FINES (PENALTIES) – AUSTRALIA

CBA falls as legal costs take toll on profit

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Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 19 & 24 : 10-May-18

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia has posted an underlying cash net profit of $A2.35bn for the March quarter, which is nine per cent lower than previously. CBA has advised of an increase in home loan, personal loan and credit card arrears during the period, while its expenses rose by three per cent. Meanwhile, CBA has agreed to pay fines totalling $A25m to settle allegations that it manipulated the bank bill swap rate.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, DIGITAL FINANCE ANALYTICS, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Fairfax slapped for Domain ad

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 19 : 8-May-18

Fairfax Media has been fined $A15,000 for running an advertisement in February 2016 that made false claims about its Domain real estate listings business. The advertisement was run one day after Fairfax had agreed in court that it would not place adverts that made false claims, following legal action taken by realestate.com.au owner REA Group. Fairfax was found to be in contempt of court.

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, DOMAIN HOLDINGS AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX DHA, REA GROUP LIMITED – ASX REA, REALESTATE.COM.AU, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, HOMETRACK DATA SYSTEMS LIMITED

Massive fines for corporate misconduct

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Original article by Richard Gluyas
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 23-Apr-18

Australian Competition & Consumer Commission chairman Rod Sims says the banking royal commission’s revelations of misconduct in the financial services sector highlights the need for harsher penalties for corporate wrongdoing. He argues that such penalties should act as a real deterrent rather than merely being regarded by management and directors as the cost of doing business. A recent report by the OECD found that penalties for corporate misconduct in Australia are generally much lower than those of comparable countries. Treasurer Scott Morrison has also flagged tougher penalties for companies in response to scandals exposed by the royal commission.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, VISY INDUSTRIES AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

Judge slams union’s deplorable record

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 27-Feb-18

The Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union has been fined $A95,000 over a "closed shop" policy at a Melbourne construction site. CFMEU delegate Godwin Farrugia has in turn been fined $A10,000 after advising workers that they could not access the site unless their union dues had been paid. The Federal Court’s Justice Richard Tracey ruled that the CFMEU’s frequent breaches of workplace laws meant that a significant financial penalty was justified.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, QUEST APARTMENTS PTY LTD, ARTEAM, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION

Union fined $1m over Boral boycott

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 : 15-Feb-18

The Federal Court has ordered the militant Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union to pay fines totalling $A1m for breaching the secondary boycott provisions of the Competition and Consumer Act. The union had banned Victorian building sites from using concrete supplied by Boral in the wake of a 2012 industrial dispute between the CFMEU and Grocon. Justice John Middleton found that the union engaged in a secondary boycott at two building sites, although the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission had contended that 12 sites had been affected.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, BORAL LIMITED – ASX BLD, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, ALSAFE PREMIX CONCRETE PTY LTD, GROCON PTY LTD, COURT OF APPEAL (VICTORIA), HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Westpac takes on ASIC alone over rate rigging

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Original article by James Frost, Patrick Durkin
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 31-Oct-17

Westpac has elected to let the courts decide whether allegations of rigging the bank bill swap rate have any foundation. National Australia Bank and the ANZ, which were also alleged by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission of rigging the BBSW, have agreed to a settlement over the issue. The case against Westpac will begin in the Federal Court on 31 October, with the case likely to run until the end of the year.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA

Westpac takes BBSW case down to the wire

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Original article by Sally Patten, Jonathan Shapiro
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 30-Oct-17

National Australia Bank has joined the ANZ Bank in reaching a settlement with the Australian Securities & Investments Commission over rate-rigging allegations. The NAB is understood to have agreed to make a total payment of $A50 million, of which $A10 million would be seen as a penalty and $A20 million would go towards ASIC’s legal costs. The remaining $A20 million would be donated to a consumer protection fund. Westpac, the third bank involved in the bank bill swap rate case, is believed to be still considering whether it should challenge ASIC’s allegations in court.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

ASIC win on bank swap rate rigging

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Original article by Patrick Durkin, James Frost
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 24-Oct-17

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission’s case against Westpac, the ANZ, and National Australia Bank has been put on hold for two days. ASIC had accused the three banks of trying to rig the bank bill swap rate. However, the ANZ reported a day before the case was due to start that it had reached a settlement with ASIC, and it is understood that NAB may also do so. The deferment will allow ASIC’s deal with ANZ to be finalised and for it to be approved by the court. Outgoing ASIC chairman Greg Medcraft says the ANZ’s decision to settle the case vindicates its decision to pursue the case. It is believed that ANZ has agreed to pay a fine in the order of $A50 million.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, UNITED STATES. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, GREAT BRITAIN. FINANCIAL CONDUCT AUTHORITY

Frustrated judges put fine pedal to the metal for militant union

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 24-Oct-17

Industrial relations barrister Stuart Wood notes that judges have become much more willing to impose maximum penalties on the CFMEU for breaching workplace laws in recent years. He adds that only five years ago the $A2.4m fine imposed on the union by Justice Geoffrey Flick in September would have been much lower. The Federal Circuit Court’s Judge Salvatore Vasta also recently imposed the maximum penalty of $A306,000 for breaching workplace laws but said the fine would have been much higher if he had the scope to do so.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT OF AUSTRALIA, UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO TRADE UNION GOVERNANCE AND CORRUPTION, K&L GATES LLP

Corporate penalties to be tripled

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Original article by Patrick Durkin
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 23-Oct-17

The Federal Government will give incoming Australian Securities & Investments Commission chairman James Shipton greater powers to impose penalties on companies that do the wrong doing. The changes stem from recommendations by an ASIC taskforce and David Murray’s Financial System Inquiry. Amongst other things, the ASIC taskforce suggested that penalties for corporate wrongdoing be increased from $A1 million to $A3 million. ASIC has long been concerned that the extent of the penalties it can impose do not match those available to other regulators such as the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission and AUSTRAC.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, HARVARD UNIVERSITY, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIA. DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS