Business Law Library & Tracker
Selected Business Law Cases
Short explainers for court decisions that change how Australian businesses handle contracts, staff, customers, IP and company duties.
Sources last reviewed 9 Nov 2026
Main law guides
297
Acts, regulations and codes worth reading first
Topics
22
Plain-English clusters
Published case explainers
519
Selected cases with a business lesson
Tracked updates
137
New, amended & reviewed
Plain-English explainers, not legal advice. Use the linked official source for section-level detail, and get advice for your situation.
Get legal helpTrue EV Distribution v Shenzhen Xiaopeng Motors
A commercial claim can be commercially real but still stall if the plaintiff cannot provide security for the other side's costs. Before starting major litigation,...
Trueline Kerbing SA Pty Ltd v Administrative Incentivised Management Systems Pty Ltd
Read this as a pleading decision, not a final liability ruling. The Court accepted the applicants’ allegations at face value only for the limited purpose of...
Turner v Chandler Macleod costs
The Fair Work jurisdiction is usually protective on costs, but it is not a free pass for hopeless relitigation. Settlement deeds and releases should be drafted...
Turner v Chandler Macleod Group
Employment settlements and releases need careful scope, records and advice notes. Once a worker has settled earlier employment, injury or entitlement claims, later...
Ugle v South West Aboriginal Medical Service
Company governance orders can affect what directors say to members before a meeting. If the company is in litigation, AGM communications, proxy procedures and...
Ugle v South West Aboriginal Medical Service
Member organisations and charities can face oppression orders when governance is used to entrench control or exclude dissent. Procedural fairness, valid expulsions,...
UIL (Singapore) Pte Ltd v Wollongong Coal Limited (No 4)
Treat written submissions in Federal Court litigation as potentially public-facing documents if they are going to be relied on in open court. This case draws an...
United Petroleum v Perth Airport
Future-looking statements in tenders, brochures and deal meetings need evidence. If a business is selling a commercial opportunity based on expected traffic,...
v2food patent opposition appeal
A patent opposition can turn on who actually carries evidence into court. If the opponent does not support its grounds on a fresh appeal, the patent applicant may...
Verma v Coles Supermarkets Australia
Employment disputes can be won or lost before the final hearing if the claims do not line up with the right tribunal steps, certificates and complaint history....
Vinall v Bank of Western Australia Limited trading as Bankwest (No 2)
If your business needs confidentiality in Federal Court litigation, treat it as a serious, evidence-based application from the start. This decision shows that the...
Vinall v Bankwest
Credit providers should treat hardship reporting as a controlled legal and customer process. If hardship information may be reported to a credit reporting body, the...
Wang v Creation Homes QLD
Construction disputes are won on the contract, payment notices, dates and records. AI-polished pleadings or dramatic allegations will not replace evidence about...
Watski v Roughstone
A lease assignment can block a business sale if landlord consent is not handled early. Tenants selling a business should check the lease, gather buyer and lender...
White, in the matter of Profounder Turfmaster
A liquidation can need external funding before creditors see any recovery. Where a liquidator wants to enter a funding agreement or legal retainer that will run for...
Wijaya v Matthews Brothers Engineering Pty Ltd
Business owners should read this case as a pleading decision, not as a broad approval of abrupt probationary dismissals. The Court did not decide that the...
Williams v Albarran
In a secured-property dispute, showing a serious legal question may not be enough. If a borrower wants to stop enforcement before trial, the Court will look hard at...
Winya v Chief Commissioner of State Revenue
Payroll tax grouping is fact-heavy. Shared investors, directors, services or business links can attract attention, but businesses may still need to show who really...
Woodhouse, in the matter of Forex Capital Trading
When a customer-facing financial business collapses, records, claim assessment processes and communication plans become the difference between an orderly...
Woori International Pty Ltd, in the matter of TJM Holdings Group Pty Ltd (In Liquidation) (No 2)
If your company is in liquidation and you want to challenge a winding-up order, a liquidator’s conduct, or the next procedural step, you need to act early and use...
Yang v Wong
Money routed through related companies may be commercially suspect, but the legal claim still has to fit the statute. Liquidators, assignees and creditors need to...
Yeo v J & K Cheung Investments
Selling business assets to a related party right before liquidation is high-risk, especially where tax debts, unpaid creditors and undervalue allegations are...
Yindjibarndi Ngurra Aboriginal Corporation RNTBC v State of Western Australia
Businesses should read this case as a warning not to collapse three different issues into one: getting tenure, negotiating commercial agreements, and managing...
Yura Yarta Services v Jones
Restraint and confidentiality cases are won or lost on precision. A business seeking urgent orders should identify the exact contract, the exact confidential...
Aaron Sansoni Group International Pty Ltd v Manti
The main lesson is operational discipline. If a court orders your business, an employee, or a related person to transfer a domain name, provide access to devices,...
Aaron Sansoni Group International Pty Ltd v Manti (No 3)
If your business is thinking about bringing a contempt application, do not assume that proving some breaches will lead to full cost recovery. This judgment shows...
Abbey Laboratories Pty Ltd v Virbac (Australia) Pty Ltd (No 2)
If your business receives a notice to produce, do not assume every request must be met without challenge. The party seeking documents needs to show a legitimate...
Abbey Laboratories Pty Ltd v Virbac (Australia) Pty Ltd (No 3)
If your business is preparing to launch a product that may sit close to a competitor’s patent, do not assume that filing revocation proceedings makes launch safe....
Abbey Laboratories Pty Ltd v Virbac (Australia) Pty Ltd (No 4)
If your business launches a product in the shadow of an existing patent, this case is a warning that post-judgment relief is likely to be narrow. The Court drew an...
ACN 168 479 614 Pty Ltd (formerly known as Steller Developments Pty Ltd (in liq) (Receivers & Managers appointed) v Smedley, in the matter of ACN 168 479 614 Pty Ltd (No 4)
If your business is thinking about suing on a deed, guarantee or similar commercial document, do not treat adverse costs as an afterthought. A failed claim can...
Advanta Seeds Pty Ltd v Nuseed Pty Ltd (Summary Judgment Costs)
The main lesson is to lock down your case theory early and keep it consistent across the pleading, witness evidence, technical documents and any contractual...
AHG WA (2015) Pty Ltd v Mercedes-Benz Australia/Pacific Pty Ltd
If your business is part of a franchise or dealer network, this case is a practical reminder to focus on the agreement before investing heavily in premises, fitout,...
Al Muderis v Nine Network Australia Pty Limited (Trial Judgment)
If your business, founder or senior professional is the subject of a media investigation, this case is a reminder that a defamation claim is not won simply by...
Alexiou v Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (Subpoena)
The main lesson is procedural discipline. If a key witness is unavailable, your business should treat that as a live risk from the start of the case, not as a...
Allotz.com Limited (in liquidation) v Galbally
If your business is in a Federal Court dispute, do not treat a notice to produce as an automatic shortcut to early evidence. This case shows the Court may refuse...
Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Ltd v Commissioner of Patents
If your business is considering patent protection for a software-enabled product, do not assume the answer turns on labels like "software", "AI" or...