The amount of class action settlements in Australia has soared in the last year and SMEs are at risk, according to data published by King & Wood Mallesons.
The report noted that class-action settlements, particularly a trend towards mass consumer claims, had increased from 18 claims in the prior year to 33 claims in the current year.
SMEs are likely to be impacted due to their significantly increased exposure to risk.
One of the co-authors of the report, Peta Stevenson stated “It’s not so much about the size of an entity, but the entity’s ability to respond to a claim,”.