Asia: Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration

The New South Wales Court of Appeal examined whether a $50,000 award for future economic loss to a minor injured in a café accident met the evidentiary requirements of the Civil Liability Act 2002. The decision clarifies the stringent standards courts must apply when assessing damages for children, particularly regarding assumptions about future earning capacity and the need for concrete evidence rather than mere possibilities.

An NCAT decision demonstrates how chronic maintenance failures by owners corporations can result in substantial costs orders, even without damages awards. The case clarifies when lot owners can be quarantined from contributing to legal costs and establishes clear responsibilities for identifying and delineating repair obligations in strata schemes.

Commercial disputes can have significant financial and operational consequences for businesses. Pre-litigation advisory involves evaluating a potential dispute before formal legal proceedings are initiated, helping clarify the legal position, assess available remedies, preserve evidence, evaluate commercial risks and determine whether litigation is the most appropriate course of action.

When equipment is hired out but later damaged, hire businesses face a familiar challenge: who says the equipment wasn’t already faulty, who bears the risk, and can the hirer recover the cost of repair? The NSW Supreme Court’s decision in Civiltrak Sydney Pty Ltd v Orange Equipment Pty Ltd t/as Orange Hire offers valuable guidance to solving this puzzle.

Reputation is the essence of an individual’s standing within the community. A person’s goodwill or repute can significantly affect their personal relationships, business prospects, employment opportunities, and overall engagement in society. Damage to reputation, whether through written or spoken statements, can therefore have serious and lasting consequences.

Workplace messages sent through private chat platforms like WhatsApp, Teams, or Slack can give rise to defamation claims in Queensland if they communicate harmful statements about someone's reputation to even a small group of colleagues. Understanding when internal workplace communications cross the line into defamation, what defences are available, and the potential legal consequences for both individuals and employers is crucial for anyone using digital communication in professional settings.

Australian class action risk is no longer shaped primarily by domestic precedent. Overseas litigation, regulatory action and global funding dynamics increasingly operate as leading indicators – setting the direction, timing and form of claims that later emerge in Australia.

In this episode of Inside Employment, Natalie Gaspar and Lucy Boyd are joined by HSF Kramer Disputes Partner, Melissa Gladstone to explore the rise of employment class actions in Australia...

The Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia recently dismissed an appeal in Nuix Limited v Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Company [2026] FCAFC 87 and found that the larger of two retentions applied when considering aggregation of coverage under the insured’s policies.

In the landmark ruling of Dish Media Network Limited vs. Revenue Tribunal Kathmandu et al. Writ No. 080-WO-0380, January 18, 2024 (2080/10/05 B.S.) (“Dish Home Case,”) the division bench of the Supreme Court of Nepal established a vital precedent bridging the gap between special tax statutes and general civil procedures. The bench, comprising Honorable Justices Dr. Manoj Kumar Sharma and Mahesh Sharma Paudel, ruled on whether administrative tax deadlines can completely bar a company’s access to justice during a medical crisis.

The Bombay High Court has ruled on whether stamp duty can be refunded when a Development Agreement is cancelled before achieving its purpose, addressing critical questions about the interpretation of possession clauses and limitation periods under the Maharashtra Stamp Act. The judgment clarifies the distinction between substantive entitlement to refund under Section 47 and procedural time limits under Section 48, while examining how contractual licence provisions should be read in context with possession c

The Supreme Court of India has definitively ruled that a tenant cannot avoid eviction under the Delhi Rent Control Act simply because possession transferred to another entity through...