Claims trends

Consumer claims once again accounted for the majority of claims filed in 2024, with car manufacturers continuing to be the target of claims, including Mercedes Benz1 and Isuzu,2 both alleged to have supplied vehicles that emitted excess pollutants. A number of claims were filed against the major supermarkets with respect to alleged misleading promotional pricing practices, following ACCC action.3

Other notable filings in 2024 relate to public interest actions brought against government defendants, who were named in more than 10 class actions in 2024, more than double the amount in 2023. The subject of the proceedings included:

  • alleged discriminatory practices in the removal of First Nations children
  • detention practices
  • alleged tax breaches, and
  • native title disputes.

More employment class actions were filed including a further claim relating to underpayment of junior doctors in Victoria.4 This follows victories in similar cases, including one in NSW that settled for $230 million earlier in the year, being the largest ever settlement approved in an underpayment claim.5

The number of new shareholder class actions continued to stagnate, which we discuss further below.

Unsurprisingly, the preferred jurisdiction for filing class actions continued to be the Victorian Registry of the Federal Court, followed by the NSW Registry of the Federal Court and the Supreme Court of Victoria.

[1] Krisoula El-Helou v Mercedes-Benz Australia/Pacific Pty Ltd & Ors

[2] Geoffrey Fisher & Anor v Isuzu Motors Limited

[3] Benjamin Glenn Demery v Coles Supermarkets Australia Pty Ltd; Robbie Leigh Whittome v Woolworths Group Ltd

[4] The Australian Salaried Medical Officers' Federation v Austin Health

[5] Amireh Fakhouri v The Secretary for The NSW Ministry of Health

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