ASIC alleges systemic breach failures by Mercer

KordaMentha in court over information barrier

AI cases mislead Vic murder hearing

Mercer is back in ASIC’s firing line. The regulator has launched Federal Court proceedings against Mercer Super, alleging systemic breaches of the reportable situations regime between 2021 to 2024. ASIC says Mercer failed to report 7 investigations, including incorrect insurance premium refunds for deceased members, member accounts not being opened with default insurance, and not processing members’ updates. To make matters worse, it also says Mercer provided false or misleading information to ASIC on the number of members affected. Deputy Chair Sarah Court says the case reflects a “longstanding and systemic failure” and follows similar actions against AustralianSuper and Cbus. ASIC is seeking declarations and penalties: ASIC

The District Court has awarded significant damages to a former police officer for workplace psychiatric injury — $953k to be exact. The Court found that the workplace bullying and harassment materially contributed to the injury. The officer alleged his supervisor, DI Duncan, singled him out after a speeding incident, restricting workplace interactions, flexible rosters and medical appointments. The Court found the State owed a duty to guard against foreseeable psychiatric harm. Bullying in the course of supervision was held negligent, materially exacerbating the officer’s PTSD and depression. Damages covered past/future economic loss and superannuation under the NSW Workers Comp Act.

In a highly anticipated 4–3 decision, the High Court has sided with PepsiCo in its long-running embedded royalty dispute with the Commissioner of Taxation. The Court held that payments from Schweppes under bottling agreements for Pepsi and Mountain Dew were for concentrate only, not royalties for IP use, so no royalty withholding tax or diverted profits tax applied. The majority clarified contractual interpretation principles and how the ‘alternative postulate’ is applied under Australia’s GAAR provisions, with implications well beyond intangibles. The ATO is expected to keep scrutinising intangible arrangements, particularly around software and IP licensing: Corrs

Sydney litigators - our sincerest condolences for being forced to queue outside the Supreme Court. Apparently, the asbestos removal lift works at the Court are dragging into their 4th month, halving lift capacity, delaying hearings and admissions ceremonies. Judges get their own lift - goes without saying, really. Meanwhile, everyone else has the pleasure of partaking in more small talk with barristers and clients: AFR

A&O Shearman is making more Aussie moves, snagging Catherine Pedler from Ashurst, where she led the Perth disputes team. A heavyweight in commercial litigation, insolvency and regulatory fights, Pedler brings cross-sector clout across mining, agri and fin services: A&O Shearman

Maurice Blackburn is hoping to cash in on class actions. The firm asked the Vic Supreme Court for a 33% cut in a class action against Sportsbet, arguing that the “idea of a law firm doing well” is inherent in contingency fee schemes. Recent wins on 35% rates suggest law firm fees are creeping up with growing litigation risk: Lawyerly

KordaMentha sued over Cleanaway deal. PKF, liquidators of collapsed recycler SKM, are suing KordaMentha, Cleanaway, and Mark Korda personally, alleging KordaMentha misused confidential info from a CBA review to help Cleanaway nab SKM’s assets. The suit claims no info barriers were in place when the firm pitched the deal via its arm 333 Capital. All parties deny wrongdoing and are gearing up for a fight: AFR

University of Technology Sydney has paused enrolments in 146 courses and plans to cut 400 jobs to save $100m, sparking outrage among staff. Anger grew after workers were directed to a wellbeing list suggesting they “wash delicates” or “brush and floss” to manage stress. Sound advice - can’t think of any better way to manage stress. The NTEU says the advice trivialises serious psychological harm as SafeWork investigates the restructure’s impact: ABC News

AI hallucination horror stories are becoming a tale as old as time. A Vic Supreme Court judge has slammed lawyers for a teen accused of murder after they filed AI-generated submissions riddled with fake cases and laws. Yikes. Defence and prosecution both missed the errors, prompting multiple apologies. Justice Elliott warned that unchecked AI risks undermining justice: The Guardian

