Matthew Peckham

Federal Court – ASIC proceeding – unlicensed personal financial advice / misleading and deceptive conduct / unconscionable conduct / civil penalties – acting for a defendant licensee engaged in market making and the issue of OTC derivatives (led by Hamish Austin QC, instructed by Mills Oakley);

Federal Court – ASIC proceeding – financial advice obligations / civil penalties – acting for the defendant in the penalty phase of the first proceeding under the Future of Financial Advice laws: ASIC v Golden Financial Group Pty Ltd (formerly NSG Services Pty Ltd) (No 2) [2017] FCA 1267 (led by Jonathon Moore QC, instructed by Mills Oakley);

ASIC banning orders – financial advice – advising and assisting ASIC in relation to the administrative banning of individual financial advisers, in matters involving breaches of the best interest duties and fees for no service (instructed by ASIC);

ASIC examinations (and similar) – breaches of financial services laws / insider trading / market manipulation – examining persons of interest in regulatory investigations, including directors, fund managers, traders and compliance personnel (while in-house at ASIC and the FSA).

Federal Court – ATO proceeding – early release of superannuation funds / civil penalties – acting for the defendant in the first civil penalty proceeding brought by the ATO regarding the alleged promotion of an illegal early release scheme, under s 68B of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 (Vic) – ongoing;

Supreme Court – restitution / breach of contract / misleading or deceptive conduct – acting for institutional superannuation trustee, claim against fund administrator for recovery of overcharged fees – ongoing (led by Jonathon Moore QC, instructed by Maddocks).

Supreme Court – shareholder oppression / directors’ duties – numerous matters (instructors including Hall & Wilcox, Macpherson Kelley, Mills Oakley, Law Squared, Adams Maguire Sier, Saines Lucas, TSM Advisory);

County Court – insolvent trading – acting for the plaintiff liquidators – resolved (instructed by Law Squared);

County Court – examination of judgment debtor – where the judgment debtor was a convicted fraud (instructed by the VGSO);

Magistrates’ Court – recovery of unfair preferences – acting for the defendant, three-day hearing with expert and lay evidence (instructed by Maddocks);

ASIC examinations (and similar) – examining persons of interest regarding related party transactions, unregistered managed investments schemes, and breaches of directors’ duties (while in-house at ASIC).

Federal Court – cross-border subpoena / confidentiality / offshore corporations – Kraft Foods Group Brands LLC v Bega Cheese Ltd (Nos 3, 4 and 7) [2018] FCA 1023; [2018] FCA 1055; [2018] FCA 1507 (led by Ed Heerey QC, instructed by Clifford Chance);

County Court – security for costs – successfully resisting an application for ~$500,000 in security in a matter listed for a 20-day trial (instructed by De Garis Lawyers);

VCAT – breach of contract / misleading or deceptive conduct – acting for the successful party at trial:  Parkhill Industries Pty Ltd v Lui (Civil Claims List) [2017] VCAT 1459 (instructed by Maddocks);

VCAT – debt for professional services – acting for the successful party at trial: Commercial Resolutions (Aust) Pty Ltd v K-Line Mobile Mechanics Pty Ltd (Civil Claims List) [2017] VCAT 916 (instructed by Geoff Dillon & Co).

Federal Court – ex parte regulatory injunction – successfully obtaining an ex parte injunction under the Fuel Quality Standards Act 2000 (Cth) on behalf of the Minister for the Environment, to prevent the supply of unsafe fuel;

Supreme Court – freezing order – successfully resisting the continuation of a freezing order, in the context of a dispute between shareholders (instructed by Law Squared);

VCAT – interlocutory injunction – successful injunction application concerning the owners corporation of a major apartment complex (instructed by Mills Oakley).

Advice – breaches of the National Electricity Rules – advising the Australian Energy Regulator in relation to an ongoing investigation (led by Andrew McClelland QC and Tom Clarke, instructed by the AGS);

Australian Competition Tribunal – limited merits review – written submissions on behalf of Energy Consumers Australia in a limited merits review proceeding under the National Electricity and Gas Laws: Application by ActewAGL Distribution [2017] ACompT 2 (instructed by Maddocks);

Advice – national and State energy regimes – advising the Australian Energy Regulator, the Essential Services Commission (Vic), Energy Consumers Australia and private businesses in relation to energy disputes and regulatory matters;

Advice – competition law and anti-corruption – advising a German multinational (instructed by GPS Legal, Hong Kong);

Advice – competition law, privacy and secret commissions – advising a health industry body (instructed by Maddocks).

Full Federal Court – judicial review / migration: DED16 v Minister for Home Affairs [2019] FCAFC 18 (with David Yarrow, instructed by the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre); 

Federal Court – judicial review / enforcement powers – acting for the Minister for the Environment and Energy in resisting a challenge to enforcement powers under the Fuel Quality Standards Act 2000 (Cth) – opposed to a QC – resolved (instructed by Maddocks);

Supreme Court – judicial review / stay application – successfully resisting an application for an interlocutory stay on a decision by VicRoads: Marijancevic v Roads Corporation [2014] VSC 339 (appearing as solicitor-advocate);

Supreme Court – judicial review  / criminal procedure – acting for VicRoads, resisting the review of a decision of the County Court in a criminal prosecution – ongoing (instructed by Minter Ellison);

Federal Circuit Court – judicial review / migration: DED16 v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection [2018] FCCA 3074 (instructed by the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre).

