Lawyers admission revoked, name struck from roll for dishonesty – 31 October 2025
A lawyer practising in the Law Society of the Northern Territory jurisdiction had her admission to the legal profession revoked, and her name struck from the roll of legal practitioners, because she breached her duty of candour. The Court found Patricia May Petersen lacked the “character, competence and temperament” to be admitted.
NSW mental health nurse disqualified after intimate relationship with patient – 1 November 2025
A former southern NSW mental health nurse has been found guilty of professional misconduct after taking a patient to an escape room and engaging in a years-long intimate relationship with him. The NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal heard Wagga Wagga Base Hospital nurse Dilnoor Kang should have been well aware of her patient’s vulnerability and that she exploited her position .The tribunal has disqualified Ms Kang from re-registering as a nurse for two years.
Big four consulting firms targeted by new Senate inquiry – 5 November 2025
The Australian Senate has launched a fresh inquiry into the major consulting firms focusing on how they provide services to government. This latest move comes amid growing concern about the structure, governance, transparency and influence of these firms in public work. There are concerns about large contracts awarded to them by the government and whether proper procurement, conflicts of interest and accountability frameworks are in place.
AI-tainted Deloitte report was worse than previously thought – 6 November 2025
The article highlights that the extent of the inaccuracies in the Deloitte AI report is broader than initially reported — e.g., multiple false or made-up references to academic work, and legal citations mis-attributed or entirely invented. The use of AI in drafting parts of the report raises significant questions about oversight: whether appropriate review, verification and validation were applied before publication. The errors go to the heart of credibility (legal, academic and governmental).
Strike off to come for solicitor who withdrew trust funds from criminal clients – 6 November 2025
A criminal-defence solicitor withdrew more than A$160,000 from a trust account without the knowledge or consent of her criminal-law clients. She has accepted a regulatory recommendation that her name be removed from the legal practitioners’ roll.
The funds were held in trust by her, and the withdrawals evidently breached the trust-account obligations and client trust.
Microsoft refund offer backfires – 6 November 2025
The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) alleges that Microsoft misled about the availability of a cheaper “Classic” plan (without Copilot). Microsoft sent emails and blog posts which claimed subscribers had to accept the higher-priced AI-enabled plan or cancel. The classic-plan option was allegedly only disclosed when someone began cancelling. In response, they offered refunds to eligible users who switched back to the non-AI “Classic” plan. Some subscribers reported technical glitches in the refund process: e.g., the link provided in the email led to the wrong plan (personal rather than family) or didn’t allow the switching as promised.
Eddie Obeid, Ian Macdonald and Moses Obeid appeal convictions over corrupt coal licence deal in High Court – 6 November 2025
Former NSW Labor ministers Eddie Obeid and Ian Macdonald, along with Obeid’s son Moses, are appealing their 2021 corruption convictions, arguing the case against them lacked detail. They were found guilty of using Macdonald’s ministerial role to help secure a lucrative coal exploration licence linked to Obeid family land. The High Court will decide whether the convictions against them stand in a ruling that could close the long-running legal saga.
Australian regulator flags risks to retirement saving from advice on self-managed funds – 7 November 2025
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) reviewed 100 cases of advice given to Australian clients regarding establishment of self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs). Of those 100 cases, 27 involved advice that ASIC deemed could pose “serious harm” to clients’ retirement savings. Reuters. Further, in about 62 % of the files (i.e., 62 of 100) the advice did not meet the legal duty to act in the client’s best interests.
Former NAB employee charged over alleged role in ‘highly sophisticated’ $200m fraud, money laundering syndicate – 7 November 2025
A former NAB employee, Timotius “Donny” Sungkar (36), has been charged over his alleged role in a criminal group dubbed the “Penthouse Syndicate”, which is suspected of committing large-scale fraud and money-laundering. Police allege that Sungkar used his position at NAB to facilitate fraudulent business loans (around A$10 million in one part of the scheme) and that the overall fraud by the syndicate may be “well over A$200 million” and could reach up to A$250 million.
