUALITY AGENCY, KING AND WOOD MALLESONS, HOLDING REDLICH, MINTER ELLISON, THE LAW SOCIETY OF NEW SOUTH WALES, MADDOCKS LAWYERS

Surge in M&A work boosts the big firms

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Original article by Chris Merritt
The Australian – Page: 27 : 17-Oct-14

Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Beaton Research + Consulting have issued their "Market Pulse" legal profession confidence survey for the September 2014 quarter. The figures show that the ratio of major law firms reporting negative conditions has fallen to just 17% from 70% a year ago. The main reason is the recent turnaround in the market for merger and acquisition deals work, with 56% also forecasting further gains in this segment over the period to March 2015. Another growth area is insurance, and this is borne out as well by the new law firm rankings released by Thomson Reuters

CORPORATES
BEATON RESEARCH AND CONSULTING PTY LTD, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, THOMSON REUTERS PLC

IBAC changes too weak: ex-judge

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Original article by Royce Millar
The Age – Page: 1 : 13-Oct-14

Tim Smith QC has written to all political parties in Victoria for the Accountability Round Table lobbying body. He cites a review by ex-Supreme Court judge Stephen Charles QC of proposed legislative changes to the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC). These will be discussed in the State Parliament from 13 October 2014. Charles argues that even after the amendments the IBAC will be inferior to the New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption

CORPORATES
VICTORIA. INDEPENDENT BROAD-BASED ANTI-CORRUPTION COMMISSION, NEW SOUTH WALES. INDEPENDENT COMMISSION AGAINST CORRUPTION, THE ACCOUNTABILITY ROUND TABLE LIMITED, SUPREME COURT OF VICTORIA