The action centres on the £637m acquisition of UK company Quindell’s professional services division, which was partly funded by a capital raising from existing Slater and Gordon shareholders.

Melbourne-based Maurice Blackburn says that the deal called into question Slater & Gordon’s due diligence process and claims that shareholders were not given accurate information about the risks involved in the acquisition and the true state of Quindell’s finances.

‘Significant’ compensation

The firm says that shareholders saw their investments lose 95 per cent in value between April 2015 and February 2016 and as such the compensation sought is expected to be of ‘very significant magnitude’.

In a statement to the stock market, Slater and Gordon said it has yet to be served with the claim from Maurice Blackburn.

Mounting class actions

Meanwhile, Sydney-based ACA Lawyers, which announced a potential class action against Slater and Gordon last December, says it should be in a position to commence formal ‘over the next four to six weeks’.

Source: Law Society Gazette