OJT S2 E12 - Complexity, class actions and the future of litigation with the Honourable Justice Michael Wigney, Federal Court of Australia

In this episode, partners Jason Betts and Anna Sutherland speak with the Honourable Justice Wigney of the Federal Court of Australia, one of Australia's most experienced judges in complex commercial litigation and representative proceedings, about the growing complexity of modern litigation and its implications for courts, practitioners and clients. They discuss the rise of sprawling commercial cases, the challenges of electronic trials and vast volumes of evidence, and what judges find most effective in written and oral advocacy. The conversation also explores the use of expert evidence, the scrutiny of class action settlements, litigation funding and legal costs, before concluding with Justice Wigney's perspectives on the opportunities and limitations of AI in legal practice.

This is the 39th episode of our series of commercial litigation update podcasts. In this episode we discuss an interesting decision on privilege and company directors, some important client resources on ADR and a couple of significant contract law decisions, on termination and the recovery of loss-of-bargain damages and force majeure. This episode is hosted by Maura McIntosh, a knowledge counsel in our commercial litigation team, who is joined by Alexander Oddy, a disputes partner, and James Robson, an of counsel in our disputes team. Below you can find links to our blog posts on some of the developments and cases covered in this podcast. • New third edition of our leading textbook Class Actions in England and Wales https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/litigation/2026-09/new-third-edition-of-our-leading-textbook-class-actions-in-england-and-wales • Creation of new Business and Property Division of the High Court announced https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/litigation/2026-06/creation-of-new-business-and-property-division-of-the-high-court-announced • High Court decision underlines need for investor-appointed directors to think carefully before disclosing the company's privileged material https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/litigation/2026-08/high-court-decision-underlines-need-for-investor-appointed-directors-to-think-carefully-before-disclosing-the-companys-privileged-material • Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer relaunches ADR Practical Guides and Conflict Management Toolkit https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/adr/2026-posts/herbert-smith-freehills-kramer-relaunches-adr-practical-guides-and-conflict-management-toolkit • Supreme Court confirms award of loss of bargain damages following termination for non-repudiatory breach under express contractual provision https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/litigation/2026-08/supreme-court-confirms-award-of-loss-of-bargain-damages-following-termination-for-non-repudiatory-breach-under-express-contractual-provision • High Court clarifies meaning of “unforeseeable” in force majeure clause https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/litigation/2026-08/high-court-clarifies-meaning-of-unforeseeable-in-force-majeure-clause Link to episode transcript: https://marketing.hsfkramer.com/20/36058/landing-pages/commercial-litigation-podcast-ep39-transcript.pdf

In this episode of Inside Employment, Tony Wood, Natalie Gaspar and Lucy Boyd unpack the Federal Government’s proposed reforms to non-compete and restraint of trade laws, recently released in exposure draft form. The proposed changes would significantly reshape the use and enforceability of non-compete and non-solicitation clauses across Australia. Tony, Natalie and Lucy discuss the key elements of the proposed reforms, including the ban on non-competes for employees below the high-income threshold, the prohibition on employee non-solicitation clauses, the new enforcement framework for higher income earners, and what the changes could mean for employers and workforce mobility. With consultation now underway, this episode provides a timely overview of one of the most significant proposed changes to Australian employment law in recent years.

In this episode David Beck, Casey Ballard and Uchi Jayawardhena tackle one of the biggest barriers to successful AI adoption: poor data foundations. They explore why data disorganisation, fragmentation and inconsistent governance continue to undermine business processes, long before GenAI enters the picture. With each speaker coming at the problem from a slightly different angle, they examine why even the most advanced technology cannot compensate for poor-quality data. They discuss the myths that hold organisations back, the risks of relying on technology to solve underlying data issues, and the practical steps businesses can take to move from data chaos to data clarity. The episode highlights how strong data foundations enable better decision-making, lower risk, more effective technology adoption and more reliable AI outcomes. Ultimately, the message is simple: if you want AI to deliver value, you need to start with the data.

In this episode of Tax Bites, Toby Eggleston and Mark Peters unpack the Victorian and New South Wales ISPT landholder-duty decisions. They examine how a staged acquisition of a widely held property trust produced a substantially higher duty liability than ISPT argued for. The discussion highlights why transaction sequencing, thresholds, entity status and jurisdiction-specific rules must be assessed together when structuring acquisitions of interests in landholding trusts and companies. More detail in our tax note here: https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/taxaustralia/2026-posts/decision-alert-prior-acquisition-in-a-public-landholder-not-disregarded-where-a-subsequent-acquisition-occurs

In this episode of On Just Terms partners Jason Betts and Melissa Gladstone speak with Professor Anthea Roberts, ANU Professor and leading scholar at the intersection of law, technology and global risk, about what it takes to work effectively with AI. They discuss why lawyers may be uniquely positioned to thrive in the AI era, how multi-agent AI systems can tackle complex interdisciplinary challenges, and the growing importance of AI literacy for knowledge workers. The conversation also explores Professor Roberts' Risk-Reward-Resilience framework and what organisations can do to build long-term adaptability in a rapidly changing world.

