Ann: Commences Federal Court Action against ASX, page-555

I agree. The extent to which the ASX acted on the OM report will be an important part of the case. Particularly in the calculation of damages should ISX win. The ASX are well aware of the propensity for misleading and unsubstantiated reports to be circulated in the market. Therefore, to act on the OM report, without reference to ISX looks negligent and will impact on the punitive component of any damages.

Taking the evidence presented in the statement of claim on face value ISX have a strong case if they were owed procedural fairness. I havent seen this concept explained previously in this thread so I will have a crack.

Procedural fairness is a legal principle that has developed over time through administrative law cases. It holds that administrative bodies should, in exercising their powers, act without bias, make decisions that are rational and supported by the facts and give the affected party the opportunity to be heard before the decision is made.

As a public company the ASX are not an administrative body per se but do derive their power from an act of parliament so should be guided by the procedural fairness principle. This is the Datafin principle referenced in the statement of claim.

I am not a lawyer so my views are based on experience only. If someone can flesh this out in more detail I think it would benefit shareholders.