Class in session
Shareholder class actions are heading to the High Court for a landmark test on materiality and damages, following a string of courtroom defeats.
Shareholder class actions will come under the High Court’s microscope for the first time, after a run of losses against some of the biggest names in corporate Australia.
Last Friday, the court granted special leave to shareholders who sued the Commonwealth Bank in 2017, after AUSTRAC announced proceedings that led to an agreed penalty of $700m.
The Full Federal Court ruled in May 2025 that the CBA failed to disclose breaches of anti-money laundering laws between 2014 and 2017. However, it said shareholders did not suffer any actual financial loss and awarded no damages.
The CBA shareholders are now arguing the case in a different way to the trial, using a facilitation principle. If they succeed, it could be a breakthrough for plaintiffs.