Recorded 22 June 2026 In Part 2 of our latest episode of Inside IR, industrial relations partner Rohan Doyle and Melbourne Business School Professor Jennifer Overbeck continue their discussion on the evolving enterprise bargaining landscape, exploring how employers, unions and employees can move beyond short-term, power-based bargaining and invest in negotiation processes that create sustainable value for all parties. They discuss practical approaches to navigating BATNAs, managing the threat of industrial action, building trust throughout the bargaining process, and communicating effectively with employees during negotiations. This episode forms part of our ongoing collaboration with Melbourne Business School through the Industrial Relations Negotiations Program, which equips leaders with the skills needed to negotiate more effectively in today's industrial relations environment. Registrations are closing soon. Learn more about the program and secure your place here: https://mbs.edu/hsfkramer.

In this episode, we continue our director series with part two of our cross examination of Catherine Brenner and John Mullen. In our last episode, we left you on a cliffhanger. We now pick up where we left off. We also discussed the value in good communications, the human factor in cyber incident response, a values-led approach as compared with a compliance-led approach, AI, of course, and board simulations. This is Cross-Examining Cyber. It's part of our director series, the cross-examination of Catherine Brenner and John Mullen, part two. Here we go.

In this edition of our banking litigation podcast, we consider some recent cases that will be most relevant to in-house lawyers at banks and financial institutions. This episode is hosted by John Corrie, a partner in our banking litigation team, who is joined by Ceri Morgan and special guest Alexander Gridasov. Speakers: John Corrie (Partner), Ceri Morgan (Knowledge Counsel), Alexander Gridasov (Senior Associate). You can find out more about the cases covered in this podcast on our blog at the following links: Court of Appeal finds no breach of so-called Quincecare duty in “derivative” action brought by APP fraud victims against PSP https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/bankinglitigation/2026-07/court-of-appeal-finds-no-breach-of-so-called-quincecare-duty-in-derivative-action-brought-by-app-fraud-victims-against-psp Banking litigation podcast episode 51: Quincecare special – March 2025 https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/bankinglitigation/2025-03/Banking-litigation-podcast-episode-51--Quincecare-special-%E2%80%93-March-2025 Court of Appeal finds administrator appointment arguably invalidated because of appointor’s improper purpose https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/bankinglitigation/2026-08/court-ofappeal-finds-administrator-appointment-arguably-invalidated-because-of-appointors-improper-purpose Multi-party claims: Court of Appeal upholds decision allowing over 5,000 motor finance claims to be brought together https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/bankinglitigation/2026-04/multi-party-claims-court-of-appeal-upholds-decision-allowing-over-5000-motor-finance-claims-to-be-brought-together All aboard the omnibus claim form? https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/bankinglitigation/2026-08/all-aboard-the-omnibus-claim-form High Court adjourns landmark securities class action trial due to risk of prejudice to overlapping criminal proceedings https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/bankinglitigation/2026-04/Blog-post-template-text-only-version High Court considers appropriate split for trial of s.90 and 90A FSMA claims in Entain litigation https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/bankinglitigation/2026-07/high-court-considers-appropriate-split-for-trial-of-s90-and-90a-fsma-claims-in-entain-litigation UK government consults on measures to speed up and simplify competition class actions regime https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/litigation/2026-07/uk-government-consults-on-measures-to-speed-up-and-simplify-competition-class-actions-regime Law Commission to consider introduction of opt-out consumer class actions regime https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/bankinglitigation/2026-04/law-commission-to-consider-introduction-of-opt-out-consumer-class-actions-regime

We are delighted to launch our new podcast series, Insuring AI, which explores the broad range of questions that AI is throwing up for the insurance world. In this first episode, we discuss the legal statement on liability for AI harms published by the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce (UKJT) in July 2026 and its implications for insurance liability claims. The statement seeks to address in what circumstances, and on what legal bases, English law will impose liability for loss that results from the use of AI. This episode is hosted by Greig Anderson, Partner in our Insurance & Professional Risks team, who is joined by Will Gibson, Senior Associate. For a summary of the UKJT's final legal statement, visit our blog post: https://www.hsfkramer.com/notes/litigation/2026-07/uk-jurisdiction-taskforce-publishes-final-legal-statement-on-liability-for-ai-harms