LAW – VICTORIA – CASES

PM expects Pell to be stripped of his honours

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Original article by Liz Main, Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 22-Aug-19

Cardinal George Pell may seek special leave to appeal to the High Court after Victoria’s Court of Appeal rejected his bid to have his conviction on historical child abuse charges overturned. The court ruled 2-1 against Pell’s appeal, and legal experts say the dissenting judgment by Justice Mark Weinberg may increase the chances of special leave being granted. Justice Weinberg ruled that Pell’s conviction should have been overturned. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Scott Morrison says Pell could be stripped of his Order of Australia. Pell was jailed for a minimum of three years and eight months in March.

CORPORATES
COURT OF APPEAL (VICTORIA), HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL

Setka in court bid to block ALP’s axe

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Original article by Tessa Akerman
The Australian – Page: 5 : 5-Jul-19

Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining & Energy Union official John Setka is seeking an injunction against Labor’s national executive, which wants to expel him from the party. Labor leader Anthony Albanese claims that Setka’s conduct in recent years has been unacceptable, and he must be expelled to prevent further damage to the party’s reputation. Setka in turn alleges that being expelled from Labor would damage his own reputation and could result in the loss of his position as Victorian secretary of the CFMMEU.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, SUPREME COURT OF VICTORIA

Fair Work Ombudsman accuses toy retailer Uncle Toys of underpaying workers

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Original article by Josh Fagan
Herald Sun – Page: Online : 29-May-19

The Fair Work Ombudsman alleges that retailer Uncle Toys paid some of its employees just $6.70 an hour at its pop-up stores across Melbourne during the Christmas trading period. FWO Sandra Parker says the retailer and its owner Eyal Israel are the first to be prosecuted under the Protecting Vulnerable Workers laws. The eight employees of Uncle Toys who were underpaid are all on temporary working visas, and are said to be owed a total of $21,000 in wages and entitlements.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN, UNCLE TOYS

Pell’s six-year death sentence

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Original article by John Ferguson, Tessa Akerman
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 14-Mar-19

Victims of institutional child sexual abuse say Cardinal George Pell’s jail sentence is insufficient. The County Court of Victoria’s Chief Judge Peter Kidd has ruled that Pell will be eligible for parole in three years and eight months, after announcing a maximum sentence of six years for sexually abusing two choirboys in 1996 and 1997. Chief Judge Kidd acknowledged that the 77-year-old could die in prison, given his age and health problems. Corrections Victoria has warned that Pell’s high profile and the nature of his offences means he may be targeted by other inmates.

CORPORATES
COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA, CORRECTIONS VICTORIA, CATHOLIC CHURCH, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Cardinal George Pell found guilty of sex assaults on choirboys

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Original article by Lucie Morris-Marr
The New Daily – Page: Online : 27-Feb-19

Lawyers representing Cardinal George Pell say he will appeal against his conviction on child sexual assault charges. A jury found Pell guilty of five charges of sexually abusing two choirboys at St Patrick’s Cathedral in Melbourne in 1996 and 1997. The verdict was handed down on 11 December, but a suppression order prevented the media from reporting on the case until 26 February, when separate charges of sexual abuse were dropped. It has also been revealed that Pell’s conviction in December was preceded by a previous trial in September, but the jury was dismissed after failing to reach a unanimous verdict.

CORPORATES
CATHOLIC CHURCH, COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA

Lawyer X to be unmasked

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Original article by Anthony Dowsley, Patrick Carlyon
Herald Sun – Page: 1 & 4 : 22-Feb-19

Victoria’s Court of Appeal has upheld the High Court’s ruling that the media can disclose the identity of a gangland defence lawyer who became a police informant. The court has ruled that the ‘Herald Sun’ can publish the name of the woman dubbed ‘Lawyer X’ on 1 March, ending a five-year legal battle to reveal her identity. Lawyer X claims that information she has supplied to police has helped to arrest and charge 386 people, including her own clients in the underworld.

CORPORATES
COURT OF APPEAL (VICTORIA), HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, VICTORIA POLICE, VICTORIA. DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

Court tells Wilson to pay back $4.2m

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Original article by Michael Pelly
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 28-Jun-18

Victoria’s Court of Appeal has ordered Hollywood star Rebel Wilson to pay 80 per cent of the legal costs that Bauer Media incurred in its appeal against her landmark defamation payout. Wilson had initially been awarded a record $A4.7m, which Bauer paid in September 2017. This was subsequently reduced to just $A600,000 plus interest on appeal, and Wilson has been ordered to repay more than $A4.1m.

CORPORATES
BAUER MEDIA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, COURT OF APPEAL (VICTORIA)

Union vows to sue after blackmail case folds

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 2 : 17-May-18

Victoria’s Director of Public Prosecutions will not proceed with a blackmail case against Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union officials John Setka and Shaun Reardon. Setka has indicated that he may pursue legal action against federal and state police, as well as law firm Freehills. The case against Setka and Reardon had centred on allegations that their threat to blockade Boral trucks in 2013 constituted blackmail. The CFMEU was engaged in an industrial dispute with Boral supplier Grocon at the time. The charges against Setka and Reardon had been recommended by the trade union royal commission.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, VICTORIA. DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS, BORAL LIMITED – ASX BLD, GROCON PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO TRADE UNION GOVERNANCE AND CORRUPTION, MELBOURNE MAGISTRATES’ COURT, UNIVERSITY OF ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, VICTORIA POLICE, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS

Long fight looms after Pell pleads not guilty in abuse cases

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Original article by Tessa Akerman
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 2-May-18

The Melbourne Magistrates’ Court has committed Cardinal George Pell to stand trial on several charges of historic sex offences. They include alleged sexual assaults at a swimming pool in Ballarat in the 1970s and at St Patrick’s Cathedral in Melbourne in the 1990s. However, Magistrate Belinda Wallington struck out many of the charges against Cardinal Pell. He pleaded not guilty to all charges and has been released on bail. The barrister representing Cardinal Pell will seek to have each charge dealt with by a separate trial.

CORPORATES
MELBOURNE MAGISTRATES’ COURT, CATHOLIC CHURCH

Wilson confident she can defeat Bauer Media appeal over payout

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Original article by Broede Carmody
The Age – Page: 5 : 20-Apr-18

Bauer Media is challenging the size of its payout to actress Rebel Wilson after a Victorian jury found in 2017 that it had defamed her. Justice John Dixon awarded Wilson damages of $A4.5 million, which Bauer is now contesting in the Court of Appeal. Media is not challenging the judgment, but only the amount, which it claims is "manifestly excessive". It is also contesting Justice Dixon’s finding that Wilson should be compensated for roles she claims to have missed out on because of its actions, claiming that there was insufficient evidence on this issue.

CORPORATES
BAUER MEDIA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, COURT OF APPEAL (VICTORIA), FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION