The ASX is reassessing its shareholder approval rules for M&A after blowback over James Hardie's $14bn AZEK deal. Despite James Hardie issuing 35% more shares to AZEK investors, the deal went ahead without a bidder shareholder vote, thanks to ASX granting a waiver from the 15% issuance cap. ASX said the waiver was within an "established legal framework" and a shareholder vote would impose additional transaction costs and timing delays. After pressure from heavyweights like AussieSuper and UniSuper, ASX will now update its 2017 analysis on when shareholder approval is required in deal scenarios: AFR, Bloomberg

The first wave of ‘same job, same pay’ orders is here—and the bar for resisting them looks high. The new laws require labour hire workers to be paid no less than direct employees doing the same work under the host's enterprise agreement. The FWC has considered Regulated Labour Hire Arrangement Orders (RLHA Orders) in a recent case relating to Bengalla mine labour hire. The FWC brushed aside claims that it was too hard to calculate the protected rate for casual and part-time labour hire workers, or that the order would squeeze labour hire margins. The takeaway? If labour hire rates sit well below enterprise agreement rates for the same work, it’ll be tough to argue that a RLHA Order is unfair or unreasonable: Gadens

The Tassie Supreme Court gives crypto a run for its money. Turns out cryptocurrencies count as property and possession rules apply. Relevantly, an investor trusted an adviser to buy Bitcoin with $10k. But when the adviser kept some of the crypto as an alleged fee (without clear agreement), the Court found this was detinue (unjust detention of the property) and conversion (dealt with inconsistent with the respondent’s rights). So, if you control the asset’s private keys and have an intention to possess, you’re in possession of the crypto asset. And if you’re handling crypto for others, lock down your agreements upfront, especially on fees.

Ashurst has named 20 new partners globally—just 3 in Australia, a sharp drop from 17 last year. It’s one of a series of leaner partner promos, with A&O and HSF both cutting down from 2024. The firm’s 2025 cohort leans into corporate, disputes and energy transition work. Aussie additions include Jacqueline Chan (Melbourne), Mike Webb and Will Mason (Sydney), as the firm flagged “solid” local growth in FY24.

More partner hires. This time it’s at Mills Oakley. The firm has added five new partners in Sydney across corporate, tax and property, pushing its national partner count past 170. The hires includes ex-Baker McKenzie special counsel Greg Smith and longtime JWS partner Andy Milidoni. The move follows a run of lateral hires as the firm continues to deepen its east coast offering: Lawyers Weekly

The ATO has won a key ruling to use WhatsApp messages as tendency evidence in its case against ex-EY partner Peter White, accused of promoting a $365m tax exploitation scheme. The ATO alleges White pocketed $700k in the process and leveraged his Big Four title to sell the scheme as “risky but not illegal” to clients. The messages appear to show White repeatedly asking a mate for access to carried-forward tax losses in exchange for a fee—central to the scheme’s structure: Lawyerly

As Pope Francis was laid to rest far from the Vatican’s grandeur, his funeral became the backdrop for a meeting between Trump and Zelensky inside St Peter’s Basilica. While Francis’s simple burial at Santa Maria Maggiore reflected his mission to serve “the last,” Trump’s high-stakes diplomacy underscored the tensions between the church’s pastoral message and the power plays of the world stage: The Economist

The Trump administration is floating US-Russia energy partnerships—including joint projects in the Arctic, oil, gas and rare earths—as part of its push to strike an Ukraine peace deal. Moscow, buoyed by Trump’s talk of post-war economic cooperation, is drafting a list of assets it hopes will tempt Washington. The US has also proposed lifting sanctions on Moscow as part of any agreement, though that would need EU sign-off: Mining.com

In a fiery debate, Peter Dutton has called Welcome to Country ceremonies “overdone,” arguing the practice has lost meaning through overuse. The comments followed debate-stage remarks and recent booing at an Anzac Day service across the country. Dutton said while it’s appropriate at key events like Parliament’s opening, constant repetition at work meetings and footy games risks cheapening its significance: The Australian, ABC

