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Firm reaches class action settlement after 4-year battle
A multinational law firm has reached a settlement on a class action against a funds management and investment group, following a four-year battle on behalf of investors.
Emma Musgrave
Slater and Gordon has confirmed it has reached an agreement to settle its class action against Provident Capital Ltd.
A statement from Slaters noted approximately 60 per cent of these are covered by firm’s class action, the settlement of which is subject to approval of the Court.
Slater and Gordon head of class actions Ben Hardwick described the matter as “long running, complex and difficult” with investigations starting in 2012 and proceedings commencing in the Federal Court in 2014. The action was transferred to the Supreme Court of New South Wales in 2015, with a trial due to commence yesterday.
“We began investigating the case in 2012 and after seeking litigation funding support, elected to take it on ‘No Win-No Fee’ with Slater and Gordon funding the disbursements and indemnifying the lead plaintiff,” Mr Hardwick said.
Slater and Gordon’s argument against AET alleged that the company had not discharged its obligations to exercise reasonable diligence in accordance with its statutory obligations under section 283DA of the Corporations Act.
In particular, it was alleged that AET ought to have ascertained whether Provident would have sufficient property available to repay debenture holders when their investment came due, a statement from the firm explained.
“The collapse of Provident caused substantial losses to many mum-and-dad investors who invested in debentures issued by Provident, including the plaintiff and the group members whom he represents,” Mr Hardwick said.
“Our clients alleged that had AET acted earlier, such losses could have been avoided altogether for some investors and minimised for others.
“[Yesterday’s] announcement is a reminder of the value class actions play in holding corporate Australia to account and in providing thousands of Australians with access to justice each year.”
Emma Musgrave
Emma Musgrave (née Ryan) is the managing editor, professional services at Momentum Media.
Emma has worked for Momentum Media since 2015, including five years spent as the editor of the company's legal brand - Lawyers Weekly. Throughout her time at Momentum, she has been responsible for breaking some of the biggest stories in corporate Australia. In addition, she has produced exclusive multimedia and event content related to the company's respective brands and audiences.
Prior to joining Momentum Media, Emma worked in breakfast radio, delivering news to the Central West region of NSW, before taking on a radio journalist role at Southern Cross Austereo, based in Townsville, North Queensland.
She holds a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) degree from Charles Sturt University.
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