Thousands of Investors Consider $200M Class Action Suit Against CBA for Bad Financial Advice; Construction Firm Leighton Reaches $69.4M Class Action Settlement
Thousands of investors are considering filing a $200-million class action suit against Financial Wisdom, owned by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) because of alleged bad financial advice that cost them to lose their life savings.
Moneymanagement reported that compensation law firm Shine Lawyers disclosed the possible lawsuit after it was approached by some of the dissatisfied investors.
The law firm said about 3,000 invested placed their savings in CBA products through its subsidiaries Financial Wisdom, Commonwealth Financial Planning, Colonial Life Insurance, Comminsure and Colonial First State Investments.
Meanwhile, construction giant Leighton reached a $69.45-million settlement, The Australian reported on Friday.
The class action was linked to events in April 2011 when Leighton announced a possible $427 million annual loss which is the reverse of a $480 million profit.
Leighton shareholders charged the company of violating corporate law requirements that mandated the firm to inform the market of information that materially affects the company.
The announcement resulted in a 14 per cent decline in shareprice of the construction firm.
Law firm Maurice Blackburn, which handled the class action, said the early settlement "supports the strength of the litigants claim as well as the willingness on the part of Leighton to address the issue sensibly and responsibly."