Directors and Officers Liability

Articles, Case Alerts

New guidance around accessorial liability for directors and officers

By: Raisa Conchin At a glance In April 2019, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) commenced proceedings against Balaska Pty Ltd (Balaska), a solar energy business, and its director, James McLennan, in the Federal Court of Australia. ACMA alleged that Balaska had contravened the Do Not Call Register Act 2006 (Cth) and that the […]

By : Sina Sangsari Feb 29, 2024 Comments Off

Articles

Get to know Thomas Cavanagh, new partner and financial services specialist

What made you decide to become a lawyer? Other than the usual desire to argue a point with everyone and shows like Boston Legal (aged very poorly, I know), I like the fact that the law is not actually made up of rigid principles but rather can be moulded to suit particular circumstances, and that’s […]

By : Sina Sangsari Nov 3, 2023 Comments Off

Thought Leadership

NZ Insurance Market Trends Update 2023

We are pleased to share our latest edition of NZ Insurance Market Trends Update. Our annual report explores legal and claims trends, legislative and regulatory developments and significant recent decisions that impact insurers, underwriters, brokers and corporates operating in the New Zealand insurance market. Our report includes more than 30 articles that look at trends, […]

By : Sina Sangsari Sep 18, 2023 Comments Off

Case Alerts

Directors’ duties in the face of risk to creditors – Mainzeal concludes

Yan v Mainzeal Property Construction Limited (in liq) [2023] NZSC 113 On 25 August 2023, the Supreme Court handed down its highly anticipated decision in Yan v Mainzeal Property Construction Limited (in liq) [2023] NZSC 113. The Court largely upheld the Court of Appeal’s decision and included the award of damages of $39.8m against the […]

By : Sina Sangsari Aug 29, 2023 Comments Off

Case Alerts

The expanded scope of building practitioners’ duty of care

Boulus Constructions Pty Ltd v Warrumbungle Shire Council (No 2) [2022] NSWSC 1368 When the Design and Building Practitioners Act 2020 (NSW) (DBP Act) came into effect, section 37 imposed a new duty on building practitioners and persons who carry out construction work to exercise reasonable care to avoid economic loss to building owners, including […]

By : joanna li Nov 7, 2022 Comments Off

Articles

Where will the RI Advice proceedings take us?

On 5 May 2022, the Federal Court delivered its penalty judgment in the RI Advice proceedings, which were commenced by ASIC for alleged breaches of its obligations as a financial services licensee under section 912A of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) following numerous cyber incidents. The Court made declarations of contraventions and ordered RI Advice […]

By : joanna li Aug 30, 2022 Comments Off

Articles

D&O exposures to climate change risk – a Legalign Global white paper

In the wake of COP26 and the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s report, climate change risks continue to make headlines around the world. An increasingly concerning issue is the rise of D&O liability exposures related to climate change. In this white paper, Legalign Global member firms, including Wotton + Kearney authors Charu Stevenson, Michael […]

By : Sina Sangsari Dec 3, 2021 Comments Off

Articles

D&O liability risks arising out of mining and energy decommissioning

Governments have been left to foot the bill for hundreds of millions of dollars for rehabilitation costs following high profile collapses of mining and energy companies. In response, legislation has been passed by federal, state and territory governments enabling them to pass on these costs to ‘related persons’, which could include directors and officers. In […]

By : Sina Sangsari Sep 2, 2021 Comments Off

Articles

NSW Supreme Court provides guidance on the insolvency test

The NSW Supreme Court recently dismissed two cases brought by various lenders against officers and employees of the failed steel giant Arrium. W+K’s Dean Pinto and Stephen Morrissey look at the useful guidance the Bank of Communications decision provides for insurers on the application of the insolvency test in section 95A of the Corporations Act […]

By : Johnny Spiller Aug 30, 2021 Comments Off

Articles, Case Alerts, Thought Leadership

Climate change is heating up boardroom risks

Regulators in Australia and around the world are treating climate change as a major systemic financial risk. Given the high levels of regulator scrutiny, investor activity and public interest, it is only a matter of time before significant claims (potentially including securities class actions) are brought against directors and officers who fail to properly consider […]

By : Sina Sangsari May 31, 2021 Comments Off

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