'5000 Documents' In Case Against Hardie
The Age
Friday April 25, 2008
THE corporate regulator's lawsuit against the 2001 board of James Hardie Industries could involve 55 witnesses and 5000 documents, NSW Supreme Court has been told.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission is suing 10 directors and executives for breaching duties of care when the company set up a grossly underfunded trust to handle compensation for sufferers of asbestos diseases. The chief judge in equity, Justice Peter Young, yesterday confirmed that the trial judge would be Justice Ian Gzell. The long list of witnesses is expected to include prominent Sydney corporate lawyers, which Justice Young has previously said might have prompted objections to any NSW Supreme Court judge with company law experience hearing the case. No party raised any objection to Justice Gzell, a tax specialist whom Justice Young praised for his "computer skills and commercial expertise". A central aspect of the case is Hardie's August 2001 assurance to the court that its imminent move to the Netherlands "will not affect the position regarding asbestos claims". ASIC's allegations also focus on a February 2001 statement to the ASX that the new compensation trust was "fully funded". The company was mired in a political scandal when it emerged in 2003 that the trust faced a large shortfall, now put at $1.4 billion. Last year Hardie signed an agreement with the NSW Government to fund the compensation regardless of legal liability. The directions hearing yesterday confirmed the scheduled starting date of September 29.
© 2008 The Age