Litigation Law, Mediation Law and Arbitration Law

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.

Victoria's planning enforcement regime has undergone significant transformation following the 2016 Corkman Irish Pub demolition scandal. The new legislative framework introduces unprecedented powers for courts and authorities, including commercial benefit orders, industry exclusion provisions, and civil penalties with lower burdens of proof. These reforms fundamentally reshape how planning violations are prosecuted and penalized across the state.

Obtaining a court judgment is only the first step in debt recovery. When a judgment debtor fails to pay voluntarily, Queensland law provides multiple enforcement mechanisms under the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules...

Licensed venues and their security contractors may face legal liability when patrons are injured by intoxicated or aggressive individuals. Understanding the duty of care owed by venue operators and security providers, and the evidence required to establish breach of that duty, is crucial for anyone who has suffered harm at such premises.

Music festivals are high-energy and chaotic events with thousands of people in attendance – often involving alcohol and illicit drugs. For years, many young people in New South Wales were taken into tents and portable cubicles at music festivals for strip searches, told to remove their clothing, and made to squat, bend or lift body parts while police looked on. This process is obviously extremely demeaning, and forces people into extremely uncomfortable positions at the demand of authorities.

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 Supreme Court of Victoria has authorised the Royal Children’s Hospital to administer a stem cell transplant to increase the likelihood of survival for a 15-year-old girl against the objections of both the child and her mother.

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.

Welcome to Litigation Notes, our litigation know-how update where you will find the latest developments on commercial litigation topics from HSF Kramer’s Australian practice.