In Short -
The Situation: In 2020, a cruise ship in Australian waters, the Ruby Princess, experienced a COVID‑19 outbreak that resulted in an Australian class action. Part of the class were passengers subject to...more
Although class actions have been common in the United States for decades, they have not been as widely used in the rest of the world. The situation and risks remain in flux, however, as more countries have renewed momentum to...more
12/22/2023
/ Article III ,
Australia ,
Class Action ,
EU ,
France ,
Germany ,
International Litigation ,
Jurisdiction ,
Settlement ,
Standing ,
UK
REGULATORY ISSUES & UPDATES -
Mandatory Climate Change Reporting Requirements Under the New European ESRS E1 -
The implementation of the European Sustainability Reporting Standards poses risks for reporting companies,...more
12/5/2023
/ Clean Water Act ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Data Protection ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Federal Agency Taskforce ,
Green Initiatives ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
NEPA ,
Net Zero ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
SFDR ,
State and Local Government ,
Sustainability ,
Taxonomy ,
U.S. Treasury ,
UK
Although class actions have been common in the United States for decades, they have not been as widely used in the rest of the world. The situation and risks remain in flux, however, as more countries have renewed momentum to...more
In light of the DOJ’s most recent guidance on the use of personal devices and third-party messaging applications by corporate personnel, this White Paper addresses issues and challenges that companies are facing in this area...more
10/18/2023
/ CFTC ,
Compliance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Electronic Communications ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Guidance Update ,
Instant Messaging Apps ,
Mobile Devices ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Workplace Communication
Class actions have been a feature of the litigation landscape in the USA for decades. Claimant-friendly procedures combined with an aggressive and well-funded plaintiffs’ bar have created fertile ground for these large,...more
10/5/2023
/ Antitrust Violations ,
Class Action ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Data Breach ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Litigation Funding ,
Technology Sector ,
UK
REGULATORY ISSUES & UPDATES -
New CFTC Enforcement on Carbon Markets Misconduct -
The U.S. CFTC publishes a rare alert soliciting tips about potential manipulation in the carbon markets and announces the formation of...more
8/18/2023
/ Airlines ,
CARB ,
CFTC ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
EU ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Greenwashing ,
HFC Emissions ,
Shareholder Litigation ,
UK
Australia continues to be a highly active jurisdiction for climate-related lawsuits. The last few years have seen multiple suits commenced against corporations and governments in relation to climate issues, with more filings...more
For more than a decade, environmental groups have accused airlines of "greenwashing" or misrepresenting the sustainability of their business operations. Now these claims are gaining traction around the globe. These groups...more
In Short -
The Situation: In 2018, the Australian federal government obligated Australian corporates to engage with modern slavery risks in their supply chain by enacting the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth) ("the Act")....more
"Green Day" in the UK -
As part of its "Powering Up Britain" strategy, the UK government has published a series of documents setting out its vision for the UK's transition to net zero and the strengthening of UK energy...more
A significant newly enacted class actions regime has come into force in Western Australia, as of 25 March 2023.
The Civil Procedure (Representative Proceedings) Act 2022 (WA) ("Act") was enacted in September 2022,...more
The French National Assembly has passed a bill intended to promote the use of class actions in line with the new EU Representative Actions Directive....more
This edition of the Update covers:
Recent legal and regulatory developments, including guidance to APRA-regulated entities following the cyber attacks on Medibank and Optus, the release of the inaugural Climate...more
Recent legislative and regulatory developments, including the Federal Government's draft regulations to deregulate litigation funding in class actions and the Civil Procedure (Representative Proceedings) Bill 2021, which...more
In Short -
The Situation: The Victorian Court of Appeal in Australia has delivered a decision with guidance to lawyers on their duties when dealing with witnesses in civil cases where there is a risk that the witnesses'...more
This edition of the Update covers: -
Recent legal and regulatory developments, including the commencement of cyber security incident notification obligations for critical financial market infrastructure assets, AUSTRAC's...more
More Detail: Regulation of Litigation Funding in Class Actions
In 2009, the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia, in Brookfield Multiplex Ltd v International Litigation Funding Partners Pty Ltd [2009] FCAFC 147,...more
This edition of the Update covers:
Recent legal and regulatory developments, including the release of regulatory guidance on crypto asset-related investment products, the imposition of additional licence conditions on the...more
ASIC's Approach to CEUs Prior to the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry ("Royal Commission"), ASIC routinely accepted CEUs as a form of administrative settlement...more
On 4 November 2021, the Federal Court of Australia made orders by consent which require the Commonwealth Bank of Australia ("CBA") to permit the plaintiff shareholders to inspect and make copies of books and records that...more
The Applicant's Claims -
In July 2020, Ms. Kathleen O'Donnell commenced a representative proceeding on her own behalf and on behalf of all persons who at any time on or since 7 July 2020 have acquired certain types of...more
This edition of the Update covers:
KEY LEGAL AND REGULATORY DEVELOPMENTS
Regulatory Priorities
ASIC and APRA Release Their Corporate Plans for 2021-25
On 26 August 2021, the Australian Securities & Investments Commission...more
12/1/2021
/ AML/CFT ,
ASIC ,
Australia ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Cybersecurity ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Libor ,
Loans ,
Popular ,
Prudential Standards ,
Regulatory Agenda
The Facts The plaintiffs in two separate class actions (Fox v Westpac Banking Corporation & Anor (Fox) and Crawford v Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd & Ors (Crawford)) sought GCOs from the court pursuant to the...more
Proposed Reforms -
The Draft Bill makes clear that 'a class action litigation funding scheme' is an MIS, in line with an earlier ruling of the Federal Court of Australia in Brookfield Multiplex Limited v International...more