CBA Storm Financial Resolution Scheme underway
Law firm Slater and Gordon (S&G), which is representing many former Storm Financial clients, has announced that a dispute resolution process between Storm clients and the Commonwealth Bank (CBA) designed to avoid a lengthy litigation process has now been put in place.
Already 1,000 of the estimated 2,500 former Storm investors who had loans with CBA and Colonial First State have shown interest in the scheme, which will provide a process in an attempt to resolve the claims in a more timely and cost efficient manner than going through the courts.
“We want to put these people in the best position possible, we want them to keep their homes,” S&G lawyer Ben Hardwick said.
An S&G statement said the scheme would enable clients’ circumstances to be reviewed by CBA while there would also be a full disclosure of documents and facts by the bank.
S&G will provide independent legal and financial advice paid for by CBA. A former high court justice, Ian Callinan, will provide independent determinations where agreement cannot be reached between CBA and the client.
In addition, a caveat in the scheme enables Storm victims to withdraw from the scheme at any stage and proceed with court action, according to Hardwick.
Any determination in the scheme is not binding on the Storm customer but will be binding on the bank, Hardwick said.
Recommended for you
With the final tally for FY25 now confirmed, how many advisers left during the financial year and how does it compare to the previous year?
HUB24 has appointed Matt Willis from Vanguard as an executive general manager of platform growth to strengthen the platform’s relationships with industry stakeholders.
Investment manager Drummond Capital Partners has announced a raft of adviser-focused updates, including a practice growth division, relaunched manager research capabilities, and a passive model portfolio suite.
When it comes to M&A activity, the share of financial buyers such as private equity firms in Australia fell from 67 per cent to 12 per cent in the last financial year.
