24th Nov 2021, 5:40 PM – Representatives Corporations Amendment (Improving Outcomes for Litigation Funding Participants) Bill 2021 - Third Reading - Pass the bill

The majority voted in favour of a motion to pass the bill in the Senate. In parliamentary jargon, they voted to read the bill for a third time. The bill will now go to the Senate for their consideration.

There was one rebellion in this division, with Dawson MP George Christensen (Nationals) crossing the floor to vote against the rest of the Nationals Party.

What does this bill do?

Unfortunately, the parliamentary library has not (yet?) produced a parliamentary digest on this bill, which is usually the best source of non-partisan information on bills.

According to the bill homepage, the bill:

Implements the government's response to the report of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services' inquiry into litigation funding and the regulation of the class action industry by amending the Corporations Act 2001 to: establish a new kind of managed investment scheme called a class action litigation funding scheme; and introduce additional requirements for the constitutions of managed investment schemes that are class action litigation funding schemes.

There was much disagreement in the House about what the actual effect of the bill would be, with opponents like Whitlam MP Stephen Jones (Labor) arguing that it is an "obvious attempt to frustrate, limit and minimise the capacity of litigants who would otherwise have very little access to justice and very little access to a redress arrangement from having their day in court." You can read his whole contribution, and the Government's response, on OpenAustralia.org.au. Note that the debate continued into the following day.