CLASS ACTIONS (CIVIL PROCEDURE) – AUSTRALIA

BHP pays $110m to settle dam class action

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian – Page: 15 : 10-Sep-25

BHP has reached an out-of-court settlement over a class action that was launched on behalf of Australian investors who bought its shares in the three years or so before the collapse of an iron ore tailings dam in Brazil on 5 November 2015. BHP’s shares fell by 22 per cent in the wake of the disaster; amongst other things, BHP was accused of failing to disclose material information to the market and engaging in misleading or deceptive conduct by claiming that safety was its highest priority. BHP agreed to pay $110m shortly before the case was scheduled to be heard by the Federal Court. However, US-based litigation funder G&E KTMC Funding is expected to be entitled to a significant share of the payout.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, G&E KTMC FUNDING

Class action on Covid-19 jabs doomed to fail: Defence

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Original article by Duncan Murray
The New Daily – Page: Online : 3-Dec-24

Brisbane law firm NR Barbi Solicitor is leading a class action against the federal government in the federal court, with the action alleging that it was negligent in approving Covid-19 vaccines. It seeks damages on behalf of those who suffered "serious adverse events" after taking one or more of the vaccines; one of those listed as members of the class action is Michelle Grace Hunder, who alleges she was diagnosed with vaccine-induced pericarditis. Kate Eastman SC, the barrister appearing for the respondents named in the action, told a hearing on Monday they were seeking to have the lawsuit thrown out on the basis it had no reasonable chance of being successful.

CORPORATES
NR BARBI SOLICITOR, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Local class-action litigation now second only to the US

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Original article by Jack Quail
The Australian – Page: 3 : 2-Jul-24

A report produced by the Menzies Research Centre has concluded that Australia’s litigation funding industry is now worth more than $200m, following huge growth over the last five years. The Liberal Party-aligned think tank notes that the litigation funding sector is "cashed up and thriving" amidst a lax regulatory environment. The MRC has urged the federal government to pursue greater regulation of litigation funders; amongst other things, it has recommended capping their fees at 30 per cent of a class action payout.

CORPORATES
THE MENZIES RESEARCH CENTRE LIMITED, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

ANZ settles class action for $57.5m

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Original article by David Ross
The Australian – Page: 15 & 18 : 26-Mar-24

The ANZ Bank will pay $57.5 million to settle a class action brought by Phi Finney McDonald, with the law firm having alleged that the bank’s credit card had incorrectly charged customers. Phi Finney McDonald claimed the ANZ had told customers that they could pay repay as much or as little of the balance of their credit cards as they wanted, but did not warn them that if they did not repay the full balance that they would be charged interest against the full amount borrowed. The action was backed by Woodsford Litigation Funding, with the settlement due to be approved by the federal court in August.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, PHI FINNEY McDONALD PTY LTD, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Lithium explorer may face class action

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Original article by Tom Richardson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 21-Dec-22

Law firm Johnson Winter Slattery is set to launch a class action against lithium explorer AVZ Minerals. The legal action will be financed by litigation funder Omni Bridgeway, and centres on AVZ’s disclosures regarding the Manono lithium project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It will be alleged that AVZ breached its continuous disclosure obligations and misled investors over its rights to the project. AVZ’s shares have been in a trading halt since early May.

CORPORATES
AVZ MINERALS LIMITED – ASX AVZ, JOHNSON WINTER AND SLATTERY, OMNI BRIDGEWAY LIMITED – ASX OBL

Crossbench test for class action reform

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Original article by Adeshola Ore
The Australian – Page: 7 : 19-Oct-21

The federal government is expected to shortly introduce a bill to cap the proportion of class action payouts received by lawyers and litigation funders at 30 per cent. Shadow financial services minister Stephen Jones says Labor has yet to decide its position on the proposed fee cap. The government will require the support of at least three Senate crossbenchers if Labor and the Greens oppose the bill. One Nation leader Pauline Hanson supports the proposed reforms, but independent senator Rex Patrick contends that the bill should be subject to a Senate inquiry.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, ONE NATION PARTY

Class actions plateau at new normal

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Original article by Michael Pelly
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 38 : 27-Nov-20

Law firm King & Wood Mallesons has released its latest annual report on class actions, reporting that 55 were filed in 2019-20, while more than 35 class action settlements were approved by the courts. Fourteen of the 2019-20 class actions related to financial products, while 13 related to securities. KWM contends that companies are being pushed prematurely into liquidation as a result of what it describes as "multiple and expensive claims" against them, while it suggests that there could be a decline in the number of class actions that are supported by litigation funders.

CORPORATES
KING AND WOOD MALLESONS

CBA sued over junk credit card insurance

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Original article by Lachlan Moffet Gray
The Australian – Page: 17 : 11-Jun-20

Plaintiff law firm Slater & Gordon has launched a class action on behalf of Commonwealth Bank customers who were sold inappropriate credit protection policies. The Federal Court action will allege that the bank sold credit card and personal loan insurance products to about 200,000 people whose employment status meant they would be unlikely to claim against the policies. The insurance products, which came under scrutiny by the Hayne royal commission, were discontinued in March 2018.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, SLATER AND GORDON LIMITED – ASX SGH, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY

Class action threat against travel providers over coronavirus vouchers

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Original article by Alison Xiao
abc.net au – Page: Online : 5-May-20

Slater & Gordon has announced plans for a class action against travel providers over the treatment of customers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Andrew Paull from Slater & Gordon claims travel providers have pressured customers into accepting limited travel vouchers as a result of cancellations caused by the pandemic, when in fact customers were entitled for a full cash refund. The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission has received over 6,000 complaints from customers of travel companies regarding cancellation fees and refund policies.

CORPORATES
SLATER AND GORDON LIMITED – ASX SGH, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, FLIGHT CENTRE TRAVEL GROUP LIMITED – ASX FLT

NAB hit with class action on super rip-off

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Original article by Aleks Vickovich
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 12 & 17 : 22-Jan-20

A class action lawsuit will contend that National Australia Bank’s superannuation customers incurred substantial losses due to the bank’s tardiness in shifting them to a MySuper product. Law firm Maurice Blackburn will argue that NAB subsidiaries MLC Nominees and NULIS Nominees breached their duties as superannuation trustees by keeping customers in funds that had higher fees than MySuper products. The allegations were first raised before the Hayne royal commission in 2018.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD, MLC NOMINEES, NULIS NOMINEES (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY