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The waterfront dispute
In 1998 Maurice Blackburn was retained by the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) to pursue legal proceedings against Patrick Stevedores, the Commonwealth Government, Peter Reith and the National Farmers Federation. This huge industrial dispute was triggered by the decision to dismiss all employees on the waterfront throughout Australia, and shift assets to other entities.
Josh Bornstein led the team of Maurice Blackburn lawyers in their David and Goliath-style battle against the armies of barristers retained by major commercial law firms.
The team obtained a Federal Court Order to prevent the en masse sacking of the unionised workforce and its replacement by an alternative workforce. The litigation continued with further success for the MUA right up to and including the High Court of Australia's judgment on 4 May 1998.
In an address to the APLA State Conference of May 1999, Julian Burnside QC stated:
'The result was a very eclectic team of lawyers..each member of the team brought to bear on the case their somewhat different skills, knowledge and experience. None of us could have done the case alone, but together we felt invincible.
Litigation such as MUA v Patricks Stevedores does not happen often. Difficult circumstances call for daring responses, and no doubt this emboldened us. But the fact remains that there is scope for creativity and imagination in all litigation.'
The Esso class action
On Friday 25 September 1998 an explosion and fire at the Longford gas plant tragically killed two men and injured eight workers. The explosion also resulted in a two-week gas supply shutdown for much of Victoria causing massive losses for Victorian businesses, employees who were stood down and consumers. Many businesses were forced to do without their gas-fuelled equipment and machinery. Damage to the economy was estimated at more than $500 million.
Maurice Blackburn, together with other firms, successfully pursued a class action against multi-national oil and gas producer Esso. The class action was brought on behalf of Victorian businesses, workers and domestic users who suffered financial loss due to the Longford gas explosion in 1998.
The Supreme Court handed down its decision about the action in February 2003. Under the decision, businesses that suffered property damage or economic loss flowing from property damage were able to recover their losses.
The class action settled in December 2004 for $32.5million.
The Dalkon Shield group action
Cashman and Partners, the predecessor to Maurice Blackburn's Sydney office, successfully represented over 3,000 Australian plaintiffs in the landmark Dalkon Shield litigation.
The Dalkon Shield IUD, although intended to be a safe and effective alternative to the contraceptive pill, caused infection, infertility and, in some case, death among women who used it.
Peter Cashman at Cashman and Partners led the team of lawyers who secured large compensation payouts for thousands of Australian women. This involved legal proceedings both in the United States of America and in Australia.
In the face of many thousands of law suits, the company which manufactured the Dalkon Shield, AH Robins, sought protection under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code in 1985. Under the terms of the Reorganisation Plan, which was approved by the United States Bankruptcy Court and District Court, Australian women retained the right to settle, arbitrate or litigate claims for personal injuries. Substantial compensation payments were subsequently obtained. Australian women received the same compensation, for the same injuries, as American women and women from other countries around the world.
Total compensation payments to women worldwide exceeded US$2.5 billion.
The GIO class action
Between August and November 1998 GIO, its directors and Grant Samuel & Associates made statements to GIO shareholders in the course of defending a hostile takeover led by AMP Limited.
The statements were made in a formal report called a 'Part B Statement', and also in various other public statements in newspapers. The shareholders were advised that the company was profitable in the first four months of that year and expected to make a profit of $250 million. The shareholders were unanimously advised to reject the takeover offer of $5.35 per share, and many did so.
Six months later the company suffered a loss of $750 million - which meant that the profit forecast had been wrong by as much as $1 billion. The share price collapsed accordingly and the shareholders received only $2.75 per share.
The GIO class action was commenced by Maurice Blackburn on 30 August 1999 against GIO Australia Holdings Limited (now AG Australia Holdings Limited), its former board of directors and Grant Samuel & Associates Pty Ltd. The shareholders' case was that the statements were misleading, deceptive and/or negligent.
The case was bitterly contested by the various respondents and the Federal Court made many important rulings regarding class action law during the case. For the size of the claim, the number of affected shareholders and the nature of the dispute, the case is recognised as a landmark by many shareholders, lawyers and legal writers.
On 26 August 2003, the Federal Court approved a $97 million settlement of the GIO class action for which monies were paid to 22,051 shareholders. The settlement is the largest class action settlement in Australian legal history. It also represents a turning point for improved accountability to small shareholders and better corporate governance in Australia.
