Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Westpac Banking Corporation (Omnibus) [2022] FCA 515

FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Westpac Banking Corporation (Omnibus) [2022] FCA 515 File numbers: VID 704 of 2021 VID 705 of 2021 VID 707 of 2021 NSD 1239 of 2021 NSD 1240 of 2021 NSD 1241 of 2021

Judgment of: BEACH J

Date of judgment: 22 April 2022

Catchwords: CORPORATIONS – provision of financial services – regulatory proceedings – six proceedings brought by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission – contraventions by Westpac Banking Corporation and its subsidiaries – numerous breaches of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) and Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 (Cth) – dealings with de-registered company accounts and funds held therein – charging of advice fees to accounts of deceased customers – charging of contribution fees with respect to investment or superannuation products without proper disclosure documents – improper provision and charging for duplicate insurance policies to customers – insurance policies issued without consent – false and misleading representations and misleading and deceptive representations concerning the sale to debt purchasers of customers' debts relating to Westpac-branded cards, Westpac-branded loans and St George-branded cards – improper deduction of insurance fees including commissions – conflicted remuneration – assessment of pecuniary penalties and other relief – financial services laws – breaches of Australian financial services licence – non-compliance with s 912A of the Corporations Act – contraventions of ss 12CB, 12DA, 12DB, 12DI and 12DM of the ASIC Act – contraventions of ss 912A, 962P, 963K and 1041H of the Corporations Act – orders and declarations made in each of the six proceedings