Three decades of class action justice

Class actions have been holding organisations to account for 30 years now.

The Australian class actions regime was introduced in 1992, heralding in an era where it became much easier for individuals to take on big companies and authorities in the courts.

Thanks to class actions legislation it’s less David versus Goliath, said Andrew Watson, national head of class actions at Maurice Blackburn.

“Class actions provide access to justice by empowering groups of people who have been affected by a wrong, usually by a large corporate or a government, to band together and take on a large organisation in a way they couldn’t do individually,” he said.

Over the past three decades class actions have delivered billions of dollars in compensation to victims of mass wrongdoing – ranging from shareholders who are victims of corporate misconduct to those who suffer as a result of medical negligence.

Maurice Blackburn’s annual Corporate Conduct + Class Actions Symposium is returning in 2022. Photo: Getty

In recent years, compensation was secured for bushfire survivors, flood victims, youth held in detention centres, victims of the VW ‘dieselgate’ saga and for shareholders of major listed companies such as Crown Resorts, after its staff were arrested in China.

Corporate accountability has become increasingly important for Australians.

Shareholders are demanding improvements across a wide variety of fields from sustainability to social justice, which is pushing corporations to take a more proactive approach than ever before.

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards, also known as corporate social responsibility (CSR) measures, are now forming a major part of business strategy.

ESG teams plan and monitor company performance to reach better ethical standards and prevent any misconduct.

Class actions contribute to this push for better investment and corporate conduct standards, Mr Watson said.

“By enforcing laws and by holding corporations to account for their misbehaviour, class actions play a critical role in the justice system that is complementary to public enforcement,” he said.

“So there’s this recognised effect of class actions being a form of private regulation for corporate misbehaviour.”

Maurice Blackburn’s annual Corporate Conduct + Class Actions Symposium is returning in 2022.

Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus, who this month announced critical changes to restrictions on class actions proposed by the Morrison government, will speak at the symposium.

It will explore issues of corporate accountability, the interaction between public and private enforcement mechanisms and how the political landscape has impacted Australia’s class actions regime in recent years.

To attend the symposium, register now.