Subrogation in focus: New Zealand law reinforced by England and Wales Court of Appeal decision

By: Peter Leman, Charles Henley and Caitlin Barclay Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance PLC v Textainer Group Holdings Ltd The recent England and Wales Court of Appeal decision in Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance PLC v Textainer Group Holdings Ltd reinforces the current position of New Zealand law on subrogated recoveries. The Court of Appeal rejected […]

Jury rolled in Lawyer X trial: Victorian Supreme Court provides a refresher on applications for trial by judge alone

By: Richard Leder, Jacquie Goodwin, Blake Pappas and George Kift Gobbo v State of Victoria [2024] VSC 603 At a glance On 23 September 2024, the State of Victoria successfully removed the jury in Nicola Gobbo’s civil trial. In his written reasons delivered on 26 September 2024, Keogh J confirmed that notoriety and publicity are […]

Queensland dust decisions signal rising damages

By: Cassandra Wills Though the use of asbestos in Australia was phased out approximately 40 years ago, dust claims have been a topical issue recently due to the rush of silicosis claims arising out of exposure to engineered stone. Whilst dust claims are certainly not a new area for personal injury claims, three recent decisions […]

Requirements for late knowledge in claims of limitation: lessons from the Court of Appeal

By: Richard Flinn and Laura Glasson Rea v Auckland Council [2024] NZCA 313 In the recent decision of Rea v Auckland Council [2024] NZCA 313, the Court of Appeal provides a useful analysis of the elements required to assess when time starts to run for the purpose of assessing limitation, and in particular, for the […]

Court of Appeal clarifies whether provision of an expert’s opinion is a misrepresentation

By: Richard Flinn and Isaac Black Ruth Renton Weine and Michael David Hofmann-Body as Trustees of the Ruth Weine Family Trust v Tadd Management Limited [2024] NZCA 323 At a glance The Court of Appeal has released a decision that provides helpful clarification for professionals as to the actionability of statements of opinion. Overturning the […]

Stay applications in a post-GLJ world

By: Richard Leder, Samantha Saad and Michelle Rich Domenic Colbert (a pseudonym) v Trustees of the Christian Brothers [2024] VSC 309 At a glance On 13 June 2024, the Supreme Court of Victoria delivered its decision in Domenic Colbert (a pseudonym) v Trustees of the Christian Brothers [2024] VSC 309, dismissing the defendant’s application for a […]

Another shareholder class action loss – CBA class actions thrown out

By: Amanda Beattie and Jonathon Ferraro At a glance Judgment in favour of CBA was handed down last month1 in respect of two consolidated shareholder class actions2. The actions alleged that CBA breached its continuous disclosure obligations and mislead or deceived shareholders in relation to compliance with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) laws. The […]

Court of Appeal rules that survivors of historic abuse can be doubly compensated

By: Richard Leder, Simone Tagliaferro, and Rhyse Collins Comensoli v WQA (a pseudonym) [2024] VSCA 104 At a glance The Victorian Court of Appeal has ruled that social security payments received by a plaintiff are not to be taken into account in quantifying economic loss, even when those payments are not repayable to the Commonwealth. […]

Consent and confidential communications – an agreement that DOES go hand in hand

By: Richard Leder, Samantha Saad and Michelle Rich HM (a pseudonym) v Sister Mary Monaghan [2024] VSC 257 At a glance In the first judgment of its kind regarding the construction of s32C(1) of the Evidence (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1958 (the EMPA), the Victorian Supreme Court ruled that in circumstances where a protected person consents […]

Carrier found not liable for invasive examinations of passengers at Doha Airport

By: Aisha Lala, James Cooper and Merinda Stewart At a glance Last month, the Federal Court of Australia (FCA) handed down a judgment1 examining the liability of Qatar Airways, among others, for the invasive examinations of several Australian passengers at Doha Airport in October 2020, following the discovery of a newborn baby abandoned in the […]