Judge accuses ODPP of reputational hit

Harvey and Legora go head-to-head

Years-long delay wipes claim

Harvey has raised $160m at an $8bn valuation and rolled out Shared Spaces, a client-facing AI workspace that lets firms and clients collaborate in real time. It’s a direct swing at Legora’s Portal, a white-label platform that lets firms embed their expertise into tools clients can self-serve. Legal AI is shifting to multiplayer platforms — and the race is officially on: NB

NSW District Court judge Penelope Wass has asked a parliamentary inquiry to consider standing down senior ODPP officers, accusing chief prosecutor Sally Dowling SC of directing a leak that damaged her reputation. Wass says the disclosure involved confidential details about a child defendant and triggered online abuse. Dowling denies wrongdoing, as the long-running rift intensifies: The Australian

Welcome to buttergate: Paul Weiss insists its London lawyers aren’t living under a butter ban after the FT suggested otherwise. The Mayfair office’s restaurant keeps the butter “under the counter”, on an “exceptions” only basis, as the firm pushes a clean-fuel menu for its high-performance lawyers: Legal Cheek

The Fed Gov has sought top silk to fight Linda Reynolds’ lawsuit, briefing Justin Gleeson SC on a reported $25k a day. Gleeson is the government’s heaviest legal hitter, brought in to crush the case after it fast-tracked Brittany Higgins’ payout without hearing Reynolds. Two judges have since found no cover-up, yet the politics rolls on.

Disputes: The Victorian Court of Appeal has reinforced that inordinate delay can extinguish even the largest claims. The Court upheld the dismissal of Pentridge Village’s $840m suit against Capital Finance after years of missed deadlines, late pleadings and stalled evidence. The case had been on foot since 2016, with further setbacks including a year to serve the writ, 2.5 years to settle pleadings, seven months for discovery and over a year to prepare lay evidence. The Court rejected arguments that dismissal requires a truly impossible trial, confirming the test remains whether delay creates a substantial risk of unfairness or serious prejudice. In this instance, the delay caused real prejudice such as lost documents, fading memories and prolonged exposure to massive claims. Litigants who let proceedings drift risk losing their right to be heard altogether: Mills Oakley

Arbitration/Disputes: The Federal Court has made enforcement orders recognising four ICSID awards against Spain, confirming judgment in favour of each investor under s 35(4) of the International Arbitration Act. The Court was asked to resolve ambiguity in one of the awards as to the terms of pre-award interest. While accepting there was ambiguity, it declined to resolve the ambiguity. It found that interpretation disputes belong in the ICSID system (and the parties could seek to have their positions vindicated under an Art 50 request). The Court simply used the words in the awards in the order as it was bound to "enforce the pecuniary obligations imposed by the award" as required by Art 54(1).

Regulatory: We have some great Friday news — ASIC has expanded its simplification push, enabling 35 additional paper forms to be lodged by email. That covers share capital changes, managed investment schemes, auditor movements and responsible entity updates. The move allows electronic signatures on all approved PDF forms. While most interactions are already online, ASIC will progressively transition remaining paper-only documents to email to reduce red tape, with postal lodgement still available: ASIC

The gender pay gap has narrowed slightly to 21.1 per cent, according to WGEA’s latest scorecard. That means women still earn just 78.9 cents for every dollar men make, a yearly difference of $28,356. Leadership gaps are also widening, with male CEOs now out-earning female CEOs by $185,335 once bonuses are counted. WGEA says progress is “modest”: TDA

The High Court has agreed to hear a case brought by two 15-year-olds against the Albo Government over its social media ban for under-16s. Backed by the Digital Freedom Project, they argue the laws trample the implied freedom of political communication and block teens from engaging in public debate. The challenge will be heard as a “special case” early next year — but the ban still kicks in on 10 Dec: ABC News

Steadfast: is suddenly the rumour mill’s favourite, with Blackstone said to be weighing a bid at the insurance broker as its share price lags and premium growth softens. A deal wouldn’t be cheap, with a 30% premium putting the tag north of $7bn: The Australian

BGH Capital: is circling daycare business TheirCare, locking in exclusivity on a ~$200m play for the provider that pulls in $15m a year. It comes as BGH juggles a fresh Webjet bid and pockets $1bn from its CyberCX exit: AFR

Rio Tinto will offload up to $15.1bn in assets and slash $6bn in decarb spend as new boss Simon Trott pushes to make the miner “stronger, sharper and simpler”. Non-core units like titanium dioxide and borates are on the chopping block, with Rio leaning more on third parties as it keeps emissions targets but cuts climate capex: AFR

Santos’ GLNG venture is offering late-hour concessions to stave off tougher export controls. It has offered to slash domestic gas purchases, lean on its own reserves, and even cut LNG export volumes to free up fuel for east coast buyers. The move comes as Canberra gets ready to unveil a gas reservation system: AFR

Bendigo & Adelaide Bank has snapped up RACQ’s banking assets for up to $200m, picking up $2.5bn in deposits at a lower cost than its own book. The deal boosts its Queensland footprint and is immediately ROE-accretive, easing lending pressure as competition for deposits intensifies: The Australian

ANZ is staring down a second strike. Proxy giants ISS and Glass Lewis are urging investors to vote against its pay report despite executives losing $32m in bonuses. Ex-CEO Shayne Elliott kept almost $8m in long-term incentives, a sticking point for critics. New boss Nuno Matos has forgone his bonus, but the AGM is shaping up as a test of investor patience: The Australian

H&M Australia is facing a $35m underpayment provision as Fair Work probes alleged wage shortfalls affecting up to 1,500 staff. The retailer’s profits remain thin, with sales slipping to $340m. Amid a crowded value-fashion market, the Swedish giant is shrinking its Aussie footprint while cleaning up a nine-year wage mess: The Australian

NSW’s construction pipeline has jumped to $42bn, almost double Queensland’s, as data centres trigger a commercial build-out not seen in 18 months. Projects in concept or design have surged 48% to $28.1bn. With AI demand soaring, NSW has firmly become Australia’s digital-infrastructure engine room: AFR

Uber has secured special leave to appeal an NSW ruling that slapped it with $81.5m in payroll tax, after judges found driver payments counted as wages. Uber had argued it was merely a collection agent for drivers, but the Court of Appeal disagreed. The High Court appeal now gives the rideshare giant one last shot to overturn a decision that could reshape gig-economy tax rules: Capital Brief

NextDC has teamed up with OpenAI to plan a hyperscale AI campus and GPU supercluster for its 650MW Eastern Creek data centre. The build could top $7.6bn per facility, and will be the largest in the southern hemisphere. With OpenAI guaranteeing a hefty slice of capacity, NextDC’s $15bn funding hunt gets a major boost as Canberra pushes to lure investment: AFR