Disputes/Contract: The Supreme Court of NSW has defused a dispute over an alleged $100m drafting mistake in FX Group Holdings v Perpetual, arising from a private equity exit funded by vendor finance. The deal was meant to work simply: the buyer would repay about $150m in vendor loans from dividends, then share any “super returns” above $25m with the vendors for a set period. But a clumsily drafted definition of “Equity Proceeds” arguably let the buyer deduct the vendor loan twice before sharing profits, wiping out what the vendors said was roughly $100m in upside. The Court rejected that construction, holding it cut across the commercial deal and the Heads of Agreement. Rees J also made clear that, if needed, the contract would have been rectified for unilateral mistake: HSF Kramer

Merger laws: ACCC has quietly updated its merger reform FAQs, adding practical colour on how notification waivers actually work under the new regime. The guidance drills into which deals are suitable for a waiver, what parties should expect once an application is lodged, and what the ACCC says is working well so far, including clearer deal rationales and tighter submissions. There’s also sharper direction on how to identify and handle confidential information in both notifications and waiver requests: ACCC

Employment: The Victorian Government has backed sweeping workplace surveillance reforms, throwing support behind 15 of 18 recommendations from Parliament’s inquiry into modern monitoring practices. Employers will likely need to justify surveillance as reasonable and proportionate, consult workers in advance, maintain dedicated surveillance policies, tighten data security, and rein in covert and AI-driven monitoring. Tools like keystroke tracking, biometrics and remote monitoring are firmly in the firing line. While the detail, timing and legislative vehicle are still up in the air, this isn’t a wait-and-see moment. Employers with a Victorian footprint should audit current surveillance practices, stress-test justifications, and brace for higher compliance costs, greater IR friction, and tougher scrutiny of tech vendors and data handling arrangements: Corrs

Privacy / IP: The Productivity Commission has dropped a reform-heavy blueprint that could rewire privacy, AI and data regulation in Australia. The headline is bold: scrap the Australian Privacy Principles and replace them with a single “fair and reasonable” outcomes-based duty, shifting responsibility squarely onto organisations, not individuals. On AI, the Commission warns against rushing into bespoke laws, backing regulation through existing frameworks first, with AI-specific rules a last resort. Copyright reform is kicked down the road, with a 3-year watching brief before any review. Basically, sweeping change is on the table, and advisers should be stress-testing privacy, AI governance and reporting systems now: KWM

Disputes / Settlements: The Supreme Court of Victoria has made clear that prior settlements still matter, even in historical claims. A former student who had already taken $107k net under a release deed saw that amount offset against a later jury award, with the Court warning that anything else would amount to double compensation. Then, after rejecting two defence offers of compromise that beat the jury verdict, the plaintiff was hit with indemnity costs, despite arguing the sensitive nature of the case. Bourke J was unmoved, noting this was simply a gamble that didn’t pay off. The practical takeaway is blunt: earlier settlements will be credited, and plaintiffs who roll the dice past reasonable offers risk losing badly on costs: Barry Nilsson