AAT – vocational education – acting for a substantial RTO and CRICOS provider in challenging a decision by ASQA, successfully obtaining an unconditional interlocutory stay on a decision to cancel registration and prohibit future enrolments (led by Rob Heath QC, instructed by Maddocks);

VCAT – occupational licensing – Racing Act 1958 (Vic) – acting for a prominent racing journalist, successfully argued that a media pass issued by Racing Victoria was an 'occupational racing licence', and subject to the Tribunal’s review jurisdiction: Bartley v Racing Victoria Ltd (Review & Regulation List) [2019] VCAT 949 (instructed by Geoff Dillon & Co);

Magistrates’ Court – occupational licensing – Road Safety Act 1986 (Vic) – acting for VicRoads in a three-day merits review hearing, with complex medical evidence (instructed by Minter Ellison).

Wood v Astra Resources Ltd [2016] FCA 1192 – acting for foreign liquidators in relation to cross-border insolvency issues (with Ian Thomas as counsel).

ASIC v Astra Resources Ltd (No 2) [2016] FCA 560 - acting for foreign liquidators of an English company, in civil penalty proceedings brought by ASIC against the company in liquidation (with Ian Thomas as counsel).

Beachley Street Pty Ltd v Commonwealth & Ors (2016) Supreme Court - acting for the Commonwealth in a complex multi-party dispute concerning liability for environmental contamination at a former Commonwealth industrial facility (with Tom Howe QC as counsel, settled).

Substantial executive fraud (2016) Supreme Court – leading a covert investigation  in relation to a substantial executive fraud, and successfully obtaining freezing orders (with Andrew Tragardh as counsel).

Investigation regarding 21st Century ‘land banking’ schemes (2015) – leading the initial stages of a major ASIC investigation into unregistered managed investment schemes.

ASIC v Avestra Asset Management Ltd (2015) Federal Court - leading an ASIC investigation against a licensed operator of managed investment schemes, obtaining orders for the appointment of provisional liquidators (with Jonathon Moore QC and Tom Clarke as counsel).

Marijancevic v Roads Corporation [2014] VSC 339; [2015] VSC 240; [2016] VSCA 181 – successfully defending judicial review proceedings brought against VicRoads in the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal (with Nick Wood as counsel).

Keddel v Roads Corporation (2014) Magistrates Court - merits review under the Road Safety Act, concerning fitness to drive issues after epileptic seizure causing an accident (with Sarala Fitzgerald as counsel).

JSRM v Tertiary Education Quality Standards Agency (2014) AAT – acting for a registered higher education provider in a merits review challenging the cancellation of its registration (with Helen Symon QC, Haroon Hassan and Angel Aleksov as counsel, settled).

Kastrinakis v ACPA [2013] FCA 995 - successful judicial review proceeding against the Australian Community Pharmacy Authority (with Suresh Senathirajah as counsel).

In the matter of FEA Plantations Ltd (subject to DOCA) (receivers appointed) [2013] FCA 1331 – application for winding up of forestry managed investment schemes (with Philip Crutchfield QC and Oren Bigos as counsel).

Forest Enterprises Australia Ltd (subject to DOCA) (receivers and managers appointed) v Tasmanian Plantation Ltd (subject to DOCA) (controllers appointed) & Ors (2013) Supreme Court - acting for receivers of an operator of forestry managed investment schemes, in a proceeding against a class of several thousand scheme members regarding the termination of leasing arrangements and forestry rights (with Philip Crutchfield QC and Oren Bigos as counsel, settled).

Burdett-Baker, in the matter of AFS Group Ltd (in liquidation) v National Australia Bank Ltd & Anor [2013] FCA 799 – application by liquidator for directions regarding determination of third party rights (with Ed Moon and Catherine Gobbo as counsel).

Advising a superannuation administrator in respect of complex liability and insurance issues arising from a major failure in its IT system, affecting thousands of members (2013).

Operation Saturn – R v Mustafa and Ors (2012) – working on the UK’s largest ever successful insider trading prosecution (with Michael Bowes QC and Gillian Jones as counsel).

Casey v State Trustees Ltd (2010) Federal Court - defending an investor class action brought by ASIC in relation to the collapse of the Westpoint Group, bringing 26 third party claims (with Robin Brett QC and Greg Ahern as counsel, settled).

Barber v Kylow Pty Ltd & Ors (2010) Supreme Court of NSW - acting for a German bicycle producer in a cross-border product liability claim, where the plaintiff suffered catastrophic brain damage and our client had contribution claims against parts suppliers and manufacturers in Taiwan (with James Sheller as counsel).