Ardent Leisure's $26m class action settlement approved

The news: A shareholder class action settlement that followed the deaths of four people at the Dreamworld theme park in Queensland has been approved by the Federal Court. Roughly 300 shareholders in Dreamworld owner Ardent Leisure launched the action in 2020 alleging the attractions owner misled them on safety measures at the park.

The numbers: Dreamworld owner Ardent Leisure will make an all-inclusive $26 million payment to the applicants but requires no admission of liability.

The context: Cindy Low, Kate Goodchild, Luke Dorsett and Roozi Araghi died on the Thunder River Rapids Ride at Dreamworld in 2016 when their raft flipped after colliding with another raft. Plummeting visitor numbers after the accident led Ardent to shutter Dreamworld before posting a $50 million loss in 2017.