An historic success by Commonwealth Bank in a shareholder class action last year will stand, following the dismissal of appeals on behalf of shareholders into two representative actions.
The two class actions centred on CommBank’s failure to make appropriate disclosures to AUSTRAC over failings by the bank around its obligations under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act.
In May 2014, the Federal Court dismissed the proceedings, which had turned on CBA’s obligations under the continuous disclosure provisions of the Corporations Act and ASX Listing Rules.
The Full Federal Court found several technical errors in aspects of the lower court’s reasoning and conclusions, but held that the appeals “are to be dismissed.”
CBA said: “While the Full Court found certain contraventions of the continuous disclosure regime in April 2017, the appellants did not prove any loss and there is no award of damages.”