At a Vancouver street festival, several people were killed after a car ploughed into crowds. The event marked an annual celebration of Filipino heritage. Police say the driver, reportedly an Asian man in his 20s, is now in custody. Investigations into the motive are underway: The Guardian

DoorDash: has lobbed a £2.7bn bid for UK-based Deliveroo, offering 180p per share in a deal the Deliveroo board says it’s likely to recommend. The takeover would give DoorDash access to 10 new markets with minimal regulatory fuss, building on its US$8bn Wolt acquisition as it looks to lock down Europe: Reuters

Demyst: the Aussie fintech, whose clients include ANZ, NAB and Standard Chartered, has been acquired by KKR-backed fraud prevention firm Feedzai in a deal pegged at around $157m. The company was founded by LexisNexis’ MD Mark Hookey. Its Zonic platform helps banks tackle know-your-customer and anti-money laundering checks—now set to scale globally through Feedzai’s network of 100-plus tier-one banks: AFR

Brookfield: is gearing up to sell its La Trobe Financial, tapping Morgan Stanley and UBS to begin meetings with prospective buyers including PE giants, asset managers and sovereign funds. The $300m EBITDA lender is forecasting its client book to soar from $20bn to $50bn in five years, as Brookfield weighs a trade sale against IPO options: AFR

Betr: is pushing ahead with its takeover play for PointsBet, launching a $100m-plus equity raise via brokers Ords and Morgans to fund its cash-and-scrip bid. The raise aims to kill off “funding uncertainty” claims from PointsBet’s board, which has backed a rival $353m all-cash offer from Japan’s Mixi: AFR

Trump’s new exec order fast-tracks deep-sea mining — not just in US waters, but globally. China says the move “violates” international law. Trump’s chasing rare earth dominance, but scientists warn seabed mining could wreck marine ecosystems: BBC

Santos is eyeing carbon capture at its Narrabri gas project, telling NSW officials it could repurpose learnings from its Moomba scheme to cut emissions. But green groups say carbon capture is just a smokescreen, warning the plan risks polluting the Great Artesian Basin—the key water source for thousands of farmers and regional towns: The Australian

Revolut’s “Karma” system scores staff on risk behaviours, with points lost or gained based on how well teams follow 30+ compliance processes — and those scores directly impact bonus pools. The move comes after a €3.5m anti-money laundering fine in Lithuania and a 3-year delay in securing a UK banking licence over compliance concerns: Finextra

Equiti FS has been hit with an $11m penalty after its advisers pushed clients into rolling super into SMSFs to fund property buys through a related entity — using “cookie cutter” advice that ignored individual needs. Bonuses were paid to advisers when clients settled on these properties, breaching conflicted remuneration laws: SMSF Adviser

Guzman y Gomez might be riding high at home, but Chipotle’s first sales drop since COVID is a timely reality check as GYG eyes the US market. With Trump-era tariffs hitting ingredients like Aussie beef, Chipotle’s margins are under pressure and any US play by GYG could face the same cost squeeze: The Australian

Pembroke, backed by Fidelity, is diving into Australia’s build-to-rent market, snapping up a $200m Fitzroy site from Greystar. With plans for 200+ apartments and more deals along the east coast, Pembroke’s banking on demand outpacing supply and says its long-game strategy will give it an edge as smaller players struggle with rising build costs: The Australian

Adobe releases a new “Content Credentials” tool that lets creators cryptographically sign their images. In a battle to authenticate AI created content, the app flags verified images with a ‘CR’ symbol and links back to profiles. The opt-in tool aims to combat deepfakes, with LinkedIn the first platform on board. But enforcement remains tricky. It’s more ‘please don’t’ than hard stop for AI scrapers: Capital Brief

With the election looming, Albanese and Dutton look to double down on the world-first plan to ban under-16s from social media platforms. Both leaders are also backing laws to force platforms to pay for local news—despite Big Tech’s pushback. Trump’s team has already raised concerns, linking the fight to broader US trade tensions over global tech regulation: Tech News