On 26 June 2020, the Full Court of the Federal Court handed down a decision further clarifying responsible lending requirements and confirming that Westpac did not contravene responsible lending obligations in relation to the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 (Cth). ASIC commenced the proceedings in 2017, alleging that Westpac contravened responsible lending laws between 12 December 2011 and March 2015 in relation to certain home loans assessed using Westpac’s automated assessment system. ASIC’s case was dismissed by Perram J on 13 August 2019 (Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Westpac Banking Corporation (2019) 139 ACSR 25; [2019] FCA 1244) and, on appeal, by Gleeson J and Lee J (ASIC v Westpac Banking Corporation [2020] FCAFC 111).
Derek Wong appeared for Westpac (with Jeremy Kirk SC, Justin Williams) and was instructed by Moira Saville of King & Wood Mallesons.