The Albanese government is weighing reforms that would compel Google, Meta, OpenAI and others to disclose the content used to train their AI models, making it easier for Australian creators to enforce copyright. Attorney-General Michelle Rowland is also considering a faster, cheaper compensation process for small rights holders, despite tech firms warning transparency rules could expose trade secrets: AFR

Ampol is shelling out $1.1bn for EG Group’s Aussie servo network, snapping up ~500 sites to match rival Viva Energy’s 1,300-strong footprint. Funded via $800m debt and $250m in shares, the deal promises up to $80m in cost synergies, with ~20 sites to be offloaded to appease the ACCC. HSF Kramer is acting for Ampol: AFR

APAC mid-market M&A volumes edged up 3.9% in FY25 to 10,074 deals, with median deal size jumping 12.3% to $25m, per Moore Australia. IT led at 23% of total value, fuelled by software plays, while transport valuation multiples doubled to 11.4x. Australia drew 467 inbound deals, up 4.7%, cementing its spot as a top target for foreign buyers: Accountants Daily

Trump administration is in talks to take a stake in Intel, following a meeting between Trump and CEO Lip-Bu Tan. Any deal could support Intel’s US$28bn Ohio chip complex, now delayed to 2030–31. Intel shares jumped 10.5% on the news, valuing the company at US$104.4bn: Bloomberg

WA1 Resources is raising $100m via an insto placement at $17 a share (12.1% discount) to fund development of its Luni niobium project in WA’s West Arunta, plus exploration and permitting. The miner, now worth $1.3bn, up from $9m 3 years ago, has seen shares jump 45% this year. Go them: AFR

South32 may place its Mozal aluminium smelter on care and maintenance from March 2026, citing uncertainty over securing sufficient, affordable power after its supply deal with HCB and Eskom expires. CEO Graham Kerr says current tariffs would make Mozal uncompetitive. The miner will book a $372m impairment, cutting the asset’s value to $68m: Mining Weekly

ASX has halved its short-term exec bonus pool after a first strike on pay and ongoing ASIC inquiries, with some risk-related roles reduced to zero. CEO Helen Lofthouse will forgo her $850k bonus, while CFO Andrew Tobin’s drops to $140k from $336k. Despite cuts, total exec pay still rose to $4.87m from $4.5m: Capital Brief

CBA has raised $5bn in senior bonds after attracting a record $13.2bn order book—the biggest in Australian credit history. The 3.25-year notes had a 3.96% yield, and the 5-year notes had a 4.23% yield. Demand was fuelled by surplus liquidity and a hunt for safe yields post-RBA rate cut and CBA’s $10.25bn cash profit result: The Australian

Australia’s build-to-rent sector has surged past $30bn, with 39,300 apartments operating, under construction or planned across 113 projects, according to BDO. Victoria leads with nearly 20,000 units, ahead of NSW (~12,000) and Queensland (~6,000). Developers like Gurner Group, Greystar and Mirvac warn supply is still constrained by red tape and inconsistent tax settings despite recent government incentives: AFR

Speaking of which, Mirvac is in talks with Doltone House to anchor a major function centre at its Harbourside redevelopment in Sydney’s Darling Harbour, as it courts Mitsubishi Estate Asia as capital partner. MEA is tipped to join the mixed-use project, which also features luxury apartments, retail and offices: The Australian

Telstra’s postpaid mobile base fell to 8.88 million as customers traded down to cheaper plans after July price hikes, clouding earnings despite a 31% profit jump to $2.34bn and a new $1bn buyback. CEO Vicki Brady called the shift “stark”, with churn up to 13.3%: AFR

Blackbird Ventures is set for the first close of its sixth fund in late September, targeting $700m+ to back the next wave of tech start-ups. The VC giant, behind Canva, SafetyCulture and Airwallex, raised a record $1bn in 2022 and has backed 150+ companies since 2012, with four unicorns and 23 valued over $100m.