Everyone trying to catch a falling Star as casino is hit with second class action
Star Entertainment has revealed that it had received notification of a second class action against it.
The Star's Sydney casino
The company, which recently received a show cause notice from the Queensland Government relating to its casino licences in Brisbane and the Gold Coast, said the action had been served by Maurice Blackburn.
“The claim alleges that in the period between March 29, 2016 and March 16, 2022, the Star made misleading representations, including about its systems and processes for compliance with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing obligations; that it failed to disclose relevant information it had about those matters to the market and conducted its affairs contrary to the interests of the members of The Star as a whole,” the company announced this morning.
It said the claim was substantially similar to the separate action launched in March by Slater & Gordon.
Star has until later this month to respond to the show cause notice from Attorney General Shannon Fentiman.
The class actions follow two inquiries, in NSW and Queensland, which exposed significant issues for the company in relation to potential money laundering.
In Queensland, the findings included the claim that it allowed people who were banned from gambling at its Sydney casino to gamble at its Gold Coast property. One gambler was even encouraged with gifts and free travel.
Its actions in NSW led to a $100 million fine and the imposition of a special manager to oversee its operations.
Similar penalties could also occur in Queensland.
Maurice Blackburn has previously said a key part of its case was an audit report conducted by KPMG for Star. It set out deficiencies in Star’s compliance systems.
When this became public, Star’s shares fell by about 23 per cent in one day, wiping out about $1 billion in shareholder value.
Meanwhile, Melbourne’s Crown Casino has been slapped with $120 million in fines for breaches of its responsible service of gambling obligations.
The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) has taken disciplinary action against Crown for ongoing misconduct, imposing two fines.
A 2021 royal commission found the Southbank casino had breached its code of conduct for the Responsible Service of Gambling over several years.
It found the casino failed to prevent gambling harm for its customers and also failed to comply with a statutory direction by the regulator.
