Top ten class action predictions for 2020

The Australian class actions landscape is likely to see significant change in 2020, driven by the High Court's recent ruling that courts do not have power to make 'common fund orders' at an interlocutory stage of a proceeding and the likely introduction of legislation in Victoria allowing solicitors to charge contingency fees.

Corrs' class actions team has identified the ten developments it expects to see this year.

1. Expect to see funders focus more on book building and less on racing to court. While the High Court's decision in December 2019 confirmed that courts do not have power to make a common fund order (CFO) at an interlocutory stage of a proceeding, there is residual uncertainty as to whether courts can make a CFO at the settlement/judgment stage of a proceeding. While the Federal Court has indicated it is open to making a CFO in an appropriate case, the position in other jurisdictions is unclear. Until that uncertainty is resolved, we predict that